Donavan Brazer article - king of the negative split 800 (and 45.92 FAT relay leg!)

That 45.92 leg was at the end of a quadruple...

Wow. True talent!

It's impossible for a relay split to be FAT.

It would be great to see him in the Dream Mile. There's potential for 3 sub 4 high schoolers!

Impossible? Please explain. They do it at the Olympics. Michiana Timing does it by capturing the image every time the runners complete a lap. Maybe you are splitting some arcane hair here, but using an FAT system to get splits is far superior than any coach in the stands...

He clearly has pro elite level speed for the 800 already. He has run just over 1:48, with a huge negative split of 55.2/52.9. That in itself is probably worth 1:46 high already. Clearly, those who were saying that the sky is the limit on this guy were right. And yes, he says himself that he was working on aerobic conditioning for much of the season, just as we said he needed. I like the fact that he has the strength to negative split so dramatically, despite his tremendous speed.

Grits Dummy wrote:

It's impossible for a relay split to be FAT.

Actually, it's VERY easy to get FAT splits for the #3 and #4 runners. The center of the exchange zone is the finish line, where the camera is set up. It's only the leadoff and #2 legs that you couldn't get with the standard FAT set-up (due to the 1-turn stagger being the center of the zone). For a team starting in Lane 1, you can get FAT splits all 4 legs.

His basic speed is superior to both Fisher and Maton, Brazier, if trained correctly, would be a far more powerful force over 1500m than either of the other two HS stud milers.

Baconn wrote:

His basic speed is superior to both Fisher and Maton, Brazier, if trained correctly, would be a far more powerful force over 1500m than either of the other two HS stud milers.

Assuming his aerobic talents come close enough to matching theirs... speed kills, but only if you have enough left in the tank to use it. Given his results so far, I'd say he's more of a 800m/400m type moving forward, but maybe TAMU will find more in him than he's shown. Seems like a potential 1:43 guy, rather than 3:3x, to me though.

45.92 wrote:

It would be great to see him in the Dream Mile. There's potential for 3 sub 4 high schoolers!

I'd much rather see him attempt to break Granville's 800 record... with that kind of speed, and decent enough endurance (4:09y indoors, 4:07 out) and that speed, he has a shot at being the first sub-1:46 HS'er in US history.

He is an amazingly good 800 runner, I can see him being very good for awhile as an 800 guy, and then moving up to the 1500.

Baconn wrote:

He is an amazingly good 800 runner, I can see him being very good for awhile as an 800 guy, and then moving up to the 1500.

What is the obsession on this website about people moving up? Why can't he just be an 800m runner??

Agree completely. Let well enough alone. Jim Ryun was a perfectly good half-miler, and would have run even faster if he had not wasted his time with the mile. Ditto Alan Webb.

Even back in history, why did Peter Snell even bother with the 1500? Waste of time, and it stunted his success at the 800. I know some of you will say that's different, because these guys started with the mile. And we all know that a great runner should simply stick to the event they started with.

Dathan Ritzenhein was ruined the day he moved up from the 3200m!

I must say, it would be unfair to every woman if I became an engineer. They'd be like hey, she's perfect. And I'd be like, yes, I am.

Why tamu?

I'm with you wrote:

Agree completely. Let well enough alone. Jim Ryun was a perfectly good half-miler, and would have run even faster if he had not wasted his time with the mile. Ditto Alan Webb.

Even back in history, why did Peter Snell even bother with the 1500? Waste of time, and it stunted his success at the 800. I know some of you will say that's different, because these guys started with the mile. And we all know that a great runner should simply stick to the event they started with.

Dathan Ritzenhein was ruined the day he moved up from the 3200m!

If a HS 800 runner has both a 45.92 relay leg and a 4:07.15 mile to his credit, moving DOWN looks like a better choice than moving up--although continuing to train primarily for the 800 looks like the best choice of all. Not the case with those listed above. Lydiard, for example, was fond of claiming that Snell had the worst basic speed of any of finalist in both of his Olympic 800 victories (he had a PR of @ 48 seconds flat for 440 yards). Ryun didn't run a fast 800/880 until college; his HS PR was 1:50.3 for 880, IIRC. And so on...

Brazer is an animal. Watch out for this kid. He makes it look so easy and I think if he focuses on the mile, he'll be the one to dethrone Fisher. He's got a very quiet but fierce confidence and amazing turnover. Best of all, he's well-coached and brought along slowly. Watch some interviews of him if you haven't. When asked about his chances of beating Fisher, he said, "I'd definitely like to get after him." If he gets his endurance up and is with Fisher on the last lap, Grant will have one HELL of a time holding him off.

I'm with you wrote:

Agree completely. Let well enough alone. Jim Ryun was a perfectly good half-miler, and would have run even faster if he had not wasted his time with the mile. Ditto Alan Webb.

Even back in history, why did Peter Snell even bother with the 1500? Waste of time, and it stunted his success at the 800. I know some of you will say that's different, because these guys started with the mile. And we all know that a great runner should simply stick to the event they started with.

Dathan Ritzenhein was ruined the day he moved up from the 3200m!

Ryun would probably have a gold medal if he had focused on the 800m his whole career.

fisher is a better race tho and would win mile matchup 9/10