Sweethearts in the City of Angels – The 2023 Beach Invitational and Bryan Clay Invitational Meet Recaps

Introduction

Every April, thousands of track and field athletes across the country travel to southern California for a chance to clock fast times and put in good marks. Two of the largest meets that athletes travel to are the Bryan Clay Invitational hosted at Azusa Pacific University and the Beach Invitational hosted at CSU Long Beach. This travel trip was special to me for multiple reasons: my first-time racing on the track in LA, my first big travel trip for competition since surgery, and the biggest showing of Elmwood Athletics on a trip outside of the state of Colorado.

This contingent of athletes traveling to Los Angeles to race included Willie Moore, Zev Caiyem, Jeff Wilson, Josh Rogerson, Tim Chambers, Alexander Fernandez, David Marino and myself. Each of us are connected through Elmwood Athletics yet many of us did not overlap in our college running careers, which made for a unique and fun dynamic. Below is the recount of the trip as it unfolded from my perspective.

Thursday

Our first full day of the trip, and we were greeted with cloudy overcast, a chance of rain, and not the slightest bit of weather resembling the sunshine depicted in the movies. The irony was not lost on the bulk of the crew who had left 75 degrees and sunny weather in Colorado for this. The first day was all about getting established. The first of business: grocery shopping for enough food to feed a small village, and turning some of that food into a delicious, nutrient filled breakfast. Breakfast time was filled with conversations on running, training philosophy, and the possible factors contributing to the rise in countless high-level performances in the NCAA and professional running world. As someone who currently does not get to have these in-depth conversations on a regular basis, it was refreshing and familiar.

After breakfast, we rested for a little bit, and then drove over to a local park to do our shakeout runs at a local park. Most of the guys went for a pre-race of 4 miles and strides, and then after a few pictures and videos, we headed back for lunch. From there, the afternoon was relatively low key with people focused on conserving energy for the races ahead.

The evening was highlighted with a concerted effort to cook dinner, an affair filled with tri-tip steak, salmon, rice, vegetables, and dance/acting shenanigans. As we talked and laughed, I thought about how great this trip was going to be regardless of everyone’s performances on race day. Being runners accustomed to waking up early and with the bulk of our crew racing tomorrow morning, we ended the night at a reasonable hour to ready ourselves for the next day.

Friday

Day 1 of racing for the Elmwood Athletics team. Our team split into 2 contingents in the morning  – Willie, Tim and Jeff traveled to Azusa Pacific in the morning with Tim’s 5k lined up. Coming into the race, Tim had some lingering knee pains that made it painful for him to run for extended amounts of time. Thankfully, Tim was able to complete his racing successfully and clock a 15:09 for 5k, a very solid performance considering pre-meet factors.

Across town at Long Beach, Josh, Zev and David were racing their own 5k’s. Alexander and I traveled with them to support. First on the track were Josh and Zev in heat 1 of the men’s 5k. Both men had put in big training blocks and stayed healthy going into this race and were eager to reap the benefits of their hard-earned training.

The gun went off, and through the first lap, the field was very aggressive with their starts. Josh and Zev made their way to the back of the field to conserve energy.

A 5k on the track is a relentless grind for 12 and half laps, and it was no exception for the two men. Being the only 2 to go out conservatively, they were quickly left behind by the field, forcing them to work together in no-man’s land as they tried to keep the pace honest.

Slowly, as the race progressed, some of the other men in the field who had started out too quickly were paying the price for going out too fast. Little by little, Josh started to move his way up the field. Zev was starting close gaps as well, but at a much more gradual pace than Josh.

The strain from the immensity of the effort was evident for both Josh and Zev in the last 800 meters as they both fought to keep their paces going and to get to the finish line. The results? 15:21 for Josh, 15:33 for Zev. For both Josh and Zev, it is a good day, and for Zev, it is a personal best.

In the second heat of the men’s 5k was David. David was coming in from a triathlon background and was just starting to train again for future marathon racing later in the year. Off base fitness, he was going to see what he could do.

The gun went off, and in a similar fashion, much of the field went out aggressively. David gradually made his way to the back of the pack, and then latched on to the rear. For the first few laps, he worked in the back of a 4-person pack.

As the race progressed, the 4-person pack splintered, and David was left with one other runner. This began a two-man battle as David moved in front and led between the two. The other runner working strategically sat behind David and paced off him. With just over 800 meters to run, the other runner moved around David and began to kick. David latched on, holding on for dear life. Coming down the home stretch with 500 meters to run, all of us cheered for David to keep in contact.

With 300 meters to go, David changed gears and began to kick. All of us began to cheer even more as David rapidly closed the gap on the other runner, caught up to him, and made a decisive move around him. With 200 meters to go, Josh jogged over to a part of the fence to hop over and cheer him on at the start of the homestretch. All of us cheered even more as David powered down the straightaway for his final kick to the finish.  The result? 17:12 for 5k. With consideration for the race execution and his current marathon training background, it is a good day.

After the races were finished, we headed over to the Long Beach Exchange for lunch, and then drove home so that we could meet up with the other guys. A few hours of downtime around the house was in order as the guys who raced showered and ate, and Willie conserved his energy in preparation for racing in the evening at Azusa Pacific.

The evening’s events were highlighted by Willie’s 5k. Coming off a strong training block, he had set his hopes to try and not only run a personal best, but to also break the coveted 14:00 barrier. As Willie was finishing up his warmup preparations, Elmwooder Layla Almasri was in the process of running a personal best in the 5k of 16:28 while representing Palestine. Once her 5k finished, it was time for Willie’s race to go.

As the race unfolded, the men in the race lagged with the pace a little bit. Sensing a potential loss of opportunity, Willie moved to the front to take on pacing duties.

Willie began to alternate a few laps with a couple of runners in the front, until mid-way through the race, 8 runners simultaneously moved past Willie and began to aggressively press the pace. As we watched the race unfold, we all knew that it was going to be a close one, that there was no room for error

Coming into the final few laps, all of us cheered for Willie and yelled at him to keep pressing, to not let up on the pace. The bell lap arrived, and as we watched the clock tick, we knew that Willie was going to need a big kick to break 14:00. Willie often had a strong last lap, but was it going to be enough this time around?

With every 100 meters, the chance of breaking 14:00 minutes became increasingly improbable. As Willie switched to his final sprint gear down the home stretch, we watched the clock time slowly tick past 14:00. Willie’s result was 14:03, a very respectable performance for him and his number 2 all time fastest time. The coveted 14:00 barrier would have to wait for another day though. 

Shortly after the race, Jeff and I departed the track with David so that we could return to our AirBnB. David would be coaching me tomorrow, and Jeff and I needed rest for our 1500 races tomorrow.

Saturday

Day 2 of racing for the Elmwood Athletics crew. This day, Jeff and I were the only ones that were going to be racing, and we were placed together in the same heat of the men’s 1500. It had been a long time since we were in a race together, not since my days of racing in college at UCCS.

We warmed up together, went through our respective pre-race routines, and then gradually made our ways over to the track. Our race timeline had moved up slightly earlier than originally planned with the combination of the first 2 heats of the men’s 1500. Nonetheless, I still felt that I was warmed up enough as the weather was getting quite sunny and warm. With just a touch of wind mild enough to barely notice, it was perfect racing weather for a 1500.

Jeff and I made our way to the track to get in final strides, and I began my final prep for the race. “Heat 4 of the men’s 1500, come over to the start! Heat 4, come over to the start!” I cut my routine 1 stride short but was feeling pretty warmed up already. It was too late to get another stride in anyways. Sometimes, you can’t sweat the small stuff and let it get to you.

The starter for our race walked up to us to give race directions. “Gentlemen! It will be a two command start. When I say, ‘On your marks,’ you will come up JUST behind the start line, and then when everyone is steady, I will fire the gun. Any falls in the first 50 meters and we will restart.” The previous heat of the 1500 finished up, and we awaited the commands of the starter.

“Gentlemen! On your marks!” A slow jog up to the start line, toes just off the white line. There is always the split second on the start line of any track race when your legs feel a little like jelly and you wonder if your legs are going to give you the power to get off the start line well.

CRACK!

“Heat 4 of the men’s 1500…” the sound of the announcer’s voice was quickly drowned out mentally by the clacking of track spikes all around me. The feeling of power came right back to the legs as it usually does, and I start out fast but controlled. With my seed time in the heat, I knew that I would have to start out controlled to maximize my race fitness. I gradually make my way to the back of the pack and settle behind some runners. Behind me, Jeff was making his way around the track a few seconds behind us.

David was standing by the start line to give coaching cues, and each time I rounded the track, I keyed in on his race cues. The immensity of the effort began to hit me just before 400 meters, like it always does in a mile or 1500 race. I continued to press, slowly starting to move my way up the field, putting my trust in my aerobic fitness to sustain my moves.

The third 400 of every mile race or 1500 is always the most grueling, the one that is mentally furthest from the finish. John L. Parker in his book Once A Runner described it best, with one of those descriptions of the third lap being the “No-toys-for-Christmas” times to be endured.

The phrase “No toys for Christmas” popped up in my head as I rounded the track with 700 meters to go. Both the arms and the legs were starting to burn and fatigue, but I still felt strong. Mentally, I had already accepted that this was going to hurt, and that freed me to sustain the pain. One by one, I continued to pass guys who had gone out too fast.

400 meters to run. The clock continues to tick as I glance at it. “3:09…3:10…3:11” I knew I had it in me to break 4:20 for 1500, but I couldn’t let up. I didn’t dare to let up. 300 meters to go, I passed David one last time. “That’s it Tao! Take risks and make moves!” I passed one more runner and began my final kick. I could slowly feel my vision turning into a tunnel. My body was slowly starting to tie up on me, only held together by sheer mental willpower. Down the homestretch, I could feel another runner coming up on me, but I was already maxed out in kicking speed. I was passed with 50 meters to go but used the momentum to pull together the last bits of energy to cross the line.

“4:16… 4:17… 4:18… 4:19…” I crossed the line, just under the 4:20 mark with a new season best and my fastest time since surgery last summer. A wave of pain slapped me as my legs gave out and I collapsed to the ground gasping for air. After what felt like an eternity, I became just coherent enough to know that I needed to get off the track for the next event. I crawled just around a divider that was put up for athletes to keep their stuff in pre-race and then proceeded to continue aggressively inhaling as much air as I could possibly intake.

Gradually, I started to regain my composure enough to sit up. Jeff had also finished his race, running a time 3 seconds faster in the 1500 than he had the previous year. The rest of the Elmwood crew came over to congratulate us on our races, hyped over the race efforts that we had executed to finish off the racing for our crew.

Jeff and I proceeded to run our cooldowns, and then most of the crew headed over to the beach to get their runs in while David waited for me to finish cooling down before we drove over to the beach. Our first stop was Long Beach. Off in the distance was the roars of the Long Beach Grand Prix interspersed with the sounds of the waves crashing on the shores.

After the crew finished their runs, a few of them proceeded to sprint full speed into the ocean to jump in. For some in the crew, this was their first time in a long time seeing the ocean, and time at the ocean was a rare treat as all the crew except myself lived in Colorado. It was my first time being back at an ocean in a long time as well, and it sure felt nice.

 Somewhere along the way prior to Saturday, the guys had decided on establishing a wrestling tournament in the sand. This turned into some high entertainment value of a bunch of runners wrestling each other in 1 on 1 matches, complete with dual commentary from myself and Willie and support photography.

Eventually it was time for lunch, and then another trip to another beach at Redondo Beach. The Elmwood crew walked around Redondo Beach for a little bit, marveling at the posh vibes that the area gave off. We found ourselves eventually on the beach again at a beach volleyball court playing a closely matched 4 on 4 volleyball game. Volleyball with a bunch of runners with highly questionable hand-eye coordination skills is about as entertaining as one would imagine. We eventually finished our game, grabbed dinner at Baja Sharkeez, and then slowly made our way back to one of our cars. Most of the guys except David and I were flying back to Colorado tonight, so David and I said our goodbyes to the rest of the crew before they departed for the airport.

Sunday

The final day in LA for David and I arrived, and we started the morning off meeting with one of our good friends and UCCS alumni Ryder Tam for a run around the outskirts of Griffith Park. As we talked on our run and got caught up, I thought about how nice it was to see friendly face from another time of life. We parted ways after a quick breakfast, and then David and I grabbed lunch and boba before heading to the airport to fly to our respective homes.

Conclusion

A few weeks prior to this meet, I had a chance to catch up with my college coach before I ran my outdoor season opener, and for my race he said to me, “The win is in being able to be there.” In this post-collegiate stage of our running careers, all of us are still in pursuit of defining and redefining our own excellence, but we approach it with the perspective of acknowledging that there is more to life than just running, and that at the end of the day, we all pursue this sport because of our love for it. The most precious things gained from travel trips like this is not only the chance to clock fast times, but also the chance to reconnect with old friends, make new friends, and create memories that will outlast our current physical fitness. For now, the Beach Invitational and Bryan Clay Invitationals have passed, but the hope is established that this will not be the last time a large contingent of Elmwood Athletics runners travel together to compete.

Until the next trip, let’s all keep EAT’ing

Thanks to Alexander Bohlen Photography for capturing our group picture at Long Beach and running/racing pictures for Jeff and myself!