It's race day in Bydgoszcz!!!

Greetings from the press room!

First of all, many apologies for not updating the web site with results from the Stanford Invite, as I'm playing press attache for Team USA at the World Cross Country Championships (big shout out to Kirby Lee of Image of Sport for taking this photo!).

I know you guys are wanting to see stuff, particularly from the Stanford Invitational.

With that in mind, I'll just set up links to the UW, WSU, and Seattle Pacific recaps of the meet. From what little time I've had to read on the meet, I am aware of the feats of Katie Follett, Jeshua Anderson (who won the 2008 world junior title in the 400 hurdles here in Bydgoszcz, and is well remembered by some of the local track junkies that I've met here), and Jessica Pixler.

It's a little bit after 10 am here at the course. The course is looking a little slick, as there was some rain last night, and rain Saturday. It is a bit muddy in spots, so footing will be tricky.

Below is the Saturday course preview release I wrote for USATF:

BYDGOSZCZ, Poland--The 24 members of Team USA took to the two-kilometer loop course Saturday at Myslecinek Park for a final look before Sunday's 38th running of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.

In contrast to the dry conditions that greeted Team USA as it trained on the course the previous three days, the course was soaked by rains that hit Bydgoszcz overnight, turning portions of the field into a quagmire, and potentially changing the dynamics of Sunday's race.

The weather forecast calls for a chance of rain and a temperature of about 48 degrees.

Shalane Flanagan--The footing is very tricky. The course and the weather are coming together for a great race.

The weather was a little bit too nice yesterday. I don't want to be working on my suntan before a cross country race, so it's shaping up to be a challenging course. I am prepared for the toughest championships in my life.

Ryan Vail—You’ve got some logs there that you have to jump over, and there are a lot of tight turns. I think the course is going to be slow. I think that the mud is going to be good for all of our guys—it’s going to slow down the front of the pack, and it’s going to give us the opportunity to beat guys we have no business beating.

Shelby Greany—The rains made the course softer.The start of the course is on a slanted hill, and with the mud, you’ll certainly see some people go down.

The logs that you have to navigate is taller than what I expected, and it’s surrounded on either side by mud. I think the muddy conditions make it easier for us to shine.

Trevor Dunbar—Everyone’s running in the same conditions, and it will slow the race down at the front, so it’s going to be important to get out fast.

I will do my best to do quick updates. What quick updates I will do will be via my Twitter page, which is http://twitter.com/paulmerca70601.