We did a 5k! ⏱

Lap 13: Sponsored by WHOOP

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AND WE ARE BACK BABY!

This must be the Hayward Magic I’ve heard about! Kudos to common sense for sitting and kicking here. Competing at a track meet with more than a metal bleacher’s worth of fans is truly special, and it’s great that athletes will get to experience it in Eugene. At the risk of pissing off the unvaccinated section, how do we go about getting Dr. Fauci to throw out the ceremonial first hammer?

Pour one out for Amy 🍾

American women were not always as good as they are today on the international stage. Before there was Des in Boston or Shalane in New York, the most running Twitter had ever exploded was during the final miles of the 2017 World Champs, when Amy Cragg clawed her way into bronze model position. The 2x Olympian helped pave the way for the current generatiom, while also serving its members some well-documented ass-whoopings. It’s hard to distill Cragg’s career in one or two paragraphs, but for a taste of how good and also gritty she was a racer, after finishing a disappointing 4th in the 2012 marathon trials, she bounced back and punched her ticket to London with a 10k win in Eugene. Now Amy is bringing her experience to the coaching ranks, alongside her husband Alistair Cragg. It’s always exciting to see “new” companies upping their investment in the sport, and the new North Carolina-based Puma training group has big talent both writing workouts and running them. Although this begs the question: If a training group doesn’t have an Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, website, TikTok, or name, does it actually exist?

Welcome to the Hobbs Kessler show

(I want to preface this by saying Hobbs Kessler shouldn’t read this newsletter or really anything else on the internet. Keep kicking ass and having fun!)

3:34.36 — For an 18 year old American! It’s rare that putting your arms out to celebrate a 5th place finish is socially acceptable, but it works here. When Hobbs first burst onto the scene to break the indoor national HS mile record, it was obvious he was a special talent. But there is a big difference between running 3:57 and 3:34 because one is impressive and the other comes with a world of expectations. My first reaction watching him cross the finish line was that it sucks he’s going to *have to* go pro now. He’s currently committed to NAU, which is consistently one of the top programs in the country and known for developing talent…but now he could yell “Show me the money!” over the phone to prospective agents. There is no right or wrong answer here, as every prodigious phenom is different and there are case studies to support either decision. But could there be a better duo to provide guidance than the athlete/coach combo of Nick Willis and Ron Warhurst?

And then halfway through this internal debate, I stopped — let’s just appreciate it! Hobbs broke Alan Webb’s high school and Jim Ryun’s U20 record and was faster than the recently set collegiate record. No matter how talented, the next 10+ years of his career won’t be easy and nothing’s guaranteed. There will be ups and downs with victories and injuries along the way. Instead, let’s narrow the focus on the present — now that Hobbs has the standard and the 3rd fastest time by an American this year, can he make the Olympic team?

Speaking of the Olympic team, Craig Engels’s victory and new personal best (3:33.64) was overshadowed, but he appears to be coming in hot at the right time. The race was stacked from top to bottom with multiple PRs, but you have to use the eyeball test when wildly prognosticating in your newsletter. On paper a 3:35 and 3:33 may not seem too far apart until you actually watch the gap form. Earlier in the evening, favorite Matt Centrowitz went 1:46.2 in the 800 to wipe 4.7 seconds off his season’s best, but his dominant 3:35.26 at Sound Running would have only placed him 8th in Portland. That’s why when creating betting odds, horse racing looks more at head-to-head matchups than the 10 furlough split. I’ve often [controversially] quipped that times for finishers outside of the top 8 should not count, as you shouldn’t be allowed to celebrate losing by that much.

Apologies to 9th place finisher, Mason Ferlic. Hopefully the steeplechase victory from the day prior can be of comfort.

(It costs you literally nothing to share The Lap Count, but it’ll help validate me staying up super late every Tuesday night to write this BS.)

Throwing flames 🔥

The 2016 Olympic trials champion bombed an American Record of 66.82m this weekend in Chula Vista to usurp the 8x US Champ, Kara Winger’s best. Throwing fans have plenty of reasons to be excited, as the last 10 months, the US all-time list has been thoroughly re-written for the javelin, discus and hammer. Admittedly, I have a bias towards the middle-distance races, but now that my days of being a narcissistic pro are over, I have a surplus of attention to give to other events. For my readers who have no concept of what a good toss is, let me provide some context: 66.82m would win (or at least medal) at every recent Olympics. Maggie was ranked 20th in the world heading into this weekend, but it only takes one great throw. The sole woman to ever win a medal for the US is Kate Schmidt, with a pair of bronze medals from Munich and Montreal. Maybe this is just my American talking, but it seems like we deserve to be the best at everything. If that’s not the Olympic spirit then I don’t know what is!

Is a time trial a race?

We were expecting to see the country’s best distance runner finally open her 2021 campaign in Portland this past weekend, but then came the disappointing announcement of a scratch. The AR holder at 1500 and 5k, Shelby Houlihan, has been noticeably absent this year and this has led to endless rumors about her whereabouts and her Olympic trials plans. Speculation is the most popular event in T&F. Well the gossip was that she didn’t pull out of the race due to injury, but to do a time trial instead. And apparently she ran very fast! Like sub 4 fast. Now, this isn’t me reporting the news — because I am not a legitimate media outlet. (It’s important to remember this newsletter is basically written by a more fit version of Perez Hilton.) With that said, if the rumors are true then she’s most likely going to do something very special once the cameras are rolling. And if it’s NOT true, then that tells you all you need to know about the public’s understanding of how mysterious Coach Jerry Schumacher is.

Kara makes the team! 🎙

There are two paths to becoming a sports broadcaster: 1) Work the graveyard shift for the college radio station long enough to get noticed, or 2) be a former professional athlete. Kara Goucher took the harder — and more physically challenging — route to being named to NBC’s broadcast team for both the trials and the Olympics. She started commentating last month at the USATF Grand Prix making this an impressive career ascent. Kara is now tasked with providing enough perspective and information to casual viewers, while still appeasing the distance running nerds. The majority of families watching at home won’t know who she is or the extent of her accomplishments, but her expertise will 100% shine through. I’ve been impressed by her delivery and apparent comfort behind the mic, as she is well-spoken, professional and gets appropriately fired up for big moments — something track announcers don’t always do, because how else will casual viewers know something exciting is happening? Kara will be the conduit through which millions of Americans will hopefully connect with our sport. No pressure!

The 10,000 meter long party! 🎉

Congratulations to the 51 women who have now qualified for the Olympic trials 10k by hitting the standard of 32:25! The problem is USATF now needs 27 of you to scratch! The field was initially drawn up to be 24 athletes, but thanks to the pandemic delay and the rapid progression of America’s distance running depth, this number has been far surpassed. USATF’s answer? A two heat final. For obvious reasons, this hasn’t been a popular proposal. Mainly because there are studs like Keira D’Amato, who have a very realistic chance of making the team, but whose seed time would place them in the ‘slow’ section. As 2008 Olympian, Blake Russell, pointed out, the standard format used to include prelims. This probably would be an even less popular solution, particularly among athletes attempting the 5k-10k double. An additional 6+ miles is a long way to race in order to weed out athletes without a realistic shot of making the team. A few alternative ideas: Pull ‘The Boston Marathon’ and just ignore qualifying times completely despite posting them. (USATF could have upped the qualifying standard 45 days before the trials, but that opportunity came and went without anyone noticing.) Or just run one gigantic heat, which has been done plenty of times before at conference meets. (I’ve never seen officials force lapped athletes into the outside lanes, but it’d be necessary.) And finally, you could have two heats, but allow athletes to petition their way into the faster section. This is the best option. It should be noted that the goal of the Olympic trials is to pick the best team — an aim that can be at odds with fairness and general politeness. There’s a reason that Galen Rupp will most likely be in the men’s 10k despite missing the qualifying standard by .37 seconds this past weekend — we would like to give the potential medal contenders the chance to make the team, right?

I loved that the standard led to massive fields for the marathon trials. But the track trials are structurally much different from the marathon, where 465 women qualified and there was still more than enough space on the road. The goal of competing in Atlanta gave hundreds of athletes a reason to keep training and racing who would have maybe otherwise stopped had the qualifying times been minutes faster. The celebratory nature of making the event added to the incredible atmosphere at the marathon trials. But I’m a romantic for the brutality of the track, where you can’t hide from getting lapped, but you can most certainly get in the way if you unintentionally move out in front of someone kicking their way onto an Olympic team.

East coast tough > ☔️

The Platinum PT qualifier was a good reminder that east coasters are in a constant state of convincing ourselves that we prefer it here. With cold temperatures accompanied by rain and wind, it wasn’t exactly the start of MDW that we all dreamed of. This didn’t stop Emily Sisson from breaking 15-minutes for the 3rd time this spring despite the doubters. Josette Norris continued to be very good, winning the 1500 in 4:06 and Elle Purrier wouldn’t let a crappy day in Boston ruin her season despite losing the 800. If you’re an athlete/coach, I’d highly suggest watching her interview. This is a glimpse into the mind of a ‘dangerous’ athlete, whose ego is currently impenetrable. When fit and ready, you’re unflappable. I’m sure many of the athletes who competed here were kicking themselves for not spending the $500+ on a trip plus minor jet-lag to make the trek west, but the playing field will be even in a few weeks when everyone will be hacking up phlegm from the same world famous Williamette Valley pollen. Fortunately for athletes east of the Mississippi, conditions have been favorable for training as the culture-rich side of the United States has experienced good weather this spring and the Olympic Trials are early. Still, it is my humble opinion that running in humidity is harder than altitude, except there’s no conversion table to make you feel better about yourself.

Read of the week 📚

This is the best first-person article I have read about an athlete in a long time. Amelia Boone is one of the top obstacle course/ultra-marathon runners in the country, and she captures a struggle that numerous athletes all across the sport have felt. For her, it is about her decision or indecision to have children in the middle of her career. But her words will resonate with anyone who has ever struggled with expectations to pursue parts of one life while focusing on another.

Have you met Erriyon Knighton?

And who said Usain Bolt would never see his records broken? Not only was the time unbelievable (for a 17-year old or anyone!), but the field was too as he beat out Trayvon Bromell in the process. I know virtually nothing about him or Jaylen Slade (10.09/20.20 at 17), which seems fair given how long they’ve been on the Earth. We have time!

The regularly scheduled Athing Mu section 🕗

49.68 — And she’s running the 800m at the trials! Athing now has the top time in the country at both distances, but 14 women have broken 2-minutes for 800 this year. There is double the room for error in the two lapper and look no further than, Donovan Brazier, another Aggie who had broken the CR, as evidence that there are no sure things. If I was turning 19 next week, my goal would be to make it to Tokyo. Plain and simple. And the easiest path there is the 400. Why? Because of the 4x400! Then again, this play-it-safe mindset is why I am now working in an industry that actually provides health insurance to its employees.

TRACK WATCH

Stumptown - Thursday, 6/3 at 4pm PT - ($5.99 PPV) [Engels is in the 800. Centro is too, but instead of running the fast heat he is running sections 2, 3 and 4. Actually! Kerr and Hiltz are the top seeds in stacked 1500s. Tiernan, Hill, Jenkins and the Bowerman Babes lead the 5ks.]

Festival of Miles - Thursday, 6/3 at 5:00pm CT- (FREE on RunnerSpace) [Willis headlines the men’s field with Eccleston, Werner, and Paquette in the women’s.]

USATF Showcase - Sunday, 6/6 in Praire View, TX - (RunnerSpace+) [There is no information about who is running this meet or when it is…]

Continental Tour: Hengelo - Sunday, 6/6 at 10:30am ET - (Flotrack Pro) [These heats are so stacked I can’t list everyone.]

Editor’s Note: There is so much happening right now that if I keep writing everything than the e-mail will be too big to send. My deepest apologies to Timothy Cheruiyot for not properly discussing his win in Doha.