Track/XC - Keep Vaseline in Your Bag for Easy Spike Removal
It's a half-hour before the race starts, your runners should be out warming up, but instead, you hear, "Coach, my spikes are the wrong size and I can't get them out!"
Arrghh! What follows is a frenzy of pliers, spike wrenches, twisting, torquing and cussin' under your breath.
You can prevent such situations, but the key word is "prevent." A little glob of Vaseline on your runners' spikes will make their removal easy — even if it's weeks later and after several races through mud, much and puddles.
Vaseline Tip
So here's my tip. Always keep a small container of Vaseline in your spike bag, right next to your wrench. It will then be available when needed, but it will also act as a reminder that it should be used every time a spike is replaced.
Dick Moss, Editor, PE Update.com, (Dick Moss was also the head coach of the Laurentian University women's track and XC teams and Sudbury's Track North Athletic Club).
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