Mosqueda Hopes to Add Finishing Touch to Her Race Strategy

It is not too difficult to predict Sylvia Mosqueda’s race strategy.

Forecasting the outcome of one of Mosqueda’s races, however, is a bit more difficult.

On those occasions when Mosqueda, 24, hasn’t self-destructed, the results have been impressive:

* While competing for Cal State Los Angeles in the 1988 NCAA track and field championships, Mosqueda led from start to finish in the 10,000 meters and set a collegiate record of 32 minutes 28.57 seconds.

* In the Philadelphia half-marathon in 1989, Mosqueda passed the 10,000-meter mark of the 13.1-mile race in 32:20 and won by more than two minutes in 1:10.47--the second-fastest timerecorded by an American.

* Thursday, she finished fifth in 32:13.37 in the 10,000-meter run at the Goodwill Games in Seattle.

But there have been occasions when the Alhambra resident has suffered the consequences ofher blistering pace.

In the 1988 Olympic Trials marathon, Mosqueda, 5-foot-5 and 103 pounds, led for 18 miles and had a nearly two-minute advantage at one point before dropping out before the 20-mile mark.

In the 1987 L.A. Marathon, Mosqueda led for 23 miles before faltering and finishing more than two minutes behind winner Nancy Ditz.

In this year’s L.A. Marathon, she again raced to an early lead, passing through 10 miles at near-world-record pace. But Mosqueda, suffering from tonsillitis, was overtaken two miles later and eventually dropped out after 18 miles.

“She’s talented and unique,” said Mark Covert, the track and cross-country coach at Antelope Valley Junior College. Covert trained Mosqueda for three months prior to this year’s L.A. Marathon.

Three weeks before the L.A. marathon, Mosqueda beat eventual winner Julie Isphording by more than two minutes in a 15-kilometer race in the Gasparilla Distance Classic in Florida .

“I thought that I was going to pull the pants off people in L.A. Instead they pulled them off me,” Mosqueda said. “I was ready. I was strong and doing long runs. I did a 22-mile run six days before the race, but I don’t know what happened. I felt horrible and tired by mile one and there were still 25 more to go.”

Mosqueda, who placed third at 10,000 meters in The Athletics Congress national championships at Cerritos College, approached the Goodwill Games with a conservative outlook.

“This is only my third race on the track this season,” said Mosqueda, who won the Invitational 10,000 at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays in April in her other appearance.

But Mosqueda, the Southern Section 3-A Division cross-country champion as a San Gabriel High senior, has made it a priority to complete all future races.

“I don’t care how slow I run, but I’m going to finish,” said Mosqueda, who tuned up for Thursday’s race with victories in the Fiesta 5,000 in San Clemente and the Bastille Day 8K in Newport Beach the last two weekends.

“I have a reputation for DNFs (did not finish), but I haven’t dropped out of a race since (the L.A. Marathon). I’ve got to gain respect.”

The past year has been a difficult one for Mosqueda.

In July of 1989, after returning from the European track circuit, Mosqueda and Greg Ryan, her coach at Cal State L.A. and East L.A. College, agreed that it would be in their best interests to go their separate ways. They had been together five years.

“This year I didn’t have a focus,” said Mosqueda, who has failed to improve upon her times. “I’ve been coaching myself and haven’t been doing the type of training that I should be. I’ve been able to maintain myself doing garbage workouts. It’s hard because nobody is there to make you do the intervals.”

While at East L.A. College, Mosqueda won the 1985 state junior college cross-country title in the fall and in the spring set national junior college track records in the 1,500 and 5,000 meters and won the 800, 1,500 and 5,000 at the state championship meet.

Improvement continued for Mosqueda at Cal State L.A. She won the 1987 NCAA Division II cross-country championship and qualified for the 1988 Olympic Trials in every event from 800 meters to the marathon.

“Somebody at Sylvia’s level of ability requires more attention,” Ryan said.

So Mosqueda began working out with Antelope Valley’s Covert in late November, but by February, citing commuting problems and differences in philosophy, decided to go her own way.

“I believe in more distance and strength training over speed and it was hard for her to adjust to that,” said Covert, the 1970 NCAA Division II cross-country champion while at Cal State Fullerton.

“I’m not going to flex my program. I had success with it. She didn’t really give it a chance. But whether it’s with Ryan or whoever, she needs a program she can have confidence in.”

After the Goodwill Games, Mosqueda, plans to discuss the possibility of setting up a coaching arrangement with Ryan.

“We left on good terms and I’m just going to have to go back and talk to him as an adult,” Mosqueda said. “If he says OK, that’ll be great. If he says no, I’m going to have to find somebody somewhere.”