VISIT TO ADAMS SCHOOL

Costa Mesa, CA
April 6th, 2011




Amazing how life works! Im back for a few weeks to the place where my life in the US started, Orange County. While Im here mainly for sea level training (lots of running), nothing makes me more excited than having the opportunity to reach out to our youth in the place than once open the doors for me.



It was here in Costa Mesa where I took my first English classes, where I first learned about running, graduated from high school, went to a Junior College and eventually ended up transferring to Adams State College in Colorado. Now, back in town, It only made sense to go out there and give something back to the community.



This time I had the opportunity to run and visit with students from Adams School during their 20 minute Jog Walk event. The event started at 8:30 a.m on April 6th. After taking some pictures and videos, I stayed a bit longer to visit with some students while they were in class.



I have to thank the principal and teachers for allowing me to share some of my experiences with the students. To all the kids that participated, "Great Job". It is my hope that all your dreams and aspirations come true. Who knows maybe, a few years from now, many of you will be the ones coming back sharing your experiences to the new generations. One thing is for sure, my visit to Adams School will be one to remember. Thank You All for making it so SPECIAL!



Be, Dream, and Believe!

SEA LEVEL TRAINING AND MORE

First and formost, HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my LITTLE FRIEND THEA from NH. Hope you had a lot of fun, ice cream, and Cake

Toni-Lynn Salucci, Me Litzy and Mariana

Im writing this post from the place where my life in the United States started. Im in Costa Mesa, California for some sea level training. I plan on staying here for a period of six weeks. During this time I plan on doing some track races with a major focus on the 10km.Im quite nervous and excited about this new addition in training. Its has been almost 7 years since I last stayed at sea level to train. Me and my Coach are very confident that in the long run this decision will bea great benefit.

The main issue I had before taking this step was the ITA after school tutoring program. Things are going so well that the last thing I wanted to do was leave my kids. The good news is that I have two wonderful people that were willing to help me out during the time Im gone. Under the supervision of the Immigrant Resource Center, Norma and Phil will be fully in charge of the program while Im gone. In the past two weeks, the kids have been fairly busy with stadarized testing which means barely homework.Plus, Im glad this upcoming week calls for their spring break. So, in a way Im glad the sea level training block is happening now.

While here, I have done a couple of short races to test my track abilities. One of them was at the UCI Spring Break Invitational where I had the opportunity to visit and cheer with Coach and members of ITA NH Track Club. For this meet I focus on racing the 1500m. Ended up finishing 4th with a time of 4:29.74 just a second slower than my personal best. Not bad at all after, a week of traveling, high mileage, and adjustment to new environment.

My second race was this past Friday at Cal State Fullerton. Once again, I raced the 1500m with no taper. Finish 5th with a 4:36. I was not very happy with the results as I was hoping to be faster than the previous race. Im sure high mileage (100 miles per week) and running more hills than usual play a significant role on my performance. My body just felt tired. An hour later I jumped into the 5km to use as a workout. I ended up running with an amazing group of collegiate athletes from Cornell who where pacing their teammates. It turned into a fun,and fast workout. That night, I ended up running 17:07 for 5km.

Next on my schedule, Mt Sac Relays.