Road to Houston Recap

We are now in the week of the race and this page will serve as a quick recap of the previews and interviews. I'll add everything to this page as we go along as well. Good news on my end as well, as I just booked my flight, hotel and rental car for the weekend. I will be in Houston! I look forward to meeting everyone. If you'll be in attendance, send me an email.

Early Predictions
Published on December 18, 2011

Check out early race previews before declarations:

Click here for Men's Race early preview

Click here for the Women's Race early preview

5 Questions with Joe Moore
Published on December 20, 2011

"There was a tight turn at the finish, and I saw the clock tick over 1:04:50, and I knew I had it. It was more just a huge relief that I had finally gotten it."

Click here to read the Joe Moore interview

5 Questions with Molly Pritz
Published on December 23, 2011

"Both in training and the race I found an inner strength I never knew I had and I'd like to think that my NYC experience has not only made me a stronger runner, but a stronger person in every aspect of life."

Click here to read the Molly Pritz interview

5 Questions with Addie Bracy
Published on  December 27, 2011

"It took me a year or two to adjust to the difference in training, as well as my training environment. It wasn't until the last 8 months that I really felt that I had a breakthrough."

Click here to read the Addie Bracy interview

5 Questions with Danny Mercado
Published on December 28, 2011

"But after tireless nagging from the guys, Greg decided to give me a shot. From there, everything just clicked."

Click here to read the Danny Mercado interview

5 Questions with Tyler McCandless
Published on December 30, 2011

"How big was Kauai for me? It was really a game-changer. Financially, it was important because I was able to use that money for a down-payment on a house."

Click here to read the Tyler McCandless interview

5 Questions with Meagan Nedlo
Published on December 31, 2011

"It was such an incredible, incredulous offer that I had no choice but to say yes! And so that's how I began my first collegiate track season at the ripe old age of 26."

Click here to read the Meagan Nedlo interview

5 Questions with Brent Vaughn
Published on January 1, 2012

"My goal at the trials is to make the team. I think thats the reason I'm running. Training has gone very well and I think strange things sometimes happen over the marathon distance "

Click here to read the Brent Vaughn interview

5 Questions with Drew Polley
Published on January 2, 2012

"The fact that my training partners and I have handled most of the workouts pretty well doesn’t change the goals we set at the beginning of the segment though. The Hanson bosses will tell you that it is important to stick to your plan and run your own race!"

Click here to read the Drew Polley interview

5 Questions with Fernando Cabada
Published on January 3, 2012

"I have what it takes. I've won 3 USA Championships... and am in better shape now. If I was to run a 2:08 on January 14th, that wouldn't surprise me. I've been due for a performance like that. It's on and I'm ready for any kind of race."

Click here to read the Fernando Cabada interview

5 Questions with Jesse Armijo
Published on January 5, 2012

"I'm more of a racer, but in the marathon, all my pervious performances were calculated failures by going out with a watch and clicking off even splits, until I inevitability faded. At CIM, I decided to just race."

Click here to read the Jesse Armijo interview

5 Questions with Ricky Flynn
Published on January 7, 2012

"I ended up going to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Half and had a really good race with some good guys to run with and it worked out really well. It was a huge weight off my chest when I hit the time and I surprised myself a little bit by being that far under 65:00. It was a great feeling."

Click here to read the Ricky Flynn interview

Watch out for the Wild Cards
Published on January 11, 2012

Here we take a look at some of the overlooked competitors and wonder who will be this year's Brian Sell. We feature Bak, Cabada, Hartmann, Lehmkuhle and Morgan, Cherobon-Bawcom, Hastings, Kastor, Rhines and the newly-signed (to Asics) Molly Pritz.

Click here to read the full article

5 Questions with Luke Puskedra
Published on January 13, 2012

"I feel that I have underachieved on the track compared to results in Cross Country and the workouts I’ve done. I’d like to run fast in the 5000 and 10,000 and win some team titles... to finish off my college career."

Click here to read the Luke Puskedra interview

First impressions of Houston and Predictions
Published on January 13, 2012

I give my predictions for who I think is going to make the team for the 2012 London Olympic Games and give thanks for the people that showed me around today and recognize my fellow "unofficial track press."

Read the full article with predictions here

Meb and Shalane triumph, while Abdi surprises in Olympic Trials Marathon
Published on January 14, 2012

The results went pretty much to prediction, with the exception of Abdi Abdirahman beating out Ritz for the third and final Olympic spot. Meb and Hall qualified as well, with Shalane, Desi and Kara on the Women's side.

Read the full article on the race here

Final Trials Thoughts and Fantasy Recap
Published January 16, 2012

Houston put on an excellent show this weekend. The trials lived up to the hype and I also made the podium in the highly competitive fantasy draft.

Read my thoughts and get the fantasy scoop here

Bookmark this page for continued coverage of the 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials in Houston, TX on January 14, 2012.

Follow writing about running on Twitter and Facebook

Road to Houston: 5 Questions with Olympic Trials competitor, Jesse Armijo

Today, we were lucky enough to have 5 Questions with someone whose "Road to Houston" has been a little different than most! We'll have a few more of these features as we lead up to the big day on January 14, 2012.

Jesse Armijo has a great story. He's 29 and is just starting to come into his own. Having qualified for the trials at the California International Marathon just over a month ago, he'll have his hands full in Houston, but seems up to the task. He was coached by Steve Scott in college and now lives with the great Henry Rono!  Follow his excellent blog here.

5 Questions with Jesse Armijo

1. Writing About Running: Where did you run in college and what were your PR's coming out?

Jesse Armijo: I ran at one of the many California State schools called, California State University San Marcos. Steve Scott was my coach and infused us with speed workouts, but my PR's weren't that impressive:

1500m - 3:58
5000m - 14:58
10000m - 31:41
8k xc - 25:08

2. Writing About Running: You're 29 years old now. What have been some highlights of your career since college and before qualifying for the trials?

Jesse Armijo:  I didn't really notice much improvement until I started increasing my mileage around 2008, which presented me with a surprise PR in the half marathon of 1:04:55. Other highlights could be a 6th place finish at the 2009 USATF club nationals, 16th place finish at the 2010 USA Cross Country Championships and a 10,000m PR of 28:59.96, which qualified me for the 2010 USA Track and Field Championships.

Running the 10,000 at Stanford

3. Writing About Running: You recently qualified for the trials at the California International Marathon (CIM) in a big PR of 2:17:19. How'd it feel to not only best the 2:19:00 standard, but to really break through with such a big PR?

Jesse Armijo: It was an emotional feeling to see the clock click away at 2:17. After halfway, I thought I was going to run an incredible time for myself, and since I didn't have a watch, I didn't know what my splits were, except for the halfway split (about 1:07:16). Once 20 miles or so came around, I started to fade and was expecting a 2:19 and complete failure, as I wouldn't be in the trials, but I was wrong. After getting the time and making a few mistakes in the race, I now feel confident I can keep improving and bring down my time even more. I think that 2:17 was a long time coming, and I just needed the right preparations to make it happen. I'm more of a racer, but in the marathon, all my pervious performances were calculated failures by going out with a watch and clicking off even splits, until I inevitability faded. At CIM, I decided to just race.

Henry Rono could fly

4. Writing About Running: Your roommate is the great Henry Rono. First off, how'd that happen to be and how's he helped you along the way?

Jesse Armijo: It is a very long story... Well, first off, I came to Albuquerque to be coached by Henry Rono and workout with a former CSUSM runner (Kris Houghton, who was coached by Henry). I was coached by Henry, until he gained his citizenship, and was offered a job to coach the Yemen Junior National Team. This happened around the spring of 2009. Henry wasn't coaching me or Kris until things started to get shady in Yemen (for Henry). He returned to Albuquerque in late 2010 and a friend of ours, who was in contact with Henry while he was in Yemen, picked him up from the airport and brought him to our house (a 5 bedroom house with 4 runners living in it). What was going to be temporary, turned permanent, as it was a good idea to have Henry stay with us, since he was also happier being around runners.

His advise and wisdom have been yoda-like, as he captivates us with his stories. He has helped me along the way by keeping me positive and understanding how to "read" by body, as most of the Kenyans do when they workout and recover.

5. Writing About Running: What is your goal for the trials?

Jesse Armijo: My goal at the Trials is to run a PR and beat as many guys (as possible) in the process.

Stay tuned for more articles this upcoming week and continued coverage leading up to the 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials in Houston, TX on January 14, 2012.

Follow writing about running on Twitter and Facebook