In this issue:

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Greetings / Salve, 

 

So You Want to be a Sprinter… on Kindle

Based on popular demand, Bud Winter’s 2010 edition of So You Want to be a Sprinter is now available on Kindle.

 

Best of all, it is half priced at $9.99 on Amazon US (.com), Amazon UK (.uk) and Amazon Germany (.de). If you haven't bought this book yet, or if your original copy is worn and soiled, now is a good time to pick it up digitally… forever.

 

How to Race the 200 meters (Video)

A few months ago, I gave a small seminar in which one topic was How to Race the 200 meters. The video slideshow is about 10 minutes long and I posted it on YouTube (more videos to be added). You can download the mp4 file here for your iPhone or computer if you prefer.

Afterwards, I realized I forgot to address how to actually RUN the curve, as I only addressed the block setup.

So here it is below...

 

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How to Run the Curve in the 200/400 meters

Curve running is another important aspect as half your races over 200 meters on the oval track are on the curve.

I’ll break this article down into several parts

Indoor curves: banked vs non-banked

It’s no secret you will run faster on a banked track compared to a flat track. The reason is the banked track helps keep the centripetal force preventing you from going to an outer lane, and therefore get DQ’ed. And that would be bad.

Ironically, my indoor PB for 200m was at a flat track at Dartmouth College, and not the 22 degree banked track at Sherbrooke University… that’s from a lack of indoor 200 on a banked track, as well as the overall hardness of the Dartmouth track. Being in a Canadian University, the focus was on 60 & 300 meters.

Outdoor curves

Obviously, the curvature is greater on the inside lane, as the outer lanes resemble closer to a straight line than the inside lanes. But when you think of it using physics and vectors, the curve is simply a series of 46 straight lines! (i.e. 46 strides in a 100 meters)

There’s no use bitching and complaining about a bad lane draw (unless you get Lane 1, then you can bitch and complain, but not to me!) as they are all 200 meters. Several good 200m performances have run in Lane 8. And let’s not forget Michael Johnson's 200m at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics from a “tight” Lane 3 and still ran 19.32 (and he stumbled, too). Imagine if he had Lane 6 and didn’t stumble?

Starting on the curve

I won’t go into detail about How to Set Up your Starting Blocks on the Curve, because that is covered in the Bud Winter re-release of “The Rocket Sprint Start” book which should be available next month.

Approaching the curve & Running the curve

My trick when I was running open races was dipping the shoulder to gradually lean into the curve.

But years later, I realized that the only adjustment you need to do is tilt your head with the chin pointing down a bit. Thus the hips and shoulders will follow. Your body will naturally lean into the curve. That’s it. Basta!

There is some merit when I say, “It’s all in the head”!

Out of the starting blocks, the first few steps are a straight line until the curve starts.

Going INTO the curve, as in a 300m or 400m outdoor, or 200 meter indoor, start the “lean” (i.e. the head tilt) a few meters back or about 1 or 2 strides before the curve starts.

 

In the picture above, take a look at Andrew Howe on the right. Note his body is leaning, with hips and shoulders in excellent running position. His head is nearly straight, but he is leaning. If you straighten him up (using Photoshop), what will you see?  His head will be tilted with the chin slightly down.

SIDENOTE: don’t “burn the turn” on the 200m unless you have the speed endurance of Michael Johnson.  Review the video above for race execution.

 

Exiting the curve

The final tip is don’t raise or straighten the head until you reach the straightaway.

So there you have it. I hope this clarifies a lot of confusion in curve running.

 

Should Sprinters Warm-Up Less, not More?
2011-06-01 04:00:00-04

Here’s my take on the warm up: Do whatever you have do to get ready when the gun goes off. If there are drills you prefer that are not in my repertoire, that’s fine, go ahead and do it. If you need 90 minutes instead of 60, that’s fine, go ahead. If you need a massage, well, hopefully [...]
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More on Stretching and Movement (Part 3)
2011-06-02 04:15:00-04

This article is (sort of) a continuation to the article on Exercise, Recovery, Regeneration and Movement (Part 1) and Hamstring Injuries, the Iliopsoas and Imbalances (Part 2) The term “stretching” has changed over the past decade as we have seen many variances in stretching.  See Stretching: More on Static, Dynamic, Active Isolated and Resistance Stretching and [...]
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Why are Good Sprinters Pigeon Toed or have Straight Feet?
2011-06-09 04:00:00-04

For a non-pigeon toed sprinter, the best example of the worse case scenario would have to go to Ato Bolden (see the head-on slow-motion video below with Donovan Bailey and Bruny Surin from the 1995 World Championships archives) One of the reasons why Ato runs that way is from his early days playing soccer (football).  But [...]
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Interview with Christophe Lemaître
2011-06-10 03:01:00-04

This interview was taken on June 9, 2011, two days after his 9.96 100 meter National Record at the Montreuil meeting. Q: Christophe, how was your evening after your second place in the 100m at the Montreuil meeting, behind Jamaican Yohan Blake, which culminated in a new French record? Christophe Lemaître: It was quiet. I went back [...]
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More on the Warm Up (Part 7)
2011-06-13 04:00:00-04

This really isn’t Part 7 on the Warm-up, but it could very well be.  Here are 4 previous articles on the warm-up, in case you missed it: Should Sprinters Warm-Up Less, not More?  Ian Jeffreys and the RAMP Warm Up  Dynamic Warm Up vs. Static Stretching Controversy Valeri Borzov – An Hour Before the Start (A MUST READ!) Plus I wrote [...]
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Photo Finish–The Last 10 meters, Drive, Relax, and Dip
2011-06-15 06:45:00-04

This past weekend’s highlight reel had a lot of good footage to show athletes the importance of the last 10 meters. That is, drive for the tape, stay relaxed, prevent further deceleration (where humanly possible!), and dip at the right time. When the race is 100m, you run for 100m, and every step or phase is important.  [...]
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Controversial Hamstring Workout for Rehab (Part 2)
2011-06-20 05:00:00-04

This is part 2 of the article Hamstring Injuries, the Iliopsoas and Imbalances I was asked by a reader what I do for a workout when one pulls their hamstring.  Of course, it depends on the severity of the pull. I emailed him my Hamstring workout for rehab, which he later sent to his REAL coach for [...]
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Craig Pickering: Diet of an Elite Level 100m Runner
2011-06-23 04:01:00-04

In a land of secrecy where elite athletes don’t share their secret workouts, let alone their “supplements”, it’s refreshing to see a some elite athletes open up  their day to day lives of success and failure.  And not about what their dog had for breakfast. Craig Pickering, who could be the next “Great White Hope” is [...]
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How to Avoid Vomiting or Throwing up after 400 meters
2011-06-24 04:00:00-04

After 1300 Blog articles, there is still one topic I haven’t addressed.  That is: How to Avoid Vomiting or Throwing up after running 400 meters or hard special endurance training session. Actually, the 400 flat is not that painful.  It’s the 3 x 325m all out, or split 500’s (300, 200) or even split 700’s (500, 200) [...]
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Fine Tuning your 400 meter Workouts, Part 2
2011-06-27 04:00:00-04

The series started with Training for 400m: Balancing Speed and Special Endurance followed by the article Fine Tuning your 400 meter Workouts, Part 1.  So this is really Part 3 of the series.  Sorry for the confusion. Coaching is really an art and sometimes you have to make adjustments in the spring or early summer depending [...]
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Veronica Campbell-Brown False Start Controversy
2011-06-30 03:40:00-04

Did she or didn’t she? Did Veronica Campbell-Brown false start at the 2011 Jamaican Championships semi-finals? The world of Track and Athletics has come under scrutiny over the past few years.  When someone wins, people immediately think drugs.  When Caster Semenya loses a race, you wonder if she is losing on purpose.  When a high profile athlete [...]
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