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NYC HALF MARATHONMarch 15, 2013Janet BawcomNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK Q.  How has 2013 began after the amazing 2012? JANET BAWCOM: I think it started out great. I ran the 15K last weekend, and after six months of not racing, it was a good start for sure. Q. 2012, can you describe that year? It seemed like your breakout year. JANET BAWCOM: I think so. For some people, they dream of winning six National Championships and going to the Olympics in their whole career, and I did that in about 18 months. I cannot‑‑ you know, it was just awesome. It's been a blessed year for me for sure. Q. And to represent the U.S. after your whole journey. JANET BAWCOM: Yeah, it was‑‑ I don't know if I'd call it a dream come true because I didn't have it. So I don't know if I can call it that, but it was quite an experience for me. It was just awesome to put on the USA uniform and just be out there proud and represent them well. I think I did well enough. I ran a PR and couldn't ask for anything better than that. Q. Going forward, what are your goals? It's hard to top 2012 and that 18‑month stretch you were talking about. JANET BAWCOM: It is. But for me, I just have to take one leg at a time, one day at a time. I don't know what would happen. Running, as a career, you can step in a hole, and that's the end of your career. I just have to do the best I can for every single race I enter and just evaluate from there and keep going forward for sure. Goal‑wise, I'm hoping to hit the track and just do like normal road work. Q. I think what distinguishes you from other athletes is you race so frequently you race and are usually winning or top three. What's your key to success every time? How do you recover so fast? JANET BAWCOM: I think, for me, just racing is what I love the most. Training, there's some days I get up, and I'll be like, oh, I don't want to do this today, but I know this race is coming up, and I just look forward to it. That's what keeps me going. If I wasn't racing, then why would I be training? I'm older, and you know what, I got to race as much as I can right now when I can, and I love it. I enjoy it. When the fun gets out of me, probably I'll just have to stop. And I think just the durability of it, I don't know if it's because I started when I was older, but recovering, I do‑‑ I think it's the way my workouts are structured. When I go to a race, we count that as a workout, and some races I just have to do them as workouts. Some races I just have to key and say I have to have‑‑ I have to be on my "A" game today. So I think that's what keeps me going for sure and just keeps me racing more. Q. So when you say you come into races kind of like they're workouts, how do they differ like from your average weekly workout during the week to the races? Obviously, it must be a different mentality you're entering in. JANET BAWCOM: Yeah, it is. I have people to run with, and I think races are‑‑ in my point of view, I feel like races are way easier than my workouts. If you can pull out one of Jack's workouts, you'll be like, oh, I don't know if I can do that, and doing it by yourself, you know. So I feel comfortable doing races more than the workouts for sure that Jack's given to me. Q. You're based in Arizona, correct? JANET BAWCOM: Yes, I'm in Flagstaff, Arizona. Q. Are you training with anybody? JANET BAWCOM: I meet up with people, different people all the time, but my husband is on the bike for most of the time. There are guys there that I can call up and say, can you help me with this workout? And they always do. I feel so much this guy who lives in New York, Joseph, who I did a lot of my workouts with. And there's another guy, like course run, and I have Chris Gomez, and he really helps me with a lot of my workouts. So, yeah, I know different people. Q. Seems like kind of a team effort. JANET BAWCOM: Yes, it is. Q. You're individual for most of it, but you're asking for help. JANET BAWCOM: Yes, it is. Some days you really need that boost for sure, you know. The workouts might be so long that you just need somebody beside you. And my husband does a good job on the bike, but it's not the same as somebody who's running. Sometimes he'll be like, okay, we've got to pick it up a little bit, and I'm thinking, you're on the bike. You don't know what it feels. Q. Easier said than done. JANET BAWCOM: But when you have somebody next to you, it's great. Q. Coming to New York after the first time back in New York after Hurricane Sandy and the cancellation of the race, are you excited to race in the city and kind of‑‑ JANET BAWCOM: I really am excited to be in New York. Every time they talk about New York, I just love the city. The community is so supportive, and the New York Road Runners put an awesome event up. So they take care of us really well. So I'm always excited to be back in New York. Unfortunately, I didn't get to run the 26.2, but I'll have a chance this weekend to do the half. Q. Does it give you any motivation or excitement kind of because last time was cancelled, to get back in it? JANET BAWCOM: Yes, it really does. I trained for all those months, and I think it will all come together this weekend. I feel like it's a win‑win situation for me. Q. Now, after the period when it was cancelled, you didn't race for a while, did you? JANET BAWCOM: No. Talking about 2012, I had been racing for almost two years straight, and as you say, I race quite a bit. At that point, we had‑‑ our plan was to run New York and then take some time off, since I had not taken a break. We went back and talked about it with my husband and Jack, and we feel that, okay, we keep pushing and try to get another marathon in, then I'll still have to take time off, and it's going to push 2013 farther. So it was best just for us to just stop there, and mentally, I think I was tired too. So I really needed a break. I took six weeks off completely, nothing. Q. Kind of pretended the marathon actually kind of did happen, so you just took the break. JANET BAWCOM: Yes. Because I was looking forward to it, and it was just so hard to turn around and think of racing in two weeks. Tapering for me is just a little different for sure. I peak, you now. I cannot taper for three weeks and still have a good race. That's not the way my body works. Most of the time, I don't taper for most of the races. So anyway, I was talking about the tapering part. I don't do so well tapering a lot. So I just‑‑ so it was just hard because the marathon you're going to taper for sure. So I had tapered for two weeks, and to go back up, and it was just so hard to put the pieces together for it to work for 2013. Q. Now, coming into Sunday's race, is there a time goal? Make it two wins, two weekends? JANET BAWCOM: You know it would be awesome, but the thing is my race, my fastest was last weekend in six months, and we're still trying to figure out where I am, taking time off and coming back. I just have to run a smart race and just hope it's going to go well. I don't really have a time goal, and I still have to talk to Jack about it. I think whatever I do, I think I'll be happy with it. Q. Now, is that Jack, your coach Jack Daniels? JANET BAWCOM: Yes, that's Jack Daniels. Q. Yes, that's what I thought. JANET BAWCOM: Yes. Q. How's he doing? JANET BAWCOM: He's been doing good work. He had a little bit of health issue. He had a thing last week, so I've not seen him yet. I think he's doing well. For an 80‑year‑old, he's motoring. Q. He must be happy with your results? JANET BAWCOM: Yes, he is. He's really happy for me, and I just love the relationship we have, that he's brought me this far. Q. Thank you very much. JANET BAWCOM: Thank you. Q. Good luck on Sunday. I'm sure I'll see you between then and now. JANET BAWCOM: Sounds good. Thanks. Q. I just have a few quick questions for you. JANET BAWCOM: Sounds good. Q. Last weekend you won the USA 15K Championship. JANET BAWCOM: Yes. Q. That was a lot of time off between races. Could you talk a little bit about that. JANET BAWCOM: You know, the 15K was one of those races that I just went there to see how I feel and just didn't really have a race plan in place for sure, but it worked out well. Whatever we had talked about with Coach just fell in place. It was great. It was one of those things that I knew I was getting back in shape but I didn't‑‑ you know, I wasn't as confident. So that added a little bit of confidence in coming into this week. Q. It's a one win last weekend, a good chance maybe at another win this weekend. Where would you say that confidence level is at? JANET BAWCOM: It's pretty good, you know. You go into something, and you're 50‑50, and you come out with a win. I think it's gone up for sure. I'm pretty confident that I'll have a good race for sure. Q. Is there a goal that you have in mind yet? JANET BAWCOM: Not yet. I just have to see where the field is and how‑‑ when I wake up in the morning, is it going to be freezing? You've got to put those puzzles together and see how that will work out. So I think it's going to be good. I'll just have to see what Sunday brings. Q. So you've been training in Arizona. So talk a little bit about what maybe some of the workouts you've been doing over the last week or so in preparation for this weekend's race. JANET BAWCOM: It's been more of tempo type stuff since I kind of train more towards like the longer stuff just to get me ready for the shorter stuff. So it's been more like tempo stuff and just long legs. I haven't done any track workouts, that's for sure. That will come when it gets warmer. Track is not my favorite thing, so I try to avoid it as much as I can. It's been going well. I've been beating the times Coach gives me. And I think I'm good. Q. So you just got into New York either‑‑ JANET BAWCOM: Last night. Q. Last night. Could you talk about, I guess, the weather and all that. Do you think that will be a factor at all for you? Maybe even the time adjustment from when your regular practices are to when race time is going to take off. JANET BAWCOM: For the most part, since I race a lot, I tend to adjust pretty well. And with just a race coming up, you don't even sleep‑‑ I don't. I wouldn't say for everybody. I don't sleep well. I'm just ready for that race. So it's not really going to matter how well, I'll be up and going. For the weather, in Flagstaff, it's been snowing. It's been cold until this week. It's going to be beautiful, and I'm in New York with high 40s. I think it will play to my part for sure. I like to race in the cold anyway. Q. And then you said a little bit about not really liking running on the track. So the Olympic experience, what was the biggest thing that you took out of that? JANET BAWCOM: Oh, it was awesome. I learned that six miles on the track doesn't feel that long. It went so fast, I don't even remember. I remember the first mile, and that's about it. It was an amazing experience. I just had a lot of fun. I was not nervous for a second, which was a problem for me, always a little bit of that nervousness. I didn't have one. I was like I guess it's going to go slow today, but it did not. It was just an amazing experience, great field. Q. And from there, shortly after that, you went out to Kenya. So what were some of the things that you did out there? JANET BAWCOM: At that time, I have always gone probably back to Kenya for altitude training when it's cold in Flagstaff, but we made a point this time to go for a vacation just go see family, take family from here to meet my other family, and we just‑‑ my husband went for safari, and they loved it. It rained every day. And we just enjoyed visiting with family for sure. Q. And then the New York City Marathon, that got cancelled. So from there, did that throw off a little bit of your training, or where did you have to pick up the pieces from there? JANET BAWCOM: It didn't really throw off my training. It just I felt like you train for the marathon, and you want to run it, feel good about it, and that was the hardest thing for me to take. Otherwise, we just decided it was late in the season, and I just needed to take some time off, and I took my time off then came back in January. So it didn't really‑‑ it took a little bit of adjustment, but not a lot. Q. So tenth place in 2011, fifth place last year. Do you see yourself possibly bettering that mark or at least really hoping for it? JANET BAWCOM: I'm hoping for it. I've seen myself there, yeah, it's possible. I will be excited to make it a better position, at least better than five. So should be good. Q. Thanks a lot. JANET BAWCOM: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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