I apologize if my facetious reference to the Alhambra 5km was disrespectful to Bauhs. I am in no way making light of Bauhs' accomplishments - and did not "infer" that Bauhs was not a real champion - I'm only trying to point out that his DII wins do not make him MORE of a champion than Rupp. (It's my opinion.)
[By the way, I didn't "infer" anything; if I meant something that I didn't actually say, I'd have "implied" it. If you read something into what I've said that I didn't actually say, then you have "inferred" it.]
Bauhs has been a great runner on the DII level - and certainly would, at this point in his career, be a factor in DI. I simply don't believe that his previous accomplishments make him a greater "champion" than Rupp. (Again, that's my opinion.) You all are entitled to your opinion as to what constitutes a champion, but I believe that Rupp's accomplishments speak for themselves.
Bauhs' titles certainly are real, as are Rupp's records and high placings.
With regard to the expectations of Bauhs at the Trials, I sat amongst a large group of folks who picked Bauhs to make the team. He had run a pretty darn good 10000 earlier in the spring, and many felt that he had a legitimate shot at making the team. Even Letsrun had this to say before the meet: "Scott Bauhs - Rupp has been viewed by Nike and Alberto as the future of American distance running for quite some time. Well Bauhs is sort of the every day man's Rupp. The guy is 3 days younger than Rupp and without the high altitude tents, anti-gravity treadmills or even a D1 scholarship, has managed to run 27:45.." I'd argue that many folks believed that he could "step up" at the Trials. (For those of you not familiar with the results, Rupp was 2nd while Bauhs was 16th, 71 seconds back. Is this the type of result that shows that Bauhs has the ability to step up while Rupp doesn't?)
Again, my goal is not lessen Bauhs' accomplishments; the original poster used these accomplishments as proof that Rupp doesn't have what it takes to be a champion. I strongly disagree and hope that both Bauhs and Rupp continue to improve and represent our country at a high level for many years to come.
I had a kid win the JV race today in our District cross country meet; I had another kid get 3rd in the varsity race. My varsity kid has never won a race of the magnitude of the District Meet, but he's been 1st team all state twice; is my JV champ more of a "champion" than my varsity kid?
thanks, I'll take my response off the air.
boredman wrote:
[quote]ramxc wrote:
are you comparing Bauhs NCAA titles to Rupp's NCAA runner up finishes? This makes Bauhs a champion? How many titles do you think Rupp might have if he wasn't in Div I? Would he then be considered a champion?
I like Scotty Bauhs, but he didn't quite "step up" at the Olympic Trials. Of course - according to you - neither did Rupp. The only difference is that Rupp got to compete in the Olympics while Bauhs was winning the Alhambra Chamber of Commerce 5km....
Now we have a "respected" high school coach talking sh!t about Bauhs accomplishments. Maybe Rupp should have run DII, do you think AlSal would have let him? No, psycho Al desperately needed the limelight once again. Besides, last time I checked Scott Bauhs was the DII champ. Rupp? No dice, not even DIII, no win = no champion.
Since, as you infer, Bauhs isn't a "real" champion, then perhaps Rupp jr. records aren't "real" either.
Nobody was really expecting Bauhs to "step up" at the trials. Though I'm sure at least half of the running world would have loved to see SB take down the prima donna Rupp.
Rupp has the talent to win NCAA's this year, but he simply cannot get the job done. Sorry Dave, finishing second isn't winning. Finishing second with Rupp's talent, clear advantages, and wild hype is just about embarrassing.[/quote]
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