Ryan Hall Interview: "I wouldn't mind putting that time on a flat certified course"

What was your prediction for him at Boston? Was it correct?

I'm not really a runner and don't even follow road racing much. Much of what I know is just reading threads on this board.

From that perspective this criticism of Ryan's time being overrated misses what is important. He finished fourth. This after many said his career was toast after his performance in the New York half just weeks ago.

We get it that all the times were wind aided and it was a net downhill. Fine. He still finished fourth. Damn good performance.

ryan foreman wrote:

I'm not really a runner and don't even follow road racing much. Much of what I know is just reading threads on this board.

From that perspective this criticism of Ryan's time being overrated misses what is important. He finished fourth. This after many said his career was toast after his performance in the New York half just weeks ago.

We get it that all the times were wind aided and it was a net downhill. Fine. He still finished fourth. Damn good performance.

I'm with you ^ (except I am a runner and do follow racing).

Is it inefficient for him to be jumping up this high up Heartbreak Hill?

http://www.boston.com/sports/marathon/gallery/2011/heartbreak_hill?pg=2

Link please?

Damn fine performance placing 4th by Hall. Glad to see him do well, and overcome some of the naysayers.

That being said, I did notice in some of his post-race interviews that his first thought was not - "I can do better". It was more "now I'm a 2:04 marathoner and I'll have that the rest of my life".

Didn't strike me as a guy that was hungry to keep climbing. I'd love to be wrong and see him start making some bigger marks on the world stage, and evolve beyond this "top American" mindset.

close but no.. wrote:

Didn't strike me as a guy that was hungry to keep climbing. I'd love to be wrong and see him start making some bigger marks on the world stage, and evolve beyond this "top American" mindset.

I think it's just that he achieved a goal and was savoring it for a moment. The guy obviously wants to be the best.

I think people are way too picky about what they think Rayn Hall should say and do. He is his own cat, unlike any other, from what I have seen. Now he has reestablished himself as our strongest American marathoner once again. Over the next, what is it, 16 months or so, we'll see if he can equal what Meb did in 2004 by medalling in London.

I think that's kind of an optical illusion.

Mr Devil wrote:

ryan foreman wrote:

I'm not really a runner and don't even follow road racing much. Much of what I know is just reading threads on this board.

From that perspective this criticism of Ryan's time being overrated misses what is important. He finished fourth. This after many said his career was toast after his performance in the New York half just weeks ago.

We get it that all the times were wind aided and it was a net downhill. Fine. He still finished fourth. Damn good performance.

I'm with you ^ (except I am a runner and do follow racing).

Sometimes I really wish there were a 'like' button on this forum.

laughingostrich wrote:

Is it inefficient for him to be jumping up this high up Heartbreak Hill?

http://www.boston.com/sports/marathon/gallery/2011/heartbreak_hill?pg=2

How is being 2 inches off the ground "jumping"?

Had he finished 4th in London I would be a little more impressed. In reality, on a normal world record certified course without the wind aids, he probably ran about 2:07 or 2:08. Also, he only ran 3 seconds under 2:05. People are acting like he ran 2:04.03 or something. And, he got beat by almost 2 minutes. It was an alright race but he hasn't improved at all when you consider all the factors in the race and his previous races. 2:07 or 8 and 4th sounds like standard Ryan Hall. Kinda boring without the wind to hype him up. Sorry to be a killjoy but we need to get real about what happened here.

Ryan Hall is the best american marathoner ever in terms of pure raw talent. He may never run 2:04 again but he did it yesterday. If I had come on here and said Hall would run 2:04 in Boston how badly would I have gotten roasted? Like Hall himself said, "I was on 2:04 pace and couldn't even see the leaders."

No matter what anyone says, a new world record was run yesterday and Hall was a part of it. Sure it was net downhill with a tailwind, but Boston has never been a fast course compared to berlin, chicago and london, and it didn't become one overnight, those guys smoked it. Haile may not have had a tail wind but how would he have done on a hilly course with no pacemakers? I'm not sure why you can't count boston when you can count a pancake flat course with a cherry picked field paid to rabbit one person through 35k.

Basically if any American male is going to win a major marathon it is Hall, no one else is in his class.

still, the guys behind him were good and he was just barely behind nyc winner and world xc champ geb geb.

That's like saying if Bolt runs 9.2 in the 100 with a super wind at his back, its a world record. It wouldn't be. Hall was not part of a world record run. He assisted in a very fast downhill marathon that was wind aided. Nothing more.

In addition, I think Galen Rupp could take out Ryan Hall in the marathon on a good day. And, Meb is higher in class than Ryan cause he's an American that's actually won a major marathon.

Don't count you chickens before they hatch. Galen Rupp has never run a marathon. Ritz was "born to run 4:45 pace" until he didn't.

Look I understand the argument but lets put it this way, those guys didn't just run the 1st annual podunk downhill marathon, they ran the Boston Marathon. There is a fairly large cross section of prior times to compare this to. Boston attracts a world class field that runs the same downhill course every year and I'm willing to bet the exact same wind conditions have probably been present a few other times over the past 115 years.

The point is in road racing you run what you run. Weather is a factor but its a factor for everyone who runs road races. Otherwise you could say Gebs WR is invalid because the guy who ran 2:06 in a hot unpaced marathon would have actually run a better time if he had been running against Geb. There really is no way to compare times, go out, run fast on an established course and that is all you should need to do.

Geb's WR is valid cause it wasn't run on a net downhill course like boston with wind at the runners' backs. There are standards for world records. Boston does not achieve that standard and is ineligible for records period. Yeah, it has a lot of history which cant be discounted but its times not admissible for logical reasons which the IAAF clearly has outlined. Do make Ryan's run what is not.

Here's another very interesting interview from Hall. The beginning is really sad, too.

I meant don't make Ryan's run what it is not.