Syracuse cross-country runners adjust to indoor season, shorter races

As soon as Martin Hehir crossed the finish line, he heard the crowd groan.

He was confused. Hehir had won his heat, but when he turned to look at the scoreboard, his time read 4:00.04.

Hehir shook his head, trying to laugh it off how close he was to a sub-four-minute mile.

Though Hehir felt disappointment last year in Boston, he finally eclipsed the mark on Saturday with 3:59.81 mile at the Penn State National race. The mile is only run indoors, meaning Hehir has had to wait a full year to get that chance. So far he and his team are acclimating to the subtle adjustments from cross-country to track and field. Differences such as weather, mileage and an increase in speed work.

Coming indoors after a successful cross-country campaign has presented slight alterations in his preparation, but there are also some big differences as well.

“You can tell that you’re going so much faster,” Justyn Knight said. “The distances are smaller so you’re allowed to pick it up a lot more. Plus, in cross-country you’re on your feet thinking, ‘Have we reached the checkpoint yet?’ But in track you know the distance because your coach is telling you.”

Knight said he prefers track because the style of running is the same no matter the location or timing of the race. Cross-country courses vary in hills and weather, but track is always the same. The records hold more value because everyone’s using the same track.

Knight set a Canadian junior record on Saturday, when he ran a 3:59.51 mile at PSU.

“Racing indoors is a lot more fun than outdoors,” Hehir said. “The crowd is so much closer to the track and its packed and you feel the excitement more.”

Competing indoors eliminates the weather variable from final times, but it also makes the runners train in drier air. Hehir — despite his distaste for the cold weather — still trains outdoors.

Going outside means the team puts away its split short-shorts in favor of tights. Going outside is a must, though, because there’s only so much training the team can complete indoor.

Now, in the transition period between training for cross-country and track and field, head coach Chris Fox is keeping the mileage up. The speed work won’t come until later.

“We here at Syracuse fortunately don’t go all-out in indoor,” he said. “But we really get serious about racing Valentine’s Day week and get on the track to get our speed up.”

Getting speed up means doing more short-distance workouts rather than long runs. The longest race the team runs in indoor is a 5K, whereas SU can run double that outdoors.

Most of the tracks the Orange run on are 200 meters, but the one in Manley Field House is slightly longer, which means the team runs fewer laps.

During cross-country the team would never stop moving during practice, but now they get a one- or two-minute break after a more intense run for a shorter interval.

The team runs in a single-file line a few times around the track, which Knight said keeps things challenging and forces everyone to keep up.

Not dropping is tough for a cross-country crop of runners who hope to maintain success from their season as they transition to track and field. The constant rotation is difficult because of the subtle differences between two sports, but change is something they’re getting used to.

“We’re taking our time,” Fox said. “But getting on the track means speeding up.”