Dec 6, 2007
Todd Snyder - Hanson/Brooks Views- 982

Todd finished 47th place at the Olympic Trials in a time of 2:21:30. Read on to find out about his thoughts on his training and race.

RM: What are your thoughts on your performance at the marathon trials looking back?

TS: I was pretty happy with the outcome. I would have liked to run a bit faster, but I went out conservative because I didn't know what to expect. But I felt very strong through the whole race. Around mile 22 or 23 someone told me that Brian was in third and that pumped me up for the rest of my race. Everyone was telling me that around the last loop, they would cheer for me and then yell, "Sell's in third place!" It was exciting.

RM: What information/knowledge do you feel like you gained from the marathon trials?

TS: I learned that the marathon doesn't always feel like a death march. I trained hard this segment and some of the workouts and runs felt like I was in over my head, but I think that made the marathon more managable. I didn't ever panic, usually I freak out somewhere between 18 and 22 miles and the last 5K feels like a 10K. But I felt like I was able to run every loop as strong as the one before. So I have more confidence in the distance.

RM: What was your recovery like after the trials? How much time off and did you do any cross training?

TS: I took off about two weeks, which was nice to recover, but I'm always excited to go after it again right after a race, especially reading about Ryan Shay's life. Every article I read talked about how hard he worked and how intense he was and how much he loved running. That really inspired me, so this recovery time I was chomping at the bit to get started again. I swam and did some eliptical. But I kept thinking about a quote I read in the paper where Ryan told his dad something like 'There are a lot of guys who are more talented then I am, but none of them are going to work harder than I do.' I thought about that a lot when I was cross training and planning out my next couple of years in running.

RM: How did you like the Central Park course setup and the rest of the organization of the NYRR?

TS: I loved running in Central Park, the course was awesome and the NYRR organization was amazing. I can't believe so many water bottles were distributed so well.

RM: When will you next run another marathon and what would you like to accomplish in that?

TS: I'll probably run a fall marathon next. I definately want to get a new PR. I'd like to take at least 5 minutes off of my 2:21:00. I'd like to run strong, run confident and bring home some bacon for my family.