To run in Toruń (ama/blog sorta)

[Coyote Mas Loco]

About to embark on my trip to run in the World Masters Athletics competition in Toruń, Poland. It's the indoor track and field championships (held every other year), but they are also hosting "nonstadia" events, an 8K cross country, 10K road race and half marathon. I signed up for all three but will likely do two of the three because that'd be a lot of racing in just 5 days. 

Here is the event website. https://wmaci2019.com/

I'm a nervous nellie right now, not about the competition--that part will take care of itself--but simply the logistics of getting there. I have a layover in Europe and not much time to get through customs to catch the flight to Warsaw. Rookie booking error. Supposedly there will be an agency hosting a 2 hr bus ride once I get to Warsaw, but details on that are sketchy. My lodging will be spartan, a dorm about 3 miles from the venues. Had a heck of at time with getting a room. They want me to show up by 8 PM tomorrow or will cancel my reservation. Hope that email and phone contacts work for all that! So a bit of foreboding just to make the trip without too many hitches or delays. But hopefully in 24 hours I'll be on the bus on the way to Toruń.

I'll post up some updates as we go.

[Fast Eddie]

Good luck.  Bring a lot of bribe and Uber money.   

[Richard21142]

Good Luck!

[nadra's babydaddy]

GOGOGO!!!  Just channel your inner Zatopek and do it all.   

[diablita]

Super excited for you!!  Good luck!

[Coyote Mas Loco]

Made through a 28 hour travel day with planes, a train, my automobile, and a packed mini bus lugging a trailer. Made all connections but the planes, nearly six thousand miles, and seven hour mini bus ordeal were really drawn out.

Left the house on time and drove just few miles to the light rail, which I took to the airport. Just before arriving got an ominous text saying that my flight from NYC to Paris was cancelled. But they’d get back to me with a new schedule. Got routed to Salt Lake City and Amsterdam instead but arrived in Poland at the same time. Just a few more hours on planes and tarmacs. But actually easier to get around those airports than the original itinerary.

All good only slept a bit on the cramped flight over the sea, and the last hour and a half it was impossible because of about 20 men chatting like hens the entire time, occasionally breaking into chants and song. I assume they were Polish on a work crew but they sure were boisterous.

Got to the airport and had a mild panic at not seeing the pick up crew and thought I’d have to take a rail or bus on my own. But the coordinator was simply not holding up the sign because she was taking down information from us weary travelers. This created some confusion and chaos and we had to delay 2 hours at the airport to get everyone there and the driver to pick us up. Finally she led us outside like a young mother duck with I believe 16 masters athletes from age about 50 to 80s. The majority Americans but we had some Poles and Spaniards and smattering from places I was not sure of. Driver shows up gesticulating and they pow pow for several minutes before he speeds off. Ten minutes later returning with the same van but now towing a small trailer for our luggage.

It was supposed to be a 2.5 hour ride but stretched into 5 by the time I got to my hotel. Drove nearly 3 hours on freeways and highways, landscape much like upstate New York on the lake plain outside of buffalo or parts of Ohio-Indiana along I 80. Farm fields broken up by copses of pine and birch. Very flat. Individual farms though, not thousand acre corporate expanses. Saw some roe deer feeding in the fields, ravens perched for an easy meal, and a storks nest.

Utter chaos as the drive prdropped each of us off individually, most in the university and old town section with narrow streets and busy evening traffic. One of the Americans, an elderly thrower, and the Spaniards made the most fuss sowing discord and angst resulting in several passengers to abandon the van and take their chances on the streets either walking to their destination or taxi/Uber. A Polish American woman runner did her best to keep the peace and to keep driver and pass info to the passengers.

Other than our impromptu interpreter I was last to be dropped off. Much further out than anyone else, at a small Catholic college about 5 km from the venues and city center. It’s exceedingly quiet here. I have a whole wing of the dorm to myself. Would like to be closer in but it’s all that was available unless I had a car and I’m right on the bus routes. And price can’t  be better. Even bests a rom through Airbnb.

Today I’ll run to the venue and get my credentials, preview the xc course and see about getting some food and supplies for my room. And I’ll sleep some more this afternoon.

So that’s a first draft of my first leg of the trip.

[diablita]

Thanks for sharing.  Glad you made it ok.

[Fast Eddie]

Whoa, already quite an adventure.  Rest well, shake off the jet lag and good luck.

[nadra's babydaddy]

MOREMOREMORE!!!

[Arrojo]

Good luck!  A big crew of my Mass velocity friends are there, say hi to them from Arnie.

[Coyote Mas Loco]

Bronze medal in 8K cross country. Running the half marathon on Saturday.

[Arrojo]

Third in the WORLD!!! Huge congrats!

[diablita]

whoa!  congrats!!!  Do you get to see more of Poland (in addition to watching other events) in the meantime?

[Fast Eddie]

Congrats on the podium finish and good luck in the upcoming Half.  All those cabbage rolls are doing you good. 

[Richard21142]

Bronze medal in 8K cross country.

[nadra's babydaddy]

YESYESYES!!!  Once you show your book pages and randy verifies you didn't cut the course we shall celebrate!

 

[Coyote Mas Loco]

About 4 or 5 days going to write up some more on my impressions here, it was all in my head, but then got caught up in events and a crash course in recovery.

I like it here and would like to have more time to see the country, but also looking forward to getting back home and into the normal routine.

The first several days were challenging because even little things were quite different, from the convoluted route to wend my way to my hotel/dorm room to figuring out bus schedules, let alone routes. Meal schedules and diet, the money system, and of course language. English is the second language at the meet but outside of that you are on your own. Some speak in halting English, but more than half do not—even at tourist places. So other than hand signals a few times I’ve resorted to google to find a word and I’ll show it to them. And even saying thank you with a reasonable pronunciation is not easy. Fortunately the hosts have been very kind and patient. Just walk around with your credentials tag and the will help you out.

I think it would be amazing to spend a couple months here with some immersive language training. That way you’d really get to know the country and it’s people. In the meantime I’ve enjoyed going to the old town and wandering around there. It’s touristy but also authentic. It’s Pearl Street Mall times X5. Five times older, and five or ten times larger. And the cobblestones are for real, not to mention 600 year old castle walls (and older if you venture outside the city center).

In the people I see a generation gap. Many of those over about 50 show the weathering effects of the Soviet occupation that ended 30 years ago, while the students at the large university that I pass by every on the way to the sports venues and city look and dress like millennials anywhere. People are thinner than in the USA, but they also smoke and vape more.

It’s also been fun to interact with the athletes, because that’s why we’re here and so we have an instant bond. One of my favorites was on the bus ride back the other day I sat next to a thrower from Kazakhstan, about my age. He could barely speak English but we had a conversation about our events and countries. And ended up showing pictures, him skiing in the rugged mountains outside of Almaty and I show him a photo of of the Rockies.

And running for the USA, while wearing the USA gear, has been an honor in its own right. The other night before a team social at a swanky hotel six of us yanks piled into a four seat old Yugo and went to town for dinner, acting a bit silly taking selfies and videos as we ventured into old town. The USATF event later was a little lame, they drew it out too long, but the pre-meal with new friends was a blast, like being on a college team again.

Finally the race on Saturday is going to be tough! I’ll be going against the gold medalists from the distance races, a guy from Kazakhstan (set s world record in the 3000 and then won 10K road by more than a minute) and the Finnish runner who blew open the xc race on Monday after about 5K. But other than that I should be right in there, and they’ve done 8-9 miles of racing this week while I’ve just done a little under 5.

[diablita]

Thanks for sharing.  Super excited for you!  Good luck in your last race.

[nadra's babydaddy]

GOGOGOGO!!!!

I think it would be amazing to spend a couple months here with some immersive language training. That way you’d really get to know the country and it’s people. In the meantime I’ve enjoyed going to the old town and wandering around there. It’s touristy but also authentic. It’s Pearl Street Mall times X5. Five times older, and five or ten times larger. And the cobblestones are for real, not to mention 600 year old castle walls (and older if you venture outside the city center).

But are the people who hang out there five times as weird? 

[Rochey]

Good luck coach!!