The Athlete's Lawyer

Having raced in the Annual Blacksburg Classic  5K in 2006 and won his age group, Herndon Reston area sports injury and disability lawyer Doug Landau has registered for this wonderful event again.  This time, in support of his daughter’s training efforts, Landau will try his endurance at the 10 mile distance.  A 5th year senior Architect student, Miss Landau hopes to complete the Virginia Beach Half Marathon in March.  The Blacksburg Classic race is put on by the Blacksburg Striders running club.  The race courses utilize residential roads and a greenway, the Huckleberry trail.  And, unlike most races which start in the early morning,  this event starts Saturday February 21, 2009 at 1 PM.  Sponsors include Virginia Tech Recreational Sports, the Blacksburg Striders, Mish Mash and Run About Sports.  The 5K is run through a neighborhood and enters the trail after two miles. From thereon, all but the final 200 yards is on the trail. The 10 Mile follows the 5K course through the neighborhood, adds on some more residential  running, before entering the Huckleberry trail at around 4 miles. The remaining 6 miles (except for the final stint to the finish)  is on the Huckleberry Trail.  A 1 Mile Fun Run/Walk is held before the start of the 10 Mile & 5K.

While visiting family and clients at Virginia Tech, Doug Landau has been to Runabout Sports, which has an excellent selection of running shoes and sports equipment.  This Blacksburg store is located at: 801 University City Boulevard, Suite 1, Blacksburg, VA 24060, Phone: (540) 552-9339 Fax: (540) 552-9449. Hours: Mon-Sat 10 am – 7:00 pm,   Sun 1 pm – 6:00 pm

After winning his Age Group in the last race of 2007, Doug Landau got bested by several Masters competitors, including two clients ! The TriathlonTrialLawyer placed 5th in the 2008 Virginia Triathlon Series. So, while the Herndon sports injury and disability lawyer received some wonderful prizes at the conclusion of the season (and avoided bike crashes, smashes and major accidents or injury), he was disappointed not to have finished higher in the standings.

Landau was not able to redeem himself at the SouthEastern Championships. In 2007, Set Up Inc., the company that puts on the excellent Virginia Triathlon Series, put on a championship race that pitted the best from South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia in a “post-season’ championship. Doug Landau hopes that Set Up Events brings back the SouthEast Race series championship in 2009.

Perhaps Landau will eventually get to “tri” his skills at the GeezerJock Championships, this year’s USAT Sprint Nationals or other multi-state competitor race.

Showing support for USA Triathlon (USAT) and USA Track & Field (USAT&F), Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau has committed funds for Gold Sponsorships.  The Herndon Reston area trial lawyer thought it was a “natural” to go from “Team Gold USA” to Gold medal winner for the United States Triathlon team at the Maccabiah Games  to Gold level USAT sponsorship.  As for USA Track and Field, sports injury and disability advocate Doug Landau not only entered the Masters Cross Country and Indoor Track National Championships, but also made extra contribution for March meet at the Prince Georges Sports and Learning Complex in Landover, Maryland.  The Herndon Reston area injury and disability lawyer is shown here with top local masters runner Loretta Malander at the National Championships.

While the winter weather in Virginia means an end to outdoor triathlon competition, after a “rest period” Doug Landau does his winter training, often outside. In order to “build a bigger and better engine,” the Triathlon Trial Lawyer puts in the miles, often slogging through the slush and snow. The Herndon sports injury and disability lawyer Doug Landau actually likes running on softer surfaces, but frozen toes are no fun !

Doug was delighted to find that his friends, (like Tom Cook, left) at Potomac River Running now have the new Newton wet weather running shoes. Newton merged technology with Goretex, the fabric keeps water out, but lets sweat out. These new Goretex Newtons are comfortable and are helping the Herndon Sprint Triathlon Champion stay on track with his winter training regimen. It is wonderful when two technologies come together. These shoes are not available at most sporting goods shops, but the Potomac River Running stores have these technically advanced shoes and knowledgeable that can help you achieve your winter and wet weather running goals.

your goals over the winter hiatus, and then register right away for the popular area races, for, as

Shut out of the May Columbia  Triathlon, the June VTS Reston Sprint and other early season multi-sport events, Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau learned an important lesson; once you decide on what popular races you want to participate in – sign up early.  Both the Reston Olympic Distance and Sprint events were closed within hours of  registration opening – many months before the actual event itself !  For those hoping to compete not only in individual races, but also accumulate points in a series, getting shut out can be particularly problematic !  So, think about your goals while your spinning nowhere indoors over the winter hiatus, and then register right away for the popular area races, for, as the saying goes, “If you snooze, you lose !”  Good luck !

This past Spring, my daughter and her tennis team had the opportunity to meet tennis and sports legend Billie Jean King. The occasion was a kick off for the Washington Kastles Team Tennis franchise. When I was a teenager, I used to attend the U.S. Open at Forest Hills. These grass court championships took place in New York, not far from where I grew up. You could see tennis superstars like John Newcombe, Arthur Ashe, Stan Smith, Evonne Goolagong, Rosie Casals and Billie Jean King close up, since there were dozens of courts with matches going on simultaneously. In the mid-seventies, the great players entered the singles, doubles and even the mixed doubles competitions. So I hope to attend some Kastles matches this summer. For more information about this exciting D.C. area sports opportunity, go to Washington Kastles.

I also had the chance to see Illana Kloss, both at the tennis club where I worked in the 1970s and at Wimbledon in the 1980s. She was one of the best doubles players in the world, and she is now the Chief Executive Officer/Commissioner of World TeamTennis (WTT), overseeing the 11-team WTT Pro League and the nation-wide grassroots Recreational League programs from her New York City office. Kloss’ primary focus is on national sponsorships, strategic planning, media partnerships and expansion of the Pro League. Kloss has been recognized for her work in advancing women’s sports and her accomplishments on and off the court. She was named as the “Sports Business Woman of the Year” by the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center in May 2007. In 2006, Kloss was inducted into the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. Kloss oversees WTT Smash Hits, the annual charity event co-hosted by Billie Jean King and Elton John. Since its inception in 1993, nearly $9 million has been raised for the Elton John AIDS Foundation and local AIDS charities.