Hide Article Text (OCR)
C6 -Cumberland Sunday Times, Sunday, May 30,1982Sute t 'Kcyy 4Tapping the KegTerry Baker His Own Severest Criticcentration in running If you lose, you should analyze the defeat then start preparing for your next race ”Although Boston left his body in a state of fatigueTERRY BAKER, LIKE MOST successful athletes, has his share of critics None, though, is as severe on him as he is on himself Terry Baker just can’t seem to satisfy Terry Baker when it comes to distance runningThe self analysis by this dedicated young man seems to he the same after every race, win or lose If he wins, he will, in essence, tell himself I can do better than that. I know I can and next time I will.l^st month, after heating the fabled Bill Rlt;»dgers to win the Perrier Cherry Blossom 10-miler in Washington, Raker stated. I was pleased with the victory but not the time .” Western Maryland's gift to world-class running, Titanic Terry travelled the route along the Potomac River basin in 49 minutes. 30 seconds.Three weeks before that, in finishing second in a New Jersey ten-mile race, Baker’s time was 47 51 In the Cherry Blossom, however, he, Rodgers and the rest of the field had to battle 45 mile-per-hour windsNo one has to tell Terry not to tarry He’s a world-class runner and. as such, is cognizant of the role pride and dedication play in attaining such lofty distinction That’s another way of saying “Leave nothing to chance, Bakeold boy' Plan your practices well and don’t waste time ”The 26 year-old Washington County native, a school teacher by profession, is quite a human being That's until he starts to run Then, he turns into a machine.For him, consistency is the name of the running game Last year he ran the Boston Marathon in 2 hours, 16 minutes and 38 seconds, finishing 34th This year, when he finished seventh, his time was 16 seconds faster 2 16:22. Considering the marathon distance (26 miles, 385 yards), that’s incredibleIf running is considered madness, there’s a method to Terry’s From the time he began to participate in cross country as a ninth grader at Williamsport High School, a fierce fire of competition has raged within him He trains faithfully every day — morning and late afternoon At 6 30 a m he runs between five and six miles The afternoon sessions range between eight and 15 miles In all, he averages at least 100 miles per week.Many runners maintain that the daily sessions are fun. Terry disagrees. “It’s hard work, real hard. he says, “hut you have to pay the price if you want to remain competitive.A person can become fatigued just sitting in the bleachers at Hagerstown Junior College and watching Baker work out under a hot afternoon sun Greg Shank, track coach at the college and Terry’s private tutor, puts his well known student through the tough daily paces which are fast becoming known at HJC as Baker s DozenTerry runs at his usual distance pace for a while, then begins to concentrate on the speed part of his program the 100 yard dash, the 200 and 440 Shank shouts out Baker’s times at various intervals and also bellowssuggestions for concentrating on running style, etc.A guy can get careless out there, explains Baker, ranked 23rd worldwide in road running this year, as he was in 1980 I can’t forget about arm movement when running It’s very important because the faster you pump your arms, the faster your legs will go ”BOB KRUEGER IS ECSTATIC about having landed Baker as an entry in his second annual Great Allegany Run here Saturday, June 12. Terry’s appearance alone should be enough to bring out the fans in droves, raves the director of next month’s ten-miler After all, there aren’t many runners who can boast of having beaten Bill Rodgers, a four-time winner at Boston, and Terry had done that four times. The two have raced against each other about 20 or 25 timesKrueger, after having observed Baker’s Dozen” in 75 degree heat, offered this description of the former indoor All-American Terry is a race horse on the backstretch He is a machine with all parts synchronized, a man dedicated to run his best and beat the best.’’If Raker has a burning ambition to win the prestigious Boston Marathon, he isn't saying so. At least, not publicly. He is close-mouthed about his aims. I have set some goals, he admitted, but they're within me. If I fail to achieve those aims. I don't have any explaining to do.Terry, an instructor at the Washington County Alternative School for Disruptive Youth, doesn’t permit himself to sink into the doldrums when he has a disap-, pointing finish in a race he thinks he should have won You can’t let yourself get too high when you win or too low when you lose,’’ he points out There’s a lot of coivBaker has run two races since then and is slated to run the 10-K Constellation today in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor area He was beaten in Clyde's 10-K at Columbia, Md. and finished 30th in the Revco 10-K at Cleveland.After the GAR, Baker goes to Atlanta for the 15-K Peachtree July 4 when 25,000 competitors are expected to make up the field He’s also planning to vie in the Ui K runoff in Oregon J une 27. WBaker, who stands 5-10 and weighs only 1.15. was born to run. He was the state champ in both the mile and two-mile runs three straight years at Williamsport High. His best time as a schoolboy were 1:59, half mile; 4:24 mile and 9:18 for two miles.At Hagerstown Junior College, he was national champion in three miles and the marathon He completed two years at Auburn In attaining All-America honors, he stepped off the two miles in R 46A picture runner. Baker makes the most of his estimated four foot stride Running looks easy for him because of his effortless style He has the appearance of one who is glidingBut it isn’t easy Consider that Terry's slender 135-pound body subjects tremendous pressure on his legs, knees and feet It is estimated that he takes 1,320 steps on each foot per mile and when that pounding is computed, it amounts to a force of 45 tons per leg per mileThat means then that Terry Baker will he exerting 4,500 tons of force on his underpinning when he par ticipates in the GAR’s ten mile shootout between Mt Savage and the Country Club Mall on June 12Tons of fun? Not unless you win,” contends Baker
Newspaper Details
Cumberland Sunday Times
Cumberland, Maryland, US
Sun, May 30, 1982
Page 32
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
MD, USA 01 Jun 2024
Other Publications Near Cumberland, Maryland
Cumberland Daily Alleganian and Times
Alleganian and Times
Cumberland News
Cumberland Times News
Democratic Alleganian
