Do you think Hall could win world XC?

OMGHALL! wrote:

however, I think that his HM performance shows an incredible amount of strength over an XC course, especially a hard ON in Kenya.

Anyone else believe?

let the bashing begin.

it's a team race and he'll be on his own against a bunch of guys working together..the constant surging combined with the strongarm tactics will kill him...

What does a "hard on" in Kenya have to do with it?

I think, like Bill Rodgers in '75, a course that is more like a road race would set him up nicely. I doubt he would win but surely he could potentially medal or at least be threatening as Mottram is.

Touche, guys.

"hard ONE"

That is what I meant. However, hard ons are certainly a component of fast running.

He has a chance, he's taking the same stuff that the Ethiopians are.

bible bars?

(google it)

Bible bars are freakin' delicious.

RE: Do you think Hall could win world XC?

No.

Obviously he is in mind-bending shape, but no way, no how will he win world cross. Different distance, different surface/terrain, different day, different elevation, different country, 1000x better competition and pressure. In short, a whole different ballgame. Do you really think the East Africans will let an upstart outsider win the whole shebang on their home turf?

But I will admit that up until last week, your question would have been beyond the absurd. But after that half he just ran, I can't blame you for thinking that just about anything is possible for Ryan Hall.

It's unlikely he'll even be going, no matter which marathon he chooses to do. But no, I don't think he'd have a chance of winning. Obviously Kenya, hosting, is going to have a terrific team, and there will be guys like Tadesse of Eritrea. Actually, I think even a top ten finish by a non-African is unlikely this time.

SIr Lance-alot wrote: different elevation,

Same elevation.

trollism wrote:

He has a chance, he's taking the same stuff that the Ethiopians are.

What would that be? Altitude training?

Freely dumb runner wrote:

SIr Lance-alot wrote: different elevation,

Same elevation.

You're correct, my bad. I made the mistake of thinking the race was at elevation. DO YOUR RESEARCH LANCE-ALOT!!

SIr Lance-alot wrote:

Freely dumb runner wrote:

Same elevation.

You're correct, my bad. I made the mistake of thinking the race was at elevation. DO YOUR RESEARCH LANCE-ALOT!!

Yeah Sir Lance-alot! Do your research! :)

yeah

OMGHALL! wrote:

Anyone else believe?

I believe in Him.

You idiots, obviously Bekele is going to race and win world cross. Have any of you noticed that he lies every single year about what he's going to do at world cross? Do you think he'd pass up a chance for his first unified CC title? And on Kenyan soil? Did you notice that he's running tune up CC races in preparation for this? Think.

And if we don't even consider Bekele, how do you think non africans are going to fair in a World CC run IN AFRICA?

not necessarily as well as Africans fair IN AMERICA, but I don't think the location will kill him. there were a few rollers in that HM but I agree if the course is hilly he probably won't do as well. And the team tactics could hurt him. He is bigger than most of those guys though, so if he decides to jostle back, some little dude's probably in trouble.

I think its very unlikely that he will win it

The key word is "could". Yes, he "could" win with the talent he showed at the Houston Half, but the comparison between these two events is "apples and oranges", to say the least! To project a World XC win from a great ROAD RACE is very speculative. I would love to see Hall win World XC, as it would be a HUGE win for U.S distance. I don't believe, however, it will happen. Top 5? ok, that's more realistic, and still bodes well for the U.S. What odds would Vegas give for a Hall win, if they even cared??!!