INdoors Catches Fire

And speaking of fire, no doubt you've already heard the story of the charter bus carrying the Stanford T&F team that caught fire enroute from Sea-Tac to the Dempsey Center!!
A back tire caught fire, but before the entire bus was consumed, everyone was evacuated safely!
You can catch a video of the newscast if you google it!

But the 2018-2019 INdoor season ALSO was set aflame!
A World Record!
A HSR!!
A multitude of incredible marks!!

But let's begin with the Dubai Marathon--which was also pretty damn hot--pardon the pun!!

Both Course Records were broken, with attitude!

After an estimated Half in 62:00 (passed 10K in 29:11--20K in 58:31), it came down to 2 Men--Herpassas Negefa and Getaneh Molla!
One or two others tried to stick, but drifted back as the mileage increased!
A 29:12 3rd 10 saw the duo side by side, hitting 30K in 1:27:43.
But by 40K (4th 10K in 29:33), Molla had moved ahead by 10 meters, and was sprinting!
While he checked his side-view mirror, Molla was safe with the win--time of 2:03:34 (to Negefa's 2:03:40)!!

Molla is now 8th A-T World, while Negefa becomes 10th A-T World!!
Asefa Mengstu ran a non-PR 2:04:24 in 3rd!!

The Women's race was just as quick, and interesting!
Surrounded by male pacers, Worknesh Degefa battled Ruth Chepngetich for the first 30-35K!
But Chepngetich--a sub-65 minute Halfer--took control, and cruised to the line in 2:17:07, becoming 3rd A-T World!!
They'd hit 32:26 at 10K, and did the 2nd 10 in 32:15.
Their approximate Half time was 1:08:35!
(Half times are guesses because the livestream didn't show the times!!)

For Chepngetich, it's the Age 24 Record!
She moves from 7th A-T World, tied with 1 other, to 3rd!
Degefa becomes the National Record holder of Ethiopia--over the most venerable Tirunesh Dibaba!!
Her time (2:17:41) makes her 4th A-T World!!
She's now also the best 2nd Place mark ever!!

The WR was by the Brooks Beasts group!
They covered the 4 X Mile in 16:03.68, beating the Hoka NJ/NY TC by over 12 seconds!!
They were anchored by Izaic Yorks!

As for the HSR, who else but Katelyn Tuohy could be the name?
But she didn't win the 3000 at the Dr Sanders meet at the Armory!
Amanda Eccleston and Heather Kampf finished around 8:56-57, while Tuohy faded to 9:01.81 in 3rd!
Didn't see the race, but she apparently had the lead at 2K in about 5:58.
Her last 400 was 70.7.
If you compare her to Mary Cain, the latter had a kick---while Tuohy doesn't!
But she makes up for it with a much more aggressive first half!!
Anyway, Tuohy gets the Junior Class Record!
She moves from 2nd A-T HS to 1st!!

The PV had a busy and productive weekend!!
Mondo Duplantis finally hit his stride, clearing 19-1.50!!
BUT--he was soon joined at that height by Matt Ludwig, the Akron Senior!!
Mondo got the Frosh Class Record, and became 3rd A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other!
When Ludwig joined the party, he also became 3rd A-T Collegiate, but tied with TWO others!!
(Who woulda thunk MONDO would have a challenger to his Throne??!!)
Ludwig is now 13th A-T US, tied with 1 other!

The Boston meet saw Katie Nageotte out-duel Ekaterina Stefanidi!!
Her clearance of 15-11.25 did the trick, and became the World Leader!
Stefanidi topped out at 15-5.25!
In 3rd came Annie Rhodes-Johnigan, whose 15-1.25 clearance moves her from 23rd A-T US to 16th!!

In Arkansas, Lexi Jacobus, Tori Hoggard, and Lisa Gunnarsson all cleared 14-9.50, but finished 1-2-3!
For Gunnarsson, she moves from 18th A-T Collegiate to 10th, tied with 2 others!!
In 4th was Desiree Freier, who made 14-5.50!!

Other good PV marks--
OUTdoors, Eliza McCartney opened her season at 15-11!!
INdoors, Sondre Gutormsen made the Men's NCAA picture a bit less clear, as he went over 18-8.75, making him 13th A-T Collegiate, tied with 2 others!!
Olivia Gruver competed as unattached (though she attends U of Washington), so her 14-10 clearance at the Seattle meet didn't count for the Collegiate list!
Also, Sam Kendricks won the Paris meet today with his World leading mark of 19-2!!
(Rumor is that Renaud Lavillenie didn't show!!  Don't know why!)

Events from the 300 to 1000 saw quite a bit of quality running!
Let's take it distance by distance!!

300
While running in separate sections, Kendall Ellis (She just signed with New Balance, so this was her initial Pro race!!) beat Gabby Thomas--36.97 to 37.03!!
Ellis is now 22nd A-T US!
Thomas just misses the US list--by 0.02 seconds!!
At the Armory, Jaide Stepter's 37.05 outran Anavia Battle's 37.08!!
For Battle, this makes her 10th A-T Collegiate!!

Rai Benjamin also made HIS Pro debut--his 32.55 making him 11th A-T US (Remember, he's now competing for US--in every sense of the word!!  LOL)--and 20th A-T World!!

400
 Kayla Davis continued her attack on the HS Record Book!!
Davis's 52.96 makes her the Frosh Class Record holder!
(Her time is better than the Soph Class mark also!!)
She moves from 13th A-T HS to 9th!!

500
One name--or moniker!
Syd the Kid!!
HER virgin Professional race took all of 1:09.46!
A jog for her, it fits somewhere in the Top 10 or so INdoor marks!
Sorry, but I don't have lists for the 500!!
She clearly was cruising, and said she'll be focusing on the 400H OUTdoors!!

600
Ajee Wilson had some contenders, but won her race in 1:25.91--the Age 24 Record!!
Olivia Baker--in one of her better races!--finished 2nd in a good 1:26.75!!
This makes her 10th A-T US!!
Cecelia Barowski's 1:27.71, and Christiane Williams's 1:27.93 were not PR's!
Byron Robinson's 1:16.65 beat Erik Sowinski's 1:16.75 in the Men's race!

Raevyn Rogers took the Boston race in 1:27.31, but might have gone faster if she hadn't tangled with Georgeanne Moline--sending Moline flying to the turf!!

800
Devin Dixon was the star here!!
His 1:45.27 claimed the Junior Class Record!!
And he makes THREE lists!
He's 3rd A-T Collegiate (But top American Collegiate!), 13th A-T US, and 24th A-T World!!
(That was at the Texas Tech meet!)

At Boston, Donavan Brazier went against Clay Murphy!!
He won--in 1:45.91--leaving Johnny Gray's 37 year old American Record intact!!
Murphy, right behind him in 1:45.94, moves from 22nd A-T US to 10th!!
Danae Rivers continued her quality season with her 2:02.94, which makes her 22nd A-T Collegiate!!

1000
Athing Mu extended her range up to the K, stopping the clock at 2:44.43!
This gives her the Junior Class Record!!
And it makes her 3rd A-T HS!!

Millie Paladino's 2:42.13 makes her 10th A-T Collegiate!
Besides Mu's race, the Armory meet saw a pair of other K races!
The Women's was taken by Natoya Goule in 2:37.55!!
This gives her the Jamaica National Record!!
She beat a comebacking (??) Laura Roesler, whose 2:38.11 makes her 12th A-T US!!
Claudia Saunders ran 2:38.95, making her 17th A-T US!
Shannon Osika's 2:40.16 in 4th gives her 23rd A-T US!!

Knocked OFF the US list was my initial Track infatuation--Francie Larrieu!!
Her 2:40.2 dated from 1975!!

The Men's HS race saw Luis Peralta speed a 2:24.53, making him 10th A-T HS!
Bronxville's (Sound familiar??) Matt Rizzo ran 2:25.41 in 2nd, making him 16th A-T HS!!
(BTW, he has a brother who finished 4th or 5th!!)
Alfred Chawouza's 2:25.77 makes him 19th A-T HS!!

Finally, Craig Engels took the Men's Pro race in 2:18.98, making him 16th A-T US!!

This is getting a bit long, but so much happened this weekend, so hope you'll stick with me!!

Gabrielle Stafford is making a name for herself (and bringing joy to Canadian T&F fans!!), this time by winning the Boston Mile in 4:24.80, and nabbing her second National Record!!
(Remember her 14:57+ 5000 against Laura Muir a bit ago!!  See previous post!!)
She also gets the Boston Meet Record, but misses my World DDD by -0.09 seconds!!

She had to fight off a determined Elinor Purrier, as the former New Hampshireite ended in 4:24.88!
She moves from 13th A-T US to 8th, tied with 1 other!!
Favored Dawit Seyaum took 3rd, as she faded in the rush to the tape!
Her time was 4:26.83!
Cory McGee's 4:28.07 wasn't a PR!
Brenda Martinez ran 4:29.11, but ended 7th, while Emma Coburn's 4:32.68 gave her just 10th!
BTW, Purrier's enroute 1500 time of 4:08.50 makes her 13th A-T US!!

Yomif Kejelcha ran a LEGAL World Leader, his 3:51.70 winning the Boston Men's race!
He gets the Ethiopia National Record, as well as the Age 21 Record!!
Bethwell Birgen was a far back 3:54.82!
Nick Willis took 4th in 3:56.76.
While not an Age record, not bad for a 35 year old!!

Cut FROM my World list was none other than Kiwi John Walker, whose 3:52.8 dated from 1981!!

Jessica Hull's 4:31.03 took the Arkansas race, and makes her 15th A-T Collegiate!
Taking second was Lauren Gregory's 4:32.92!

There were several other great marks, so I'll just group them together in one jumbled pile!!
We'll begin with the duel (??) between Jenny Simpson and Konstanze Klosterhalfen in the Boston 5000!!
And it was a DUD!!
Jogging the first 3000 in 9:28, KK got bored and took off, leaving Jenny to jog to the finish, about 18 seconds back of KK's 15:15.80!!
Embarrassing!

The "race" between Hagos Gebrhiwet and Ed Cheserek wasn't much better, though they stuck to a near-60 second 400 clip through 1200 or so!
Gebrhiwet ran away from the (former!) King, winning by 5 seconds in 7:37.41.
(Both appeared ready for more!!)

There were a few decent Pentathlon's!
Michelle Atherley's 4292 at Texas Tech wasn't a PR!
Nor was Kelsey Herman's 4189, or Madeline Holmberg's 4219!
But Great Britain's Niamh Emerson made some noise at the Cardiff meet!
Her 4544 not only is a World Leader, but it makes her the best ever British teen INdoors!
She was born April 22, 1999.

DeAnna Price sent the WT flying out 80-7.50.
It's a slight PR, but she remains 5th World and US!

Payton Otterdahl rolls on, this time by exploding out to 71-0 with the SP!!
He makes a triumvirate of lists--
3rd A-T Collegiate!
12th A-T US!
And 23rd A-T World!!

Maggie Ewen used her SP prowess to win Boston--and beat Christina Schwanitz and Anita Marton!!!
Her 63-3.25 is a small PR, and moves her from 7th to 6th on the A-T US list!!
Schwanitz--who got off the plane from Europe just before the meet!!--hit 61-11.

Jordan Geist's toss measured 68-2.25.
In an OUTdoor meet Down Under, Tom Walsh opened his season with a good 70-1.75!

A few Women's teams ran sub-11:00 DMR's on Seattle's OT, but Villanova ran a LEGAL one at the Armory, their 10:59.98 not a PR!

At today's Paris meet, Fabrice Zango TJ'ed 57-7.25.
This gives him Burundi's National Record, and makes him 20th A-T World!
Tori Franklin TJ'ed 46-3.50 at the Penn State meet.

Kiara Parker took over the Collegiate lead in the 60, her 7.15 making her 16th A-T Collegiate, tied with 7 others!!

Grant Holloway expanded his horizens with another Collegiate leader (and World leader!)!
His 6.51 in the short sprint makes him 10th A-T Collegiate, tied with 5 others!!

Yet another World lead was run by Christina Manning, whose 7.90 is this year's first sub-8 60H!
Trey Cunningham's 7.53 for 60H at the Armory makes him 9th A-T Collegiate, tied with 3 others!

I'm going to end (!!) this humongous post with maybe the year's most UNexpected HS distance result!!
We EXPECTED Katelyn Tuohy to lead everyone in the distances!!
But Marlee Starliper's 9:20.91 at Penn State was a bit of a shocker!
Not just because her time makes her 8th A-T HS, but because she WON the race--against a field of Collegiates!
(Okay, so the elders weren't exactly Top Tier Collegiates!!  So what!!)

And next week might be even better!!
Get out the fire hoses!!
(And bless the Stanford athletes, who made it home safe after that bus fire!!)

See you soon!

2018 AOY's, New 2019 Marks, and More!

Only returning to blogging on January 9th--and having been "out of it" for much of the latter half of '18, I considered NOT doing my AOY's etc for the World & US--which I normally have done on December 31st!
But come on, friends, pass up the AOY's??
Hell, no!!

That said, it being well into the 2018-2019 INdoor season, I'm going to do a truncated version of my picks!
Besides, I have a number of marks I came across AFTER my previous post!!
But let's do the 2018 OUTdoor stuff first!!

World Athlete of the Year--MEN
ELIUD KIPCHOGE
This was a nail-biter.  How can you ignore the "World's Greatest Athlete"--as Decathlon World Record holders are known??
Could I call it a tie between Kipchoge and Kevin Mayer?
I COULD, but I chose NOT to!!

Honorable Mentions
Mayer of course stands way above the other HM's!
But add Christian Coleman, Noah Lyles, Emmanuel Korir, Yomif Kejelcha & Selemon Barega, Sergey Shubenkov, Mutaz Barshim, Michael Norman, Abderrahman Samba & Rai Benjamin, as well as Tim Cheruiyot to this list!!

US AOY--MEN
CHRISTIAN COLEMAN

HM's Noah Lyles, Clay Murphy, Norman, Christian Taylor, and Reggie Jagers

Performance of the Year--MEN
Kipchoge's 2:01:39 wins over Mayer's 9126 Dec score.
He had a wider margin from the old mark than Mayer did!

Personality of the Year--MEN
ELIUD KIPCHOGE--again!!
His stoic nature, his humility and confidence--and just the WAY he runs!
Oh my!!

World Athlete of the Year--WOMEN
I chose Mariya Lasitskene, even though Beatrice Chepkoech broke the only WR!!
The Russian's consistency, and her many attempts at higher heights after winning!!

HM's
Chepkoech leads this group.
But add Dina Asher-Smith, Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Sandra Perkovic, Sydney McLaughlin, Sifan Hassan and Helen Obiri, as well as Caterine Ibarguen!

US AOY
This one goes to SHELBY HOULIHAN

HM's
McLaughlin, Sandi Morris

Performance of the Year--WOMEN
This must go to Chepkoech's 8:44.32 Steeple!
I just hope it was legit---if you know what I mean!!

Personality of the Year--WOMEN
I'll give this one to SHELBY HOULIHAN
I just like her style, he snazzy hair colorings, and the way she finishes her races!!

Sorry for the brief comments!
(Or maybe you're cheering!!  LOL)

With due thanks to the newest eTN from T&FN, I have several marks to add.
But first a comment!

Having been VERY sick--even hospitalized for 20 days---and still recovering!---I didn't do as thorough a job of researching results as I've done in the past!
So I am not as reluctant to rely on the eTN to "fill in the spaces".
The Newsletter ALWAYS provides marks I somehow missed---even when I was much healthier!!
But my recovery, plus the fact I refuse to pay for the services of Mile Split, Runner Space, or Flotrack--causes me to use the eTN more than normal!!
That said, here's some "new" marks---

More Reno PV Summit results--
Matt Ludwig won the Men's event with his 18-8.75!
Saitu Yamamoto also cleared 18-8.75 in 2nd!
Mondo ended 6th with his 18-1!  (See previous post!)

Lexi Jacobus took a strong 3rd behind Ekaterina Stefanidi and Katie Nageotte, her height being 15-3.50--a clear Collegiate leader!!
Morgann LeLeux, Alysha Newman, and Annie Johnigan all topped 14-11.50!!
The first pair tied for 4th, with Johnigan taking 6th!!

More good WT's--
Payton Otterdahl tossed the WT out 77-8.25.
He's now 16th A-T Collegiate, and 20th A-T US!

Janeah Stewart extended her PR by inches, her 79-3.75 keeping her 10th A-T US.
But it does move her from 11th A-T World to 10th, tied with 1 other!

Brittany Brown sped a 300 in 36.30, making her 7th A-T US, and 11th A-T World, tied with 1 other!
Britton Wilson's 37.71 makes her 5th A-T HS!!

Georganne Moline ran the 600 in 1:27.59--but it's not a PR!

Isaiah Jewett ran the 3-lapper in 1:15.95, making him 8th A-T Collegiate, and 11th A-T US!!
But he misses the World list by just 0.05 seconds!!
Ending 2nd to Jewett was Thomas Staines, whose 1:16.38 makes him 11th A-T Collegiate!

A good HS Men's 1000 saw Matthew Payamps run 2:25.09, making him 12th A-T HS!!
Second was Theo Woods in 2:25.95, which makes him 20th A-T HS!!

Remember Kayla Davis from my previous post??
She ran Frosh Class Records in the 300--times of 38.03 and 37.92!
Well, she tried a 400, and ran 53.30!!

This makes her 12th A-T HS!!
And she misses the Frosh Class Record by only 0.07 seconds!!

I have a couple of HJ marks to report---which are a full 8 inches apart---both by Women!!

One comes from Mariya Lasitskene, whose 6-8 retook the World lead from Anna Chicherova!
But Chicherova ended 2nd with her 6-7 leap!!
Lasitskene ties the Age 26 Record!!
(She turned 26 on January 14th!!)

The other HJ'er is Shelby Tyler!
Pardon me if you've never heard of her!
But her 6-0 leap broke a TWELVE-way tie for my 24th A-T Performer!!
No really big names from those eliminated, but the oldest marks dated from 1976 and 1980!!
(And now I have a REALLY messy page to redo!!
BTW, the jump makes her 11th A-T HS, tied with 8 others!!

Sooooo, folks, how is this INdoor season going so far, almost 7 weeks into it??

Pretty damn fine, thank you!!
(See previous posts for all the details!!

We began with that incredible Women's 5000 at Boston U on December 1st!

Ms Lasitskene (& Chicherova) have made the Women's HJ an early key event!!

HS'ers have run amok!!
The Bullis Men's sprint Relayers, Taylor Ewert's great Walk, and Trey Knight's massive HSR in the Pro WT!!

Would you believe Athing Mu misses the WORLD lead in the 400 by a mere 0.01 seconds??!!

Grant Holloway exploded early in the 60H!

The sprints have been slow to develop--except for the speedy 300's!!
Some fast 600's too!!

Not much from the horizontal jumps--from either sex!!

Some decent PV'ing, but nothing REALLY spectacular!!

Most of the Professionals have yet to begin their seasons!
That should come soon!!

Not much from the distances--except for Ewert's Walk, and the OT marks from Yomif Kejelcha!!
(Which of course count for NOTHING!!)

Emily Sisson ran that strong Half at Houston!!

Bottom line--more than you'd expect, it being just January 22nd!!

See you soon!

Hot HS'ers Surge

The above title was NOT my first choice!
No, that would have been a wordplay (actually a NAMEplay!) I thought of!
I changed it because I would've had to explain the title I'd chosen!
But here it is anyway!

Mu (A-thing) to behold

HER name is Athing Mu, and she's been a star for a few years now, despite being just a 16 year old HS Junior--born June 8, 2002!
Get it??
Mu A(-thing) to behold??

OK, let's move along!!

And despite there being THREE new HSR's to report, I'll begin with Ms Mu!

She began a tremendous week with a 400 time of 53.54, which made her 17th A-T HS!!
Then at the Virginia Showcase, she blew that time away by almost a full second (0.99 to be exact!), crossing the line in 52.55, moving her from 17th all the way to 5th!!
But she wasn't done!!
She followed that with a 600 in 1:28.54!!
That makes her 2nd A-T HS, with just Sammy Watson ahead of her!!
It gave her the Junior Class Record also!
She'd shown promise at distances longer than 400 before---as her OUTdoor 800 best is a sub-2:05!!
And it's only the 3rd week of January!!

As for those HSR's, Bullis HS of Maryland took down TWO of them!!
Their stud Relayers broke the 4X400  mark with a 3:12.53.
Then they sped the 4X200 in 1:25.60, again a HSR!!
Don't know how many ran both races!!

Taylor Ewert put on her WALKING shoes--after a successful XC season!
She Walked the 3000 in 13:24.76, breaking her own Record by over 20 seconds!!
She said she wants to Walk in the Pan Ams this summer, and try a 20K!!
(On Twitter, I predicted she could Walk 1:35 for that distance!!)

But HSR's weren't all that took place this weekend!!
Grant Holloway had quite a meet!
He ran the 60H in 7.49--twice!!--in the heat and the final!!
It's the Junior Class Record!
He also ran the 200 in 20.69, and ran 2nd leg on the 4X400!!

Speaking of Relays, Houston sped the 4X400 in 3:03.31, moving them from 7th A-T School, tied with 1 other, to 4th!!

A quick Men's 600 saw Donavan Brazier beat Carleton Orange, the Pro beating the Collegiate 1:15.46 to 1:16.51!
For Brazier, it makes him 5th A-T US, and 10th A-T World!
For Orange, he's now 10th A-T Collegiate, and 23rd A-T US!!

Removed FROM my US DDD were a pair of athletes who are Legends of the sport (to one degree or another!)
Lee Evans's 1:16.7 was run in 1973!!
And Nick Symmonds's 1:16.89 was run more recently--in 2013!!

Some other 600's were good.
Luis Perallta leads the HS crowd with his 1:19.14--which makes him 14th A-T HS!
And Natoya Goule ran the distance in 1:26.33--but it wasn't a PR!

Let's say it right now----MONDO CRASHED!!!
His best was just 18-1---with 3 fails at 18-6.25!
One disclaimer---he was using his biggest pole---and it was his 2019 rust-buster!!

But Ekaterina Stefanidi and Katie Nageotte battled it out in Reno---with Stefanidi edging Nageotte---both clearing 15-6.50!!

Chloe Cunliffe (See earlier post!) led the Girl HS'ers with her 14-0 clearance!
She became the 8th female HS'er to clear 14 feet INdoors!!
She moves from 12th A-T HS, tied with 2 others, to 7th, tied with 1 othet!!

Keturah Orji opened her season with a solid TJ of 47-2.50!

Anna Chicherova HJ'ed 6-7--taking over the World lead---and nabbing the Age 36 Record held by Ruth Beitia!!

I have some "old" marks to report---
Justin Robinson ran the 400 in 46.77, becoming 9th A-T HS!!

Cheyenne Figueroa--sister of Gabby--threw the WT 59-11.50, making her 21st A-T HS!!

In her 4:39.15 Mile (See earlier post!), Katelyn Tuohy hit the 1500 point in 4:19.72, moving her from 9th A-T HS to 5th!!

And we just might have a new long sprint star in the female ranks of HS!!
Kayla Davis's 38.03 shattered the Frosh Class Record in the 300!!
But she then broke her own mark with a 37.92!!
The former made her 13th A-T HS---while the latter moved her up to 12th!!
Not bad for a Frosh!!

The Houston Half saw some significant results!!

The Men's race was won by Shura Kitata in  60:11.
The Women's race went to Brigid Kosgei in 65:50--the fastest ever run in the United States!!
It makes her 14th A-T World, tied with 1 other!

On course for the American Record early on, Emily Sisson slowed a bit at the end--her 67:30 missing Molly Huddle's AR by just 5 seconds!
It makes her 3rd A-T US!!
However, Kara Goucher (who ran in the full Marathon) has a 66:57 to her credit!
It was run on the South Shields course, which is considered a downhill course!!

I have two interesting news items to report!!

Rai Benjamin has been cleared to compete for the United States---immediately!!

And the Prefontaine Classic---its home stadium being renovated--will be held at Stanford on  June 30th!!

Yes, Athing Mu is surely a "a thing" to behold!!
LOL

See you soon!!

Records top 2nd week of '19

                     
In a week when a Collegiate Record fell, can news of a High School Record in a RARELY held event top that??
IMO, yes it can!
To that end, I'm thrilled to announce that Trey Knight OBLITERATED the HSR for the Pro-weight Weight Throw by about 27 inches!!!
He'd previously thrown it 63-9, but at the Seattle meet (proving that great marks can happen in an arena holding an Oversize Track!!), Knight tossed that ball & chain out 67-11.75, eating up the old record of 65-8.25 from 2010!
Of course, the Junior is still about 13 feet short of the HS WT Record of 93-3.25.
Can he get that one also??

As for that Collegiate Record, say hello to Danae Rivers, long a threat to Collegiate middle distance records!
But who knew she'd beat Sammy Watson to the punch?!
Her 1000 meters run at the Penn State meet took all of 2:38.58, taking down Kaela Edwards's old mark by over two seconds!!
It's also the Junior Class Record, and ranks her 14th A-T US!!
An NAIA athlete--Anna Shields--took 2nd in a good 2:42.51.

Another excellent mark was run by Jacory Patterson!
A Virginia Tech Frosh, Patterson's 32.49 over 300 meters makes him 2nd A-T Collegiate, and is the Frosh Class Record!
But note that Brian Herron's 32.64, run as a HS Junior, is probably better by comparison!
It's the Age 18 Record as well.
It makes him 9th A-T US, and 16th A-T World!!

As often happens INdoors in the early season, the Pole Vault produced a slough of decent marks--despite MONDO not competing in LSU's 1st meet of the season!!

Renaud Lavillenie topped 19-1.

The former Weeks' twins went 1-2 at Arkansas's opener.
Lexi Jacobus went over 14-8.25, while Tori Hoggard cleared 14-6.75!
Add Desiree Freier to the Razorback's threesome--as she went over 14-2.75 in 3rd!

Perhaps the best PV mark goes to Anzhelika Sidorova, as she soared over 15-11 to lead the World!

Katie Nageotte topped 15-3, while Morgann LeLeux went over 14-6.75 in a different meet!
But 2nd to LeLeux was a Collegiate Frosh--Nastassja Campbell--whose 14-4.75 is credited as the American Junior Record!
While it betters Tori WEEKS's (Sic!!) HSR of 14-4 from 2015, it's far below the Collegiate Frosh Class Record of Lexi WEEKS's (Sic again!!  LOL)--15-2.25, set in 2016.
(Note that the twins were born in late '96, thus Lexi's mark didn't count as a "Junior" record, as she turned 20 that same year!
And THAT is why this blogger & blog does NOT recognize "Junior", "Youth", or "Masters" records, as we rely on actual birthdates for the cut-off point for AGE Records!!)
Still, Campbell's mark IS good for a Collegiate Frosh!!

We all know Hannah Cunliffe, the former Oregon sprinter!
And last year we saw a 14-0 mark from her younger sister, Chloe (OUTdoors!).
So it's not a shock to see Chloe top 13-9.25 INdoors at the Seattle meet!
This makes her 12th A-T HS, tied with 2 others!

In earlier results--but all in 2019--a fast Women's 300 saw Lynna Irby LOSE!!
Tamara Clark sped 37.01, topping Irby's non-PR of 37.14!!
Clark's time makes her 8th A-T Collegiate, and 22nd A-T US!!
Third went to Daija Lampkin's 37.35, which makes her 12th A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other!

A good Collegiate 600 saw Abike Egbuniyi (sp??) race a 1:27.80, which lists her as 7th A-T Collegiate!
Second went to Kayla Johnson's 1:28.31, which ranks her 13th A-T Collegiate!!

Daniel Haugh threw the WT 78-11.25, making him 11th A-T US, and 14th A-T World!!

Micah Williams sped the 60 in 6.67, making him 19th A-T HS, tied with 2 others!!

And Katelyn Tuohy (Huh?  Who is she??) won the Millrose Trials Mile at the Armory in 4:39.15.
This moves her from 17th A-T HS to 6th!!
(Rumors are she CRUISED the race!!)
She also (in a later meet) anchored her team to a 4X800 win, her split just under 2:10--not exactly a ripper!!

Okay!
Long-time readers of this blog know my attitude toward OVERSIZE TRACK marks---they're WORTHLESS!!

But when HUGE names run fast times---even on an OT---you pay attention---even if they remain essentially worthless!!

Anyway, the Seattle meet (Where else??!!) saw the return of Shannon Rowbury to competition, just 6 months after giving birth to her first child!!
She finished second, but her 9:03.00 over 3K was more than a rust-busting quality mark!!

Yomif Kejelcha ran a double within one hour!
His 1000 mark of 2:18.34 led off the double, followed by his Mile of 3:52.61.
While I don't accept OT marks, I believe his mark is the fastest Mile ever run on an OT!!

Konstanze Klosterhalfen also did that double!!
Her times were 2:43.07 and 4:29.06.

There are tons of big names yet to appear, so I'm hoping we have lots to look forward to.
But I do have some "off-track" news to report---although no one else is pregnant!!
LOL

Tara Davis is now a Texas Longhorn!!
She's signed with them, but because of her abrupt departure from Georgia, she needs to sit out 2019 as a Longhorn.
She CAN, however, compete as "unattached", and all signs point to that being the case!!

Finally, Tia Jones, just beginning her Senior year of HS, has turned Professional!
She hasn't signed a shoe deal as yet, but she HAS signed with an agent!!
Therefore, any marks she runs this year (INdoors or OUTdoors) will be eligible for my HS PRO Records & Lists ONLY!!
(As I have no 60H or 100H marks on those lists, she'll be the record-holder--if & when she competes!!)

See you soon!

A New (T&F) Season---A New Life

I'm back.
And so is this blog.
A brief synopsis of the past 6 weeks---

Beginning about 2015, a lower leg & foot infection worsened---a lot!
And like an addict denying his addiction, I ignored it, thinking it would cure itself.
As the years, months & days wore on, I came THIS close to the door of death!!

Bob Dylan---my hero & life inspiration---sang he's "trying to get to Heaven before they close the door"!!
In fact, my residence became a living HELL!!

And then my greatly needed intervention arrived.
Adult Protective Services brought 3 EMT's to my apt and persuaded me to go to the hospital!
Long story short, I was in St Joseph's Hospital here in Bellingham between December 4th and the 24th!
And I'm 100% CURED!
The infection is GONE!!

Thank you to Dr Huong, the many nurses and nurses aides (CNA's), the PT's and others who tended to, cared for, and conversed with me (non-medical subjects) through all 20 days there!
I was cured within 12 days, actually, but my apt needed to be cured  also---paint job, new flooring, a new bed---and that's why I didn't come home until late on Christmas Eve!!
Scrooge---and his abode---redeemed!!
No more "Bah!  Humbug's!" from me!!!

Soooo---
let's return from that door of death, and get back to the reason and purpose of this blog!!
With that in mind, I'm going to begin my report with the NCAA Cross Country Championships held on November 22nd!!

The Men's race was slow.
Nohing new in the post King Ches era!
Morgan McDonald--out of Australia--won it in 29:06, a full 2.5 seconds ahead of the favored Grant Fisher!
Edwin Kurgat followed in the Cardinal's shadow, ahead of Isai Rodriguez, Aaron (Sic!) Templeton, and Tyler Day!
Aman Kemboi, Joe Klecker, John Dressel, and Connor Mantz filled places 7 through 10.
Some other names---Alfred Chelanga was 12th, Matt Baxter 15th, Rory Linkletter 22nd, and Casey Comber 34th!!
No times were even close to my Top 24 A-T list for this event!!

The Women's race--seemingly a given!---was faster!!
Dani Jones used her incredible kick to move into the Winner's circle---and come to within a second of making my A-T list---her time being 19:42.
She blew past the diminutive Eritrean--Weini Kelati---and beat her by 3 seconds!!
Another 5 seconds back came Jessica Hull.
Yet another 5 seconds behind came Alicia Monson, Ednah Kurgat, and Allie Ostrander!
Also under 20 minutes was Erica Birk!!
Makena Morley, Charlotte Prouse, and Anna Rohrer filled out the Top 10!
Other big names included---
Elise Cranny and Weronika Pyzik in 11th & 12th, followed by Dorcas Wasike in 14th, Katie Rainsberger in 19th, with Sharon Lokedi back in 45th, and Callie Logue in 53rd!

Before leaving November, let's not ignore Kellyn Taylor's fine Half of 1:10:13!!
(For some reason, her time is NOT listed in T&FN's year-end list!!)
Run on November 11th, it ranks 14th A-T US!!

The Istanbul Marathon produced a fast Woman's time!
Ruth Chepngetich missed the Age 24 Record by one second, but her winning time of 2:18:35 ranks her 7th A-T World, tied with 1 other!!
Cut OFF my list was the venerable Edna Kiplagat, her 2:19:50 dating from 2012!!

Now let's review the HS XC Championship races---the NXN and Footlocker!
For those unaware, the NXN is mainly a team race, with some at-large individuals added.
Footlocker is all individuals--although they run for "regions" of the country!

The redoubtable Katelyn Tuohy broke her own Course Record by about 7 seconds, her 16:37.8 beating her NY rival Kelsey Chmiel by about 17 seconds!!
Chmiel's time (16:54 & change) ranks her 4th A-T for the NXN, although please note that the course has changed, while the distance remains 5000 meters!!
In fact, the first 7 make my A-T list!!
Runner-Walker Extraordinaire Taylor Ewart took 3rd, her 17:06.7 ranking 7th A-T.
Emily Covert's 17:10.2 is 9th A-T, tied with 1 other!
Claire Walters's 17:13.3 is 11th, with Brooke Rauber's 17:19.2 ranking 15th A-T, and Alexis Morris's 17:25.3 ranking her 23rd A-T!!
Way back---48th & 49th in a field of 50!!--came BIG names Grace Ping and London Culbreath!!

The Men too broke Records & made my list!!
Unheralded Liam Anderson not only won the race, but his 14:57.6 is the first sub-15 time ever run at NXN!!
Cole Hocker--also unknown to me!--took 2nd about 3 seconds back, his 15:00.9 ranking 3rd on the A-T list!!
Another Cole--Sprout--was 3rd in 15:02.7, ranking 4th A-T!!
Nico Young's 15:04.7 and Easton Allred's 15:05.2 ranks 9th & 11th, respectively!!
Austin Varicil's 15:08.8 makes him 14th A-T!
Alex Maur (??) ran 15:10.3 for 23rd A-T!!
And Matt Strange (???) is 24th A-T with his 15:10.5 in 8th!!

Footlocker saw Cole Hocker again---and here he WON!!
But his 15:13.7 fell 20 seconds short of making my A-T list!!
Jake Renfer took 2nd six seconds behind!

An unknown Soph won the Women's race--her name being Sydney Masciarelli!!
And her 17:00.3 makes her 14th A-T!!
Katelynn Hart took a VERY close 2nd--her 17:01.0 ranking her 15th A-T, tied with 1 other!
A Frosh--Abbey VanderKool (??)--was 3rd in 17:14.
She beat some important names!!
Taylor Ewart was 4th in 17:20, while Emily Covert finished 5th in 17:29.6.

Back to the Roads for a bit!
Emma Bates will be getting married on September 20th, but more important (to our task here!!) is that she WON the Sacramento Marathon in 2:28:18!!
(T&FN says it's a "downhill" course---like Boston--so not eligible for their lists!!  But it IS eligible for MY lists!!)
Therefore, she ranks 24th A-T US, tied with 1 other.
Stephanie Bruce also broke 2:30 for the 1st time, her time being 2:29:20!!
BTW, seven Women ran 2:31:22 or faster!!

Yama Hatton (??) took the Fukuoka race in 2:07:27--the first Japanese runner to win there in 14 years!!
The Valencia Marathon saw fast times & a pair of National Records!!
Leul Gebrselassie ran 2:04:31 to rank him 23rd A-T World!
Hassan El Akbasso (??) was 2nd in 2:04:43, but claims the National Record of Bahrain!!
Mahjoub Dazza's 2:05:26 takes down Morocco's NR by one second!!


OOKKAAYYYY!!!!
It's time for the 2018-2019 INdoor T&F season!!!!!!!
And what a BLAZING start it had---at least for one race in one meet way back on December 1st!!
The Boston University track saw an amazing array of fast 5000 times in the Women's race!!
It was BU's Mini-Meet Number One!!
Let the stats speak for themselves---

Ednah Kurgat redeemed her XC season by winning in 15:14.78.
This made her 3rd A-T Collegiate INdoors!
Weini Kelati's 15:15.24 in 2nd makes her 5th A-T Collegiate!
Sharon Lokedi ran 15:15.47 to rank her 6th A-T Collegiate!
Allie Ostrander's 15:16.38 makes her 7th A-T Collegiate---and 9th A-T US!!

While Elise Cranny's 15:24.32 in 5th WOULD have made the Collegiate list, she was listed as "unattached"---so is probably either graduated, out of INdoor eligibility, or is redshirting!!
So no listing!!
However, she DOES make the US list--in 15th place!!

Dorcas Wasike's 15:25.35 makes her 12th A-T Collegiate!
Charlotte Prouse ran 15:26.01 to rank 13th A-T Collegiate!
Jaci Smith's 15:28.07 makes her 15th A-T Collegiate, and 19th A-T US!!
Aubrey Roberts's 15:32.38 makes her 19th A-T Collegiate, and 23rd A-T US!!
Lauren LaRocco's 15:33.20 makes her 20th A-T Collegiate!!
Finally--in 11th place in the race!!--came Jessica Pascoe, her 15:34.76 ranking her 23rd A-T Collegiate!!

WOW!!!!

The HS'ers and Collegiates (Except in that 5K race!!!) have been slow to come around----or come around at all!!!---but a few Pro's have wound their INdoor clocks into overdrive early!!

The venerable Mariya Lasitskene opened her INdoor season with a 6-6.75 (2.00) HJ, leading the World, of course!
Kaitlyn Long threw the WT out 79-1.25, but it's 10 inches shy of her PR!
An 18 year old Irish lass (born 12/12/2000)--Kate O'Connor--did a Pentathlon, scoring 4174 points to lead the World--and nab the Ireland National Record!!

But on January 4th in Glasgow, a pair of Women ran fast 5K's!!
Laura Muir's 14:52.02 isn't a PR, but was quick enough to beat Canada's Gabriela Stafford, whose time of 14:57.45 SMASHED the National INdoor Record of Canada to pieces!!!
It also makes her 17th A-T World!!
BUT--cut FROM my DDD list was USA's Shelby Houlihan, whose 15:06.22 dates from 2016!

Well, that takes care of the Records & Marks--but maybe I'll be setting a record (of sorts) for "off-track" news!!

Pregnancy--and giving birth--is HUGE (Sic!!) news now!
Sarah Brown is pregnant with her 2nd child--and announced her retirement from Professional racing!!

VCB--Veronica Campbell Brown--- gave us a beautiful photo of her VERY pregnant self on Instagram--and said she too MIGHT be retiring!!

And Allyson Felix!!!---who ran 51 seconds last August while pregnant!---gave birth recently to her first child!!

Tara Davis has left Georgia!!
Disagreements with her coach there--plus personal issues--caused her to depart and head home to California and her family!!
What 2019 holds for her---coaching, school, her LIFE---is unknown at this time!!

Finally, Mary Cain---Remember her???---is in serious training at the Mammoth Lakes site (Deena Kastor's group!)---in her 2nd of 3 weeks there!!
What 2019 holds for HER is also unknown right now!!
(But a photo of her showed she's lean and smiling!!)
Hopeful signs!

As for myself---and this blog--all signs are pointing towards Heaven---hopefully(for now!!) Heaven on Earth!!
Cured, home, getting stronger every day, this blogger---and blog--- LIVES!!

See you soon!