I coach high school cross country. Or rather, I did. Facing a $39 million budget shortfall, last spring our school district cut four sports, cross country among them. I offered to work for free, but in a large 60-school bureaucracy such things don't fly.
It never occurred to myself, the athletes or their parents that we wouldn't have a team. We trained, formed a club, got new uniforms, and found racing opportunities where we could. A few high school meet directors took risks by allowing us in their meets; we ran some open meets and some road races as well. It is charitable to say that our team is made up of unremarkable runners, but the point was that we still got to run.
As we were not a school team, our end-of-the-season awards banquet was not part of the school-wide one for all fall sports. We are doing it all on our own tonight. I have never before made a speech, but I think I need to. Below is the text of that speech, to be delivered in a few hours.
Showing posts with label high school track. Show all posts
Showing posts with label high school track. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Monday, December 20, 2010
Sunday Evening Decathlete: Special Monday Edition
The weekly round of track-centric Monday morning quarterbacking comes a day late, as I was on vacation in Toronto for the weekend.
What did we learn this week?
USATF announced its CEO job description. This is actually an important part of the search for a new leader. You can read it in a USATF release. What you think of it tells a lot about what you think of USATF's board of directors.
It was written by the search firm hired by USATF, Bialla & Associates. Their services come at no small cost. If you are of the opinion that their well-into-six-figure price tag is merely "ripping off a hopelessly clueless 'amateur' sports organization", as one TFN message board observer put it, then you come down squarely on the side of pessimism. You believe that either this particular board of directors is a bunch of self-serving fools in over their head, or you believe the government-mandated structure of the organization itself makes it essentially incapable of doing much well, if anything.
There is another voice, though, one of cautious optimism. Track writer Larry Eder, for RunBlogRun:
In general terms, the new CEO should really split the difference between the USOC preference of three years ago and the presumed Board of Directors preference of that moment: outsider (no ties to USATF) but insider (within the track & field world). Note that USATF, and its predecessor track division within the AAU, have had just three leaders in the last 40 years. Only one, Craig Masback, left things better at his departure than at his arrival--and he fits that description.
Meets searching for an audience are turning to team competition. Earlier in the week, Athletics Weekly editor Jason Henderson wrote that cross country is in crisis in the UK and most of northern Europe. At almost the same time, northern Europe's only truly relevant cross country meet, the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross, announced a fantastic idea. They relegated the African runners, who most of the British public sees as nameless and interchangable, to a 4k race. The featured 8k race is now a team competition between the UK, the USA, and the European continent. The UK will have the services of its two best runners, Mo Farah and Chris Thompson. The USA will send two of its best in Dathan Ritzenhein and Galen Rupp. Europe will have nine-time Euro XC champ Sergey Lebid. It should be a bang-up race and will likely gain a great deal of attention in England and Scotland.
Just a few hours ago, the Millrose Games announced that it will have a USA versus Jamaica component in both the men's and women's 60 meter races. The only star yet announced is Veronica Campbell-Brown, but her presence alone will likely excite New York's large Jamaican-American community. If they come out in significant numbers, Millrose will have its biggest attendance in a generation.
The Laverne Jones-Ferrette situation became both more and less clear. The journeywoman sprinter raised some eyebrows during the 2010 indoor season. Never a Worlds or Olympics finalist, she lept to the top of the sprinting world. She recorded the fastest 60m time in eleven years, traded wins with Carmelita Jeter, and took silver at the World Indoor Championships behind Veronica Campbell-Brown. Such a huge and sudden improvement for a 28-year-old is unusual to say the least. Then, she inexplicably missed the entire outdoor season.
A month ago it was announced that she is pregnant, and that was why she missed the summer season. But this didn't seem to wash, unless she quit very early in her pregnancy. She was announced as an entry into multiple April relay meets, and then pulled out.
Now we got a bit more information. On February 16 she tested positive for clomiphene. What is that? It's present in some fertility drugs. It also blocks the effects of estrogen and can be used as a recovery drug towards the end of a steroid cycle. In any case, it is classified as a "specified substance" under WADA rules, and the IAAF's rules are flexible in terms of penalties for this kind of drug. Suspension can be anywhere from zero to two years. Jones-Ferrette got a six-month ban from April to October, but also was disqualified from all of her events after the positive test. So she loses her Worlds silver.
Did she pull one over on the IAAF? Maybe. Note that if you're using a drug for a legitimate reason, there are "theraputic use exemptions". At the very least, you should declare the medication when tested. Jones-Ferrette did not. You be the judge.
Track is getting into the big-money advertisments. Haile Gebrselassie just filmed a commercial for Johnnie Walker (picking up a nifty $100,000 for his trouble). You can see it here. Unfortunately, it probably won't be aired in the USA, as it is targeted towards Africa, Latin America and Europe. I've always thought we've lost out massively by not somehow tapping into beer as a sponsor.
High school meets are upping their game. The professional level of track and road running in the USA has had little in the way of new ideas lately. College track's regular season until recently was essentially unwatchable (with the exception of a handful of relay meets) but has done a lot to make itself more interesting. But the most innovative, competitive level of track meet promotion is at the high school level. For proof one need look no further than the cross country war being waged between Foot Locker Cross Country and Nike Cross Nationals.
Yesterday I was contacted by the director of a prominent high school post-season invitational in regards to ideas for taking it up a notch. I appreciate the gesture and hope I can offer up some good ideas. It really appears as though he takes track and field seriously as a spectator sport, which is the approach you absolutely must have to succeed in today's sports marketplace.
Just this week, Brooks announced a new national indoor invitational for the fastest high schoolers in the country. Called the PR Invitational, it will be held in late February at the University of Washington and will be live on Flotrack. And its promotional video is one of the most bizarre things I've seen in a while.
Track is everywhere. Just like Mojo Nixon says about Elvis.
My wife and I went to Toronto for the weekend to celebrate her 40th birthday. We did all the touristy things and had a great time. On Sunday we were searching for one last thing to see, and settled on Casa Loma. All the travel guides said it was a must-see, and it did not disappoint.
Casa Loma is a giant mansion built between 1911 and 1914 on a high hill overlooking downtown Toronto, and at the time it was the largest private residence in all of Canada. The man who had it built was one Sir Henry Pellatt, a prominent Toronto financier and soldier who, among other things, electrified the city. Owning it eventually left him penniless, and it is now a museum open to the public.
The house should really be called a castle, as that is what it was built to look like. From the inside, it is best described as the Boddy Mansion from the classic Clue board game come to life. It has a billiard room and a conservatory and all the other rooms in the game, a pipe organ, several suits of armor, secret passageways, and everything else you can imagine from prototypical country-house whodunits best ridiculed in Murder By Death. Touring it was thoroughly entertaining and informative, and I can only imagine the fun they have there at Halloween.
The third floor is rather plain in comparison to the rest, as it was the servants' quarters. These days it's set aside as space reservable for private functions, as well as a repository of historical artifacts relating to The Queen's Own Rifles, a still-existing military regiment in which Henry Pellatt played a major role.
Tucked away in display case in a quiet corner of one room are a few items belonging to Pellatt from his early military days. Most, like a saddle and a pommel, are related to horsemanship, so most observers would think this photo and two medals are related to racing of the four-legged kind.
(Forgive the quality; all I had available was my iPhone.)
Both the left and the right say Pellatt won championship mile races, and I immediately knew they could only be footraces. The clothing in which he is pictured was common running garb of the time, which is one clue. The other is the engraving on the 1879 medal: "N.A.A.A.A." That's the National Association of Amateur Athletes of America, the governing body for track and field in the USA from 1879 until being muscled out by the AAU in 1889. Pellatt, a Canadian, was able to win the US championship because virtually all 19th-century meets were open to any amateur. His time, 4:43.4, was fairly competitive for its time. You can see Pellatt listed at Track and Field News' archive of US champions (scroll waaay down). A recent biography of Pellatt says it was a world record, but don't be fooled -- the amateur record at the time stood at 4:24 1/2, the professional at 4:17 1/4.
Keep your eyes peeled. Track is everywhere and it is in everything.
What did we learn this week?
USATF announced its CEO job description. This is actually an important part of the search for a new leader. You can read it in a USATF release. What you think of it tells a lot about what you think of USATF's board of directors.
It was written by the search firm hired by USATF, Bialla & Associates. Their services come at no small cost. If you are of the opinion that their well-into-six-figure price tag is merely "ripping off a hopelessly clueless 'amateur' sports organization", as one TFN message board observer put it, then you come down squarely on the side of pessimism. You believe that either this particular board of directors is a bunch of self-serving fools in over their head, or you believe the government-mandated structure of the organization itself makes it essentially incapable of doing much well, if anything.
There is another voice, though, one of cautious optimism. Track writer Larry Eder, for RunBlogRun:
The search firm, Bialla & Company, (www.bialla.com) is one of the heaviest hitters in the world of sports, technology and softwear search firms. They have recently done searches as diverse as Electronic Arts, True North (ad agency), Zoot.com (footwear company) and Avenue A Razorfish, one of Nike's ad agencies (digital). That USATF has hired a firm with such stature should also give you, kind reader, an understanding of the increased level of scrutiny that the search for the USATF CEO position has been under.Eder has been around for a while and is no Pollyanna. If he feels that even some signs are positive, we should have reason for hope.
It is obvious that the current USATF board has increased their level of focus in this current search. That is to applauded. The current head hunter firm has already spoken to many in the industry, first to get an appreciation for the nature of the business, and secondly to get an appreciation for the concern that many in the industry have on who will lead USA Track & Field. They have heard several earfuls, I suspect. (Bialla & Company, as is their practice, would not comment on current searches or their culture.) Those are all good things, and give comfort to those who are concerned about who will lead our sport's federation.
However well meaning, in my humble opinion, the most recent search for the recently deposed CEO had undercurrents of pressure. It has to be said that the USOC had considerable interest in the most recent CEO of USATF. That does not mean that the USOC has explicit influence on the most recent candidate, but the USOC needs were known and considered in the process. General requirements were; someone entrepreneurial, but someone who was not of the track & field ilk, and someone who looked the part seem have been part of the zeitgeist.
Looking for someone who spoke his mind should not be translated as someone who is incapable of taking advice or estranging every group within the sport. Those are not qualities of a CEO who will last in this sport.
In general terms, the new CEO should really split the difference between the USOC preference of three years ago and the presumed Board of Directors preference of that moment: outsider (no ties to USATF) but insider (within the track & field world). Note that USATF, and its predecessor track division within the AAU, have had just three leaders in the last 40 years. Only one, Craig Masback, left things better at his departure than at his arrival--and he fits that description.
Meets searching for an audience are turning to team competition. Earlier in the week, Athletics Weekly editor Jason Henderson wrote that cross country is in crisis in the UK and most of northern Europe. At almost the same time, northern Europe's only truly relevant cross country meet, the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross, announced a fantastic idea. They relegated the African runners, who most of the British public sees as nameless and interchangable, to a 4k race. The featured 8k race is now a team competition between the UK, the USA, and the European continent. The UK will have the services of its two best runners, Mo Farah and Chris Thompson. The USA will send two of its best in Dathan Ritzenhein and Galen Rupp. Europe will have nine-time Euro XC champ Sergey Lebid. It should be a bang-up race and will likely gain a great deal of attention in England and Scotland.
Just a few hours ago, the Millrose Games announced that it will have a USA versus Jamaica component in both the men's and women's 60 meter races. The only star yet announced is Veronica Campbell-Brown, but her presence alone will likely excite New York's large Jamaican-American community. If they come out in significant numbers, Millrose will have its biggest attendance in a generation.
The Laverne Jones-Ferrette situation became both more and less clear. The journeywoman sprinter raised some eyebrows during the 2010 indoor season. Never a Worlds or Olympics finalist, she lept to the top of the sprinting world. She recorded the fastest 60m time in eleven years, traded wins with Carmelita Jeter, and took silver at the World Indoor Championships behind Veronica Campbell-Brown. Such a huge and sudden improvement for a 28-year-old is unusual to say the least. Then, she inexplicably missed the entire outdoor season.
A month ago it was announced that she is pregnant, and that was why she missed the summer season. But this didn't seem to wash, unless she quit very early in her pregnancy. She was announced as an entry into multiple April relay meets, and then pulled out.
Now we got a bit more information. On February 16 she tested positive for clomiphene. What is that? It's present in some fertility drugs. It also blocks the effects of estrogen and can be used as a recovery drug towards the end of a steroid cycle. In any case, it is classified as a "specified substance" under WADA rules, and the IAAF's rules are flexible in terms of penalties for this kind of drug. Suspension can be anywhere from zero to two years. Jones-Ferrette got a six-month ban from April to October, but also was disqualified from all of her events after the positive test. So she loses her Worlds silver.
Did she pull one over on the IAAF? Maybe. Note that if you're using a drug for a legitimate reason, there are "theraputic use exemptions". At the very least, you should declare the medication when tested. Jones-Ferrette did not. You be the judge.
Track is getting into the big-money advertisments. Haile Gebrselassie just filmed a commercial for Johnnie Walker (picking up a nifty $100,000 for his trouble). You can see it here. Unfortunately, it probably won't be aired in the USA, as it is targeted towards Africa, Latin America and Europe. I've always thought we've lost out massively by not somehow tapping into beer as a sponsor.
High school meets are upping their game. The professional level of track and road running in the USA has had little in the way of new ideas lately. College track's regular season until recently was essentially unwatchable (with the exception of a handful of relay meets) but has done a lot to make itself more interesting. But the most innovative, competitive level of track meet promotion is at the high school level. For proof one need look no further than the cross country war being waged between Foot Locker Cross Country and Nike Cross Nationals.
Yesterday I was contacted by the director of a prominent high school post-season invitational in regards to ideas for taking it up a notch. I appreciate the gesture and hope I can offer up some good ideas. It really appears as though he takes track and field seriously as a spectator sport, which is the approach you absolutely must have to succeed in today's sports marketplace.
Just this week, Brooks announced a new national indoor invitational for the fastest high schoolers in the country. Called the PR Invitational, it will be held in late February at the University of Washington and will be live on Flotrack. And its promotional video is one of the most bizarre things I've seen in a while.
Track is everywhere. Just like Mojo Nixon says about Elvis.
My wife and I went to Toronto for the weekend to celebrate her 40th birthday. We did all the touristy things and had a great time. On Sunday we were searching for one last thing to see, and settled on Casa Loma. All the travel guides said it was a must-see, and it did not disappoint.
Casa Loma is a giant mansion built between 1911 and 1914 on a high hill overlooking downtown Toronto, and at the time it was the largest private residence in all of Canada. The man who had it built was one Sir Henry Pellatt, a prominent Toronto financier and soldier who, among other things, electrified the city. Owning it eventually left him penniless, and it is now a museum open to the public.
The house should really be called a castle, as that is what it was built to look like. From the inside, it is best described as the Boddy Mansion from the classic Clue board game come to life. It has a billiard room and a conservatory and all the other rooms in the game, a pipe organ, several suits of armor, secret passageways, and everything else you can imagine from prototypical country-house whodunits best ridiculed in Murder By Death. Touring it was thoroughly entertaining and informative, and I can only imagine the fun they have there at Halloween.
The third floor is rather plain in comparison to the rest, as it was the servants' quarters. These days it's set aside as space reservable for private functions, as well as a repository of historical artifacts relating to The Queen's Own Rifles, a still-existing military regiment in which Henry Pellatt played a major role.
Tucked away in display case in a quiet corner of one room are a few items belonging to Pellatt from his early military days. Most, like a saddle and a pommel, are related to horsemanship, so most observers would think this photo and two medals are related to racing of the four-legged kind.
Both the left and the right say Pellatt won championship mile races, and I immediately knew they could only be footraces. The clothing in which he is pictured was common running garb of the time, which is one clue. The other is the engraving on the 1879 medal: "N.A.A.A.A." That's the National Association of Amateur Athletes of America, the governing body for track and field in the USA from 1879 until being muscled out by the AAU in 1889. Pellatt, a Canadian, was able to win the US championship because virtually all 19th-century meets were open to any amateur. His time, 4:43.4, was fairly competitive for its time. You can see Pellatt listed at Track and Field News' archive of US champions (scroll waaay down). A recent biography of Pellatt says it was a world record, but don't be fooled -- the amateur record at the time stood at 4:24 1/2, the professional at 4:17 1/4.
Keep your eyes peeled. Track is everywhere and it is in everything.
Friday, December 03, 2010
What's On: The Weekend
Road Racing
The 64th Fukuoka International Open Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race, will be run in the Japanese city on Sunday (Saturday night in the USA). Once the unofficial World Championships, this men-only race is still one of the best in the tier just below the World Marathon Majors.
Race website
Live webcast: 10:00 PM EST on Saturday night at Keyhole TV
Japan Running News viewing guide / IAAF preview
The Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race, will be run in the southeast Asian island nation on Sunday.
Race website
IAAF preview
The Wincanton Montferland Run 15k will be run on Sunday in the Dutch city of Heerenberg. Super-marathoners Samuel Wanjiru and Patrick Makau are slated to run.
Race website
The Safaricom Great Lake National Marathon will be run on Sunday in the Kenyan town of Kisumu.
The Cal International Marathon will be run on Sunday in Sacramento.
Race website
Race preview
The MetroPCS Dallas White Rock Marathon will be run in the Texas city on Sunday. An interesting twist added on is a special high school relay trying to beat the pros.
Race website
Live local TV coverage: 8:00 AM (local time) Sunday on WFAA (Channel 8)
Race preview
The Rock N’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon and Half Marathon will be run in Sin City on Sunday.
Cross Country
The fifth meet in the KCB/Athletics Kenya cross country series takes place on Saturday in Kisii.
The Ethiopian Clubs Cross Country Championships will be held on Saturday in Addis Ababa.
The Cross International de la Constitucion takes place on Sunday in the Spanish town of Alcobendas.
Colleges
The NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships will be held on Saturday at Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville KY.
Live webcast: 11:00 AM EST at NCAA.com
Meet website / Flotrack coverage
Previews: NCAA / Courier-Journal
Let's Run prediction contest
College track starts up.
Athletic.net list of meets
High Schools
Nike Cross Country Nationals, aka NXN, will be held on Saturday at Portland Meadows Racetrack in Oregon.
Meet website / Flotrack coverage
Live webcast: 1:05 PM (EST) Saturday at runnerspace.com
Previews: Flotrack / USA Today Milesplit boys / Milesplit girls
The Foot Locker West regionals will be held on Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut CA.
Meet website
Track on TV
Running the Sahara, 1:00 PM Friday on SHO Extreme and 7:30 AM Sunday on SHO Next
NCAA Division II XC Championships live webcast, 11:00 Saturday at NCAA.com
Nike Cross Nationals live webcast, 1:05 PM Saturday at runnerspace.com
Fukuoka Marthon live webcast, 10:00 PM Saturday at Keyhole TV
Dallas White Rock Marathon live local TV, 8:00 AM (local time) Sunday on WFAA (Dallas Channel 8)
Prefontaine, 8:00 PM Sunday on Showtime Family Zone
Endurance, 5:45 AM Monday on SHO Extreme
The 64th Fukuoka International Open Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race, will be run in the Japanese city on Sunday (Saturday night in the USA). Once the unofficial World Championships, this men-only race is still one of the best in the tier just below the World Marathon Majors.
Race website
Live webcast: 10:00 PM EST on Saturday night at Keyhole TV
Japan Running News viewing guide / IAAF preview
The Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race, will be run in the southeast Asian island nation on Sunday.
Race website
IAAF preview
The Wincanton Montferland Run 15k will be run on Sunday in the Dutch city of Heerenberg. Super-marathoners Samuel Wanjiru and Patrick Makau are slated to run.
Race website
The Safaricom Great Lake National Marathon will be run on Sunday in the Kenyan town of Kisumu.
The Cal International Marathon will be run on Sunday in Sacramento.
Race website
Race preview
The MetroPCS Dallas White Rock Marathon will be run in the Texas city on Sunday. An interesting twist added on is a special high school relay trying to beat the pros.
Race website
Live local TV coverage: 8:00 AM (local time) Sunday on WFAA (Channel 8)
Race preview
The Rock N’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon and Half Marathon will be run in Sin City on Sunday.
Cross Country
The fifth meet in the KCB/Athletics Kenya cross country series takes place on Saturday in Kisii.
The Ethiopian Clubs Cross Country Championships will be held on Saturday in Addis Ababa.
The Cross International de la Constitucion takes place on Sunday in the Spanish town of Alcobendas.
Colleges
The NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships will be held on Saturday at Tom Sawyer State Park in Louisville KY.
Live webcast: 11:00 AM EST at NCAA.com
Meet website / Flotrack coverage
Previews: NCAA / Courier-Journal
Let's Run prediction contest
College track starts up.
Athletic.net list of meets
High Schools
Nike Cross Country Nationals, aka NXN, will be held on Saturday at Portland Meadows Racetrack in Oregon.
Meet website / Flotrack coverage
Live webcast: 1:05 PM (EST) Saturday at runnerspace.com
Previews: Flotrack / USA Today Milesplit boys / Milesplit girls
The Foot Locker West regionals will be held on Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut CA.
Meet website
Track on TV
Running the Sahara, 1:00 PM Friday on SHO Extreme and 7:30 AM Sunday on SHO Next
NCAA Division II XC Championships live webcast, 11:00 Saturday at NCAA.com
Nike Cross Nationals live webcast, 1:05 PM Saturday at runnerspace.com
Fukuoka Marthon live webcast, 10:00 PM Saturday at Keyhole TV
Dallas White Rock Marathon live local TV, 8:00 AM (local time) Sunday on WFAA (Dallas Channel 8)
Prefontaine, 8:00 PM Sunday on Showtime Family Zone
Endurance, 5:45 AM Monday on SHO Extreme
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Ohio HS XC Meet In Flux?
Two newspaper articles about Ohio governor Ted Strickland's new budget which calls for slot mahines at the state's horse tracks (via Let's Run):
Slotted for trouble? State high school officials ponder status of cross-country meet at Scioto Downs due to slot machines' arrival
HS Athletic Association monitoring Ohio slots plan
The articles discuss a lack of an alternative site. Rubbish--there are always alternatives. Ken Jarvis of Galion HS has led a group trying to get the meet at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and Robert Gary (Ohio State head coach) has reportedly been thinking about the possibility of OSU building a site similar to Indiana State's permanent XC course that hosts the NCAA (admittedly without any action on the issue).
Nevertheless, the guv is playing with fire. High school sports are HUGE in rural Ohio, even minor sports like cross country. Rural areas are swing districts for Dems. Don't mess with farmers--they have long memories.
Slotted for trouble? State high school officials ponder status of cross-country meet at Scioto Downs due to slot machines' arrival
The Ohio High School Athletic Association is exploring whether a proposal to install electronic slot machines at Scioto Downs would impact the state cross country meet held there each autumn, the group said Monday.
...
The meet has been held at Scioto Downs since 1985 and typically draws more than 10,000 spectators. It is not a money-maker for the OHSAA. Last year, it drew 10,051 fans and lost $5,934, according to OHSAA figures.
Some coaches said they are worried what would happen to the meet if it leaves Scioto Downs, because there are no obvious alternate sites that can handle the athletes, crowds and parking.
HS Athletic Association monitoring Ohio slots plan
In a story on the OHSAA's Web site, state cross country meet manager Terry Oehrtman says, "Scioto Downs has, in fact, become synonymous with the OHSAA state meet. When you talk to coaches, they don't refer to the state meet as the state meet. "They don't say, 'We hope to make it to state.' They say, 'Our goal is to make it to Scioto Downs."'
The state meet includes three boys and three girls championship races involving 96 teams and more than 950 runners.
The articles discuss a lack of an alternative site. Rubbish--there are always alternatives. Ken Jarvis of Galion HS has led a group trying to get the meet at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, and Robert Gary (Ohio State head coach) has reportedly been thinking about the possibility of OSU building a site similar to Indiana State's permanent XC course that hosts the NCAA (admittedly without any action on the issue).
Nevertheless, the guv is playing with fire. High school sports are HUGE in rural Ohio, even minor sports like cross country. Rural areas are swing districts for Dems. Don't mess with farmers--they have long memories.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Best Birthday Ever
This week I got to work at our City Championships on Tuesday (junior high), Wednesday and Friday (high school). I always do announcing, which is the absolute best job to have at a track meet. I can't believe they pay me to do this.
The high school meet's team battles were not close, but the individual event competitions at times were fantastic. We had six meet records broken, two of which dated from the 1970s. Cody Riffle (Toledo St. John's Jesuit) took out those old marks with 61' 3 1/2" in the shot and 170' 6" in the discus.
Moise Frisch (Toledo Whitmer), a Haitian adopted by a locally famous-for-15-minutes family, won a pair of tough distance battles with Kevin Yarnell (Toledo St. John's). In the 1600, the two battled hammer-and-tongs for nearly the entire last lap before Frisch pulled away to win by just under a second in 4:15.35. Their rematch in the 800 saw Yarnell take it out in 56.5 while Frisch patiently waited and ran him down in the last 200, winning 1:54.68 to 1:55.16. Frisch has not signed a letter of intent -- Kentucky is interested but has made no offer yet -- and whoever does get him is going to steal a stud. Mark my words, you will see him scoring at the NCAA within three years.
Neither of these was the real highlight, though. Superstar Erik Kynard (Toledo Rogers) started off with a 110 hurdle win, then went over to the high jump and made only three attempts: 6'10", 7' 1", and 7' 3 1/2", all easy clearances. Long-time high jump official Don Standish, not one for hyperbole, swears Kynard made the last one by four inches. From where I was, I could definitely see good daylight between Kynard and the bar. He then quit to go and win the 300 hurdles.
And to top it off, my sister-in-law got me a case of Little Kings, and on Sunday I'll go watch the Big Ten Championships in Columbus.
The high school meet's team battles were not close, but the individual event competitions at times were fantastic. We had six meet records broken, two of which dated from the 1970s. Cody Riffle (Toledo St. John's Jesuit) took out those old marks with 61' 3 1/2" in the shot and 170' 6" in the discus.
Moise Frisch (Toledo Whitmer), a Haitian adopted by a locally famous-for-15-minutes family, won a pair of tough distance battles with Kevin Yarnell (Toledo St. John's). In the 1600, the two battled hammer-and-tongs for nearly the entire last lap before Frisch pulled away to win by just under a second in 4:15.35. Their rematch in the 800 saw Yarnell take it out in 56.5 while Frisch patiently waited and ran him down in the last 200, winning 1:54.68 to 1:55.16. Frisch has not signed a letter of intent -- Kentucky is interested but has made no offer yet -- and whoever does get him is going to steal a stud. Mark my words, you will see him scoring at the NCAA within three years.
Neither of these was the real highlight, though. Superstar Erik Kynard (Toledo Rogers) started off with a 110 hurdle win, then went over to the high jump and made only three attempts: 6'10", 7' 1", and 7' 3 1/2", all easy clearances. Long-time high jump official Don Standish, not one for hyperbole, swears Kynard made the last one by four inches. From where I was, I could definitely see good daylight between Kynard and the bar. He then quit to go and win the 300 hurdles.
And to top it off, my sister-in-law got me a case of Little Kings, and on Sunday I'll go watch the Big Ten Championships in Columbus.
Sunday, December 07, 2008
New Book on the Market
Juggernauts: The Making of a Runner & a Team in the First American Running Boomby Steve Adkisson
Outskirts Press, $16.95 ($5 e-book available)
I haven't been able to get my hands on this one yet, but I'll work on it and get up a review when I can. Let's Run indicates it's worth my time. Available via Amazon or its own website.
Blurb:
As the first running boom was sprouting in the early 1970’s, a group of Kentucky teenagers were brought together by a young coach who was ahead of his time. Cross country was regarded as a sport for the slightly odd and unathletic, a means of “getting an easy varsity letter”. Among this group of runners was a particularly odd (though strangely athletic) teenager who was taken in by the joy of running over the grass, hills, and mud of cross country courses. The coach and seasonally growing team rose to dominance of Kentucky cross country in the span of four short years. Along the way, they “learned the lessons every runner has to learn, mostly the hard way, many of them twice.” From humble backgrounds and with guidance from a ground breaking coach, the Lloyd Memorial High School Juggernauts led the way for high schools in Northern Kentucky to win State Championships for over thirty consecutive years. This is that story.
Saturday, January 05, 2008
The real crime
Are you like me? Do you find the most disturbing thing about this article is the AP calling the New England Cross Country Championships a track meet?
Note: I am not being callous towards Noor's plight. In fact I find the authorities' response rather strange.
Note: I am not being callous towards Noor's plight. In fact I find the authorities' response rather strange.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
High School "heroics"
My brother just passed this along to me. Worth a read, and a useful warning to young runners with sore lower legs.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
State Meet
You can read all about the meet at Dyestat, or any of several hundred newspaper articles about it; I see no need to give a blow-by-blow accounting of who won what and how fast they ran. Rather, I'll give my experience as a fan.
This is a two day meet, but I wasn't able to get down to Columbus soon enough on Friday to see the events I really wanted to see--the 4x800 relay finals of each division and the D-I boys' shot put. The latter event only interested me because I'd never yet seen Jimmie Pacifico, the nation's #1 shot-putter. I saw his first few attempts in the discus, where he was a heavy favorite.
But Chris Littleon of Harrison had a huge day, putting up his best four throws of the year while Pacifico threw "only" 179' 4". This would have to be considered one of, if not the, biggest upsets of the meet.
I went over to watch the Division II running events, where Mantua Crestwood's Cassandra Schenk was attempting an impossible 1600m-800m-3200m triple in a 75-minute time frame. She came close, with two wins and a second. Amongst the pleasant surprises was Sandusky Perkins' Cory Leslie:
Back in the pack for the first several laps, he ran his last 600m in dominating fashion and came within a few tenths of the meet record...and school record. When you're getting close to Scott Fry's marks, you're getting somewhere.
After D-II was over, I went back to the discus area for the Division III girls' competition. Although her school is only 20 minutes away from my house, I'd never seen Emily Pendleton throw.
Then back to the track for the Division I running events. First off, I totally underestimated Glenville's quality, which was apparent right from the first event. Second, the big day I'd hoped Toledo would have didn't quite happen. We got a first, three seconds and a third.
The heart-breaker of the day was Central Catholic's Sam Hogue. He had been running much better than the rest of the state for a month, and led into the final hurdle...which his trail leg caught and he hit the deck.
Most of my event-by-event predictions were wrong. I was exactly right about the two events I've paid the most attention to, the boys' 1600m and 3200m. So I guess I've been not enough of a fan.
A lot of people don't like the D-III meet beacuse the standards of competition aren't as high. First of all, I think that's crap. Look at this:
That's Stephanie Morgan with 80 meters to go in the 1600; second place is just entering the curve.
Secondly, the most interesting thing at a track meet is not the clock but the athletes fighting to win. Whether they're fast or not is secondary. And these small schools represent the best part of high school sports. An entire town will turn out to see one kid run, and they're immensely proud of them no matter how they finish.
My pick for the most exciting race of the day: D-III boys 300m hurdles. Columbus Grove's shot at the title was based on two athletes, thrower Cory Muelmann and hurdler/vaulter Heath Nickles. The two already scored 28 points and this was the last event they were in. Nickles ran like a scared rabbit in lane 8 and was behind until the very last step, after which he took a face-plant on the track. Everybody watched the scoreboard because we couldn't tell who actually won; the ten or so seconds we waited for the results seemed like they took forever. At the time I thought it sealed a win for Columbus Grove (site of the ever-popular Beer Bottle Open) but I hadn't counted on Dayton Christian having basically a perfect meet--in four distance races they were only beaten by Samuel Borchers, which is essentially like four wins.
And then on the way home I got to hear A Prarie Home Companion. A perfect ending to a great day.
This is a two day meet, but I wasn't able to get down to Columbus soon enough on Friday to see the events I really wanted to see--the 4x800 relay finals of each division and the D-I boys' shot put. The latter event only interested me because I'd never yet seen Jimmie Pacifico, the nation's #1 shot-putter. I saw his first few attempts in the discus, where he was a heavy favorite.
But Chris Littleon of Harrison had a huge day, putting up his best four throws of the year while Pacifico threw "only" 179' 4". This would have to be considered one of, if not the, biggest upsets of the meet.
I went over to watch the Division II running events, where Mantua Crestwood's Cassandra Schenk was attempting an impossible 1600m-800m-3200m triple in a 75-minute time frame. She came close, with two wins and a second. Amongst the pleasant surprises was Sandusky Perkins' Cory Leslie:
Back in the pack for the first several laps, he ran his last 600m in dominating fashion and came within a few tenths of the meet record...and school record. When you're getting close to Scott Fry's marks, you're getting somewhere.
After D-II was over, I went back to the discus area for the Division III girls' competition. Although her school is only 20 minutes away from my house, I'd never seen Emily Pendleton throw.
Then back to the track for the Division I running events. First off, I totally underestimated Glenville's quality, which was apparent right from the first event. Second, the big day I'd hoped Toledo would have didn't quite happen. We got a first, three seconds and a third.
The heart-breaker of the day was Central Catholic's Sam Hogue. He had been running much better than the rest of the state for a month, and led into the final hurdle...which his trail leg caught and he hit the deck.
Most of my event-by-event predictions were wrong. I was exactly right about the two events I've paid the most attention to, the boys' 1600m and 3200m. So I guess I've been not enough of a fan.
A lot of people don't like the D-III meet beacuse the standards of competition aren't as high. First of all, I think that's crap. Look at this:
That's Stephanie Morgan with 80 meters to go in the 1600; second place is just entering the curve.Secondly, the most interesting thing at a track meet is not the clock but the athletes fighting to win. Whether they're fast or not is secondary. And these small schools represent the best part of high school sports. An entire town will turn out to see one kid run, and they're immensely proud of them no matter how they finish.
My pick for the most exciting race of the day: D-III boys 300m hurdles. Columbus Grove's shot at the title was based on two athletes, thrower Cory Muelmann and hurdler/vaulter Heath Nickles. The two already scored 28 points and this was the last event they were in. Nickles ran like a scared rabbit in lane 8 and was behind until the very last step, after which he took a face-plant on the track. Everybody watched the scoreboard because we couldn't tell who actually won; the ten or so seconds we waited for the results seemed like they took forever. At the time I thought it sealed a win for Columbus Grove (site of the ever-popular Beer Bottle Open) but I hadn't counted on Dayton Christian having basically a perfect meet--in four distance races they were only beaten by Samuel Borchers, which is essentially like four wins.
And then on the way home I got to hear A Prarie Home Companion. A perfect ending to a great day.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Division I Preview
Girls
Beaumont will win the team title. The real fight is for second, where Bowsher, Collinwood, Walsh Jesuit and Shaker Heights are all basically even.
Individual picks:
Discus throw. Monica Howard, Wilmington.
High jump. Georgette Asfoura, Walsh Jesuit.
4x800 relay. Twinsburg.
Long jump. In a tossup between Audra Frimpong (Canfield) and Mikeal Roberts (Princeton), I’ll go with Frimpong.
Shot put. Johnna Zacari, Walsh Jesuit.
Pole vault. The obvious choice might be Courtney Siebenaller (Whitmer), who tied the state indoor record of 12’ while winning the state indoor championship. However, she just hasn’t been up to that standard since then, and I’m going with Kelsey Ahbe (Green).
100m hurdles. Kaylon Eppinger, Warrensville Heights.
100 meters. This should be a close race between Meshawn Graham (Bowsher), Aareon Payne (Beaumont), and Erika Schmidt (Anthony Wayne). I’m picking Graham, as she has the best top-end speed and is the least likely to run tight in a high-pressure situation.
4x200 relay. Collinwood.
1600 meters. Emily Infeld (Beaumont). She’s about 10 seconds better than anyone else in the race.
4x100. Withrow.
400 meters. This is the deepest race in the meet, but Jessica Beard (Euclid) is head and shoulders above the rest; she’s the best teenage quarter-miler in the western hemisphere.
300m hurdles. Hauna Dawkins, Franklin Heights.
800 meters. Again, Emily Infeld.
200 meters. The same cast as the 100 meters, but Graham will be a clear winner.
3200 meters. There’s no clear favorite here; Brooklyne Ridder (Oak Hills) ran a sparkling 10:34 at her district meet and then finished third in her region. I’m going with Claire Durkin (Kilbourne).
4x400 relay. This figures to be a three-way race between Walnut Hills, Westerville Central, and Shaker Heights. Shaker has a superior anchor leg in Shaniqua McGinnis, so they’re my pick.
Boys
The first time I added up points I got Glenville first, Cleveland Heights second. The second time I did it I got Cleveland Heights first, Glenville second. It will be close and no other team has a chance.
Shot put. Jimmie Pacifico (Vandalia-Butler) is #1 in the nation and should win by about 10 feet. I would be very surprised if he does not break the meet record.
Long jump. Jordan McPherson (Huber Heights Wayne) has been head and shoulders above the rest of the state all season long.
Pole vault. Mike Uhle, Olentangy Liberty.
4x800 relay. Cleveland Heights is the #1 team in the country.
Discus throw. Again, Jimmie Pacifico; his best this year is 195’ 1”.
High jump. Erik Kynard (Rogers) jumped 7’ in early January and has slowly but consistently gone downhill ever since. He was solidly beaten by Ronsae Harrison (Winton Woods) at the Roosevelt Relays. This is a four-way battle between those two, McPherson, and David Serrano (Pickerington Central). I’m going to pick Serrano in an upset.
110m hurdles. Ricardo Ross, Independence.
100 meters. The casual observer will see that Aeric Clay (Bowsher) was second in both of the last two years and had the fastest regional time, and pick him to win. But that would ignore the fact that Clay hasn’t been running all that well this year, and also the effect of wind on 100 meter times. Use this cool widget, and you’ll see the fastest from the regionals is actually Jordan McPherson.
4x200 relay. Glenville vs. Middletown; I’ll take Glenville.
1600 meters. Chris Lemon (St. John’s Jesuit) has run some great races over the last few weeks and he’s tough as nails. The one thing he doesn’t have is great finishing speed, which Jake Edwards (Delaware Hayes) does. Edwards in a thriller.
4x100 relay. Huber Heights Wayne vs. Middletown; their anchors will likely stage a rematch of the 100 meter final. Middletown won’t lose two sprint relays; take the Middies!
400 meters. Another very deep field in the 400 meters. I’m going to pick Kendall Gregory (Strongsville) in an upset.
300m hurdles. Sam Hogue (Toledo Central Catholic) has run sub-38 in each of his last six races; no one else in the state has done it even once. A no-brainer.
800 meters. Jake Edwards’ legs will be stuffed after the mile, so he won’t win. Daniel White (Brunswick) is the favorite, but if Jared Hall wins this he just might seal the team title for Cleveland Heights.
200 meters. Stuart Smith (Westerville Central), and it will not be close.
3200 meters. Emil Heineking (Chardon) is the obvious choice, but watch Bo Waggoner (Maumee) to give him a run at it.
4x400 relay. This should be the race of the day; four teams ran 3:16 or better at their regional meets and the overall team title will be up for grabs. Cleveland Heights will win.
Beaumont will win the team title. The real fight is for second, where Bowsher, Collinwood, Walsh Jesuit and Shaker Heights are all basically even.
Individual picks:
Discus throw. Monica Howard, Wilmington.
High jump. Georgette Asfoura, Walsh Jesuit.
4x800 relay. Twinsburg.
Long jump. In a tossup between Audra Frimpong (Canfield) and Mikeal Roberts (Princeton), I’ll go with Frimpong.
Shot put. Johnna Zacari, Walsh Jesuit.
Pole vault. The obvious choice might be Courtney Siebenaller (Whitmer), who tied the state indoor record of 12’ while winning the state indoor championship. However, she just hasn’t been up to that standard since then, and I’m going with Kelsey Ahbe (Green).
100m hurdles. Kaylon Eppinger, Warrensville Heights.
100 meters. This should be a close race between Meshawn Graham (Bowsher), Aareon Payne (Beaumont), and Erika Schmidt (Anthony Wayne). I’m picking Graham, as she has the best top-end speed and is the least likely to run tight in a high-pressure situation.
4x200 relay. Collinwood.
1600 meters. Emily Infeld (Beaumont). She’s about 10 seconds better than anyone else in the race.
4x100. Withrow.
400 meters. This is the deepest race in the meet, but Jessica Beard (Euclid) is head and shoulders above the rest; she’s the best teenage quarter-miler in the western hemisphere.
300m hurdles. Hauna Dawkins, Franklin Heights.
800 meters. Again, Emily Infeld.
200 meters. The same cast as the 100 meters, but Graham will be a clear winner.
3200 meters. There’s no clear favorite here; Brooklyne Ridder (Oak Hills) ran a sparkling 10:34 at her district meet and then finished third in her region. I’m going with Claire Durkin (Kilbourne).
4x400 relay. This figures to be a three-way race between Walnut Hills, Westerville Central, and Shaker Heights. Shaker has a superior anchor leg in Shaniqua McGinnis, so they’re my pick.
Boys
The first time I added up points I got Glenville first, Cleveland Heights second. The second time I did it I got Cleveland Heights first, Glenville second. It will be close and no other team has a chance.
Shot put. Jimmie Pacifico (Vandalia-Butler) is #1 in the nation and should win by about 10 feet. I would be very surprised if he does not break the meet record.
Long jump. Jordan McPherson (Huber Heights Wayne) has been head and shoulders above the rest of the state all season long.
Pole vault. Mike Uhle, Olentangy Liberty.
4x800 relay. Cleveland Heights is the #1 team in the country.
Discus throw. Again, Jimmie Pacifico; his best this year is 195’ 1”.
High jump. Erik Kynard (Rogers) jumped 7’ in early January and has slowly but consistently gone downhill ever since. He was solidly beaten by Ronsae Harrison (Winton Woods) at the Roosevelt Relays. This is a four-way battle between those two, McPherson, and David Serrano (Pickerington Central). I’m going to pick Serrano in an upset.
110m hurdles. Ricardo Ross, Independence.
100 meters. The casual observer will see that Aeric Clay (Bowsher) was second in both of the last two years and had the fastest regional time, and pick him to win. But that would ignore the fact that Clay hasn’t been running all that well this year, and also the effect of wind on 100 meter times. Use this cool widget, and you’ll see the fastest from the regionals is actually Jordan McPherson.
4x200 relay. Glenville vs. Middletown; I’ll take Glenville.
1600 meters. Chris Lemon (St. John’s Jesuit) has run some great races over the last few weeks and he’s tough as nails. The one thing he doesn’t have is great finishing speed, which Jake Edwards (Delaware Hayes) does. Edwards in a thriller.
4x100 relay. Huber Heights Wayne vs. Middletown; their anchors will likely stage a rematch of the 100 meter final. Middletown won’t lose two sprint relays; take the Middies!
400 meters. Another very deep field in the 400 meters. I’m going to pick Kendall Gregory (Strongsville) in an upset.
300m hurdles. Sam Hogue (Toledo Central Catholic) has run sub-38 in each of his last six races; no one else in the state has done it even once. A no-brainer.
800 meters. Jake Edwards’ legs will be stuffed after the mile, so he won’t win. Daniel White (Brunswick) is the favorite, but if Jared Hall wins this he just might seal the team title for Cleveland Heights.
200 meters. Stuart Smith (Westerville Central), and it will not be close.
3200 meters. Emil Heineking (Chardon) is the obvious choice, but watch Bo Waggoner (Maumee) to give him a run at it.
4x400 relay. This should be the race of the day; four teams ran 3:16 or better at their regional meets and the overall team title will be up for grabs. Cleveland Heights will win.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
State Meet Division II Preview
Girls
In the team competition, Akron Buchtel is the overwhelming favorite. The fight for second should be between Kettering Alter and Mantua Crestwood. Crestwood’s Cassandra Schenk is attempting the impossible, a distance quadruple (it has been attempted only once; her former teammate Bridget Franek successfully pulled it off last year). Meet records in danger of being broken are the high jump (West Geauga’s Katelyn Williams) and the pole vault (Indian Valley’s Kayla Caldwell).
Boys
Heath is my pick to win the team title with Salem second. If either of these two falter, next in line are a couple of northwest Ohio teams—Eastwood and Sandusky Perkins. Several meet records could be broken; the 800 (Salem’s Patrick Gorby), the 4x800 relay (Woodridge), and the high jump (Napoleon’s Ryan Fleck).
Tommorrow: Event-by-event Division I picks.
In the team competition, Akron Buchtel is the overwhelming favorite. The fight for second should be between Kettering Alter and Mantua Crestwood. Crestwood’s Cassandra Schenk is attempting the impossible, a distance quadruple (it has been attempted only once; her former teammate Bridget Franek successfully pulled it off last year). Meet records in danger of being broken are the high jump (West Geauga’s Katelyn Williams) and the pole vault (Indian Valley’s Kayla Caldwell).
Boys
Heath is my pick to win the team title with Salem second. If either of these two falter, next in line are a couple of northwest Ohio teams—Eastwood and Sandusky Perkins. Several meet records could be broken; the 800 (Salem’s Patrick Gorby), the 4x800 relay (Woodridge), and the high jump (Napoleon’s Ryan Fleck).
Tommorrow: Event-by-event Division I picks.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Ohio High School Championships - DIII Preview
There is no elite post-collegiate inviational in Ohio, and the major college scene is a train wreck. But high school track's popularity is deep and wide, and the best of it will be this weekend at Ohio State. It's nothing like it was back in Ohio Stadium (the Jesse Owens Stadium is a bit lacking) but it's still the best state meet in this part of the country.
Why? Organization and tradition. Two days, three divisions, a tight schedule. For a superfan it's an orgy of the sport while the casual viewer gets an entire meet (24 final running events) in two hours and fifteen minutes.
Over the remainder of the week I'll be putting up previews and stats and so forth. General info can be found at the OHSAA website and Gary Baumgartner's page.
Division III
The smallest of Ohio's divisions; some schools are downright tiny. (There are multiple high schools with enrollments of less than twenty students.)
Boys
The team competition will likely be between a couple of two-man squads and the stars of the meet. Columbus Grove (a rural town in the northwest, nowhere near Columbus) brings thrower Cory Meulman (57' 9" / 188' 4") and hurdler-vaulter Heath Nickles (39.6 / 15' 7"). Yellow Springs (a small town near Dayton best known as the residence of Dave Chappelle) brings Samuel Borchers, the defending USA Junior 1500m champ (4:10 / 1:52, both D-III state records), 2-miler Evan Firestone (9:33) and a 4x800 relay team (7:51, D-III state record). Muelman and Nickles could threaten state meet records, while Borchers & co. will almost certainly walk away with three meet records. But those don't score extra points. Columbus Grove will be done scoring after the 300m hurdles, leaving the penultimate event, the 3200, as the deciding race.
Girls
Gilmour Academy in Gates Mills (a ritzy Cleveland suburb) appears considerably better than the rest of the field. Distance runners Betta Simko (2:15 / 5:02) and Melanie Frank (2:15) plus a couple of relay teams (3:59, 9:31) will be tough to top. The top athletes to watch are Barnesville's Stephanie Morgan (4:54 / 11:11) and my personal pick for Ohio's Athlete of the Year regardless of division, Woodmore's Emily Pendleton (45' 8" / 183' 3") It's been 17 years since an Ohioan set a national high school record and 49 years since it's been done at the state meet; it's never been done by a girl from the Buckeye state. But Pendleton's best mark is just 5 feet and one inch from Suzy Powell's national record...
Saturday, May 26, 2007
High School Regionals
To most people, Memorial Day weekend is a road-trip time that signifies the beginning of summer. For me, it's a road-trip that starts the real track season.
In Ohio, it's regional weekend. This is a do-or-die format in every event. The top four in each of four regionals qualify to the state meet. No wild cards, no at-large bids, nothing.
Now, my hometown of Toledo is not what you'd call a track hotbed. Track isn't ignored, either, but we don't tend to dominate at the regional or state level very often. Even though "northwest Ohio" sounds like one-fourth of the state, the truth is that the Toledo area (one dying industrial city surrounded by a dozen counties of farmland) only has about 10% of the state's Division I schools. This year we seem to have more than our share of top runners.
Yesterday's Region 2 meet at Amherst Steele High School drew from Toledo and its suburbs, a handful of outlying schools, and western Cleveland and its suburbs. Jamie Farr would have been proud. Not only did Toledo claim both team titles and a runner-up, we took 8 of 17 boys' events and 11 of 17 girls' events.
Athletes of the day? Chris Lemon of St. John's Jesuit won the 1600 in 4:11.23 and the 3200 in 9:09.19, both meet records. Lemon was chased to the finish line by teammate Joe Miller (4:14.59) and cross-town rival Bo Waggoner (9:09.52) and twin brother Matt (9:14.80); all three broke the 3200 meet record. Central Catholic's Sam Hogue ran his sixth 37-second race of the year in the 300m hurdles (no one else in Ohio has broken 38.00) and then in the 4x400 relay he proved he was the second-best 400m man in the meet.
On the girl's side, a great duel has developed. Meshawn Graham of Bowsher is a known quantity; two years ago she set the Ohio freshman-class record in the 400m and won the state title in the 200m, and won last year's USATF 15-16 age group Junior Olympics in the event. Sophomore Erica Schmidt of Anthony Wayne (a mixed farming/suburban area west of Toledo) has been improving week after week after week. Well, yesterday we had a doozy.
100 meters: Schmidt led Graham until the last ten meters. Graham 11.80, Schmidt 11.87 (wind +1.8 m/s). Far and away the fastest in Ohio this year; their times rank them 10th and 16th in Ohio history.
400 meters: Schmidt is not in this event, but Graham was led by Sandusky's Jasmunn Ritchie until the final straightaway. Graham ran 53.47, which was announced as tieing the official state record...but at the exact same moment over in Youngstown, Jessica Beard ran 53.03. In a foreshadowing of the next race, Schmidt anchored her winning 4x200m relay with a 23.5 split.
200 meters: Schmidt had a great start and split about 11.8 for the first 100m (around the turn!). Graham was well back until the very end, finally passing in the last 20 meters. Graham 23.80, Schmidt 24.08. Unfortunately, the wind-gauge operator fell asleep at the switch, otherwise these two would be nationally-ranked in their events.
On to the state meet!
In Ohio, it's regional weekend. This is a do-or-die format in every event. The top four in each of four regionals qualify to the state meet. No wild cards, no at-large bids, nothing.
Now, my hometown of Toledo is not what you'd call a track hotbed. Track isn't ignored, either, but we don't tend to dominate at the regional or state level very often. Even though "northwest Ohio" sounds like one-fourth of the state, the truth is that the Toledo area (one dying industrial city surrounded by a dozen counties of farmland) only has about 10% of the state's Division I schools. This year we seem to have more than our share of top runners.
Yesterday's Region 2 meet at Amherst Steele High School drew from Toledo and its suburbs, a handful of outlying schools, and western Cleveland and its suburbs. Jamie Farr would have been proud. Not only did Toledo claim both team titles and a runner-up, we took 8 of 17 boys' events and 11 of 17 girls' events.
Athletes of the day? Chris Lemon of St. John's Jesuit won the 1600 in 4:11.23 and the 3200 in 9:09.19, both meet records. Lemon was chased to the finish line by teammate Joe Miller (4:14.59) and cross-town rival Bo Waggoner (9:09.52) and twin brother Matt (9:14.80); all three broke the 3200 meet record. Central Catholic's Sam Hogue ran his sixth 37-second race of the year in the 300m hurdles (no one else in Ohio has broken 38.00) and then in the 4x400 relay he proved he was the second-best 400m man in the meet.
On the girl's side, a great duel has developed. Meshawn Graham of Bowsher is a known quantity; two years ago she set the Ohio freshman-class record in the 400m and won the state title in the 200m, and won last year's USATF 15-16 age group Junior Olympics in the event. Sophomore Erica Schmidt of Anthony Wayne (a mixed farming/suburban area west of Toledo) has been improving week after week after week. Well, yesterday we had a doozy.
100 meters: Schmidt led Graham until the last ten meters. Graham 11.80, Schmidt 11.87 (wind +1.8 m/s). Far and away the fastest in Ohio this year; their times rank them 10th and 16th in Ohio history.
400 meters: Schmidt is not in this event, but Graham was led by Sandusky's Jasmunn Ritchie until the final straightaway. Graham ran 53.47, which was announced as tieing the official state record...but at the exact same moment over in Youngstown, Jessica Beard ran 53.03. In a foreshadowing of the next race, Schmidt anchored her winning 4x200m relay with a 23.5 split.
200 meters: Schmidt had a great start and split about 11.8 for the first 100m (around the turn!). Graham was well back until the very end, finally passing in the last 20 meters. Graham 23.80, Schmidt 24.08. Unfortunately, the wind-gauge operator fell asleep at the switch, otherwise these two would be nationally-ranked in their events.
On to the state meet!
Sunday, April 29, 2007
State record, maybe national record?
At yesterday's Eastwood Relays in rural Pemberville OH, a new state record was set. It might be a national record, but I don't know if anyone keeps track of these things. I'm having login problems at the T&FN message boards, so I'm having a hard time asking for help.
Around here it's fairly common to do two- or three-athlete team totals in field event competition. Tiny Woodmore High School (enrollment approx. 390) set a new state record in the three-girl discus throw "relay": 408 feet, 8 inches. This is a huge improvement and significant on a national level.
How did this tiny school do it? Well, their best thrower is Emily Pendleton. As a 17-year-old, she was last year's USA Junior champion and beat a significant number of college freshmen to do it. She even has a profile at the IAAF website. Her sister Erin was fourth at the Ohio Division III championships last year. Their father coaches the throwers at Woodmore, and even poured his own concrete circle in their backyard.
If anyone can confirm or deny the existence of national records in team field even competition, please let us know.
Around here it's fairly common to do two- or three-athlete team totals in field event competition. Tiny Woodmore High School (enrollment approx. 390) set a new state record in the three-girl discus throw "relay": 408 feet, 8 inches. This is a huge improvement and significant on a national level.
How did this tiny school do it? Well, their best thrower is Emily Pendleton. As a 17-year-old, she was last year's USA Junior champion and beat a significant number of college freshmen to do it. She even has a profile at the IAAF website. Her sister Erin was fourth at the Ohio Division III championships last year. Their father coaches the throwers at Woodmore, and even poured his own concrete circle in their backyard.
If anyone can confirm or deny the existence of national records in team field even competition, please let us know.
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