Exactly. Dollars to donuts says Culpepper won't run, Julian will be retired, Ritz will be nursing a hernia from throwing a tennis ball, and so on. The team will be a ragtag bunch of unseasoned college runners and never-say-die broken-down has-beens. People need to quit putting together bids with prize money for this mess.
Americans across the board haven't been getting it in the marathon, it's not something special about just those in Colorado. Of course, Ritz and the Torres bros should have run at least one marathon by the end of this fall. Altitude training sure is overrated, but that's a separate issue. The Japanese that train in Boulder on the whole do better than that American list.
a guy wrote:
I eat at Arnolds wrote:When did the phrase "jump the shark" jump the shark?
'bout a year ago.
October 18, 2003
Well. Since we are talking XC here and not track I think you should put some of that obsessive fanaticism for stats to work and round up the figures on how many runners from Boulder and Colorado have made World XC teams in the last 10 years. It would only be fair.
Right after Letsrun jumped the shark
The funny thing about Boulder is that it became fashionable back when Frank Shorter decided that it was a great place. In typical Shorter attitude (which became Boulder arrogance) it was a self proclaimed running mecca. The truth of the matter is that Boston was producing a greater number of quality marathoners than Boulder at the same time. And I don't think that a club team from Boulder ever (70's, 80's, 90's, or 00's) have ever won a National Cross-Country Title.
That is a weird way to judge a place, by whether a club team has won. Boulder is more known for the people who come to train there and then leave than the people who live there permanently, because there are so few who stay forever. As far as an international running mecca, it is. In boulder right now: Deiter Hogan preparing the top kenyans for Chicago and NYC, Japanese Team Honda marathon training group, I saw Gert Thys (sp?) rolling the other day with I dont know who, maybe other south africans? There are other equal quality athletes in New Mexico, Flagstaff, Mammoth, but no where near the quantity of them as in Boulder.
GBTC wrote:
The funny thing about Boulder is that it became fashionable back when Frank Shorter decided that it was a great place. In typical Shorter attitude (which became Boulder arrogance) And I don't think that a club team from Boulder ever (70's, 80's, 90's, or 00's) have ever won a National Cross-Country Title.
The Colorado Track Club won the national title in 1974 in San Mateo. Shorter got 10th or 11th.
Two Colorado Track Club members made the very first USA team named for the World XC Championships in '72 (one trained in Boulder), but unfortunatly because of Munich, the US didn't send the team
have you ever been to a CU home meet? there are tons of people and alumni that come out to watch the race, even if it is just a four way meet or something. now make it a national class event and i bet you that here will be even four times as many people coming to watch. boulder is a running city and there will be tons of elites, former elites, ordinary runners who will flock to watch and volunteer. this will only help the cause of distance running to have it hosted in a city where people take it so seriously and are excited about it.
Boulder has only had about half of the men's USATF winter cross country champions since 1970, the only three American born NCAA Division 1 cross country champions since Bob Kennedy and numerous World Championship finalists. I guess your right, Boulder does suck, but what does that say for the rest of the places in America (including your beloved Hansons and Palo Alto programs).
I wonder how many of the Boulder Haiters have actually spent a period of time in Boulder. It is darn near impossible to go do a run on one of their thousands of trails, without running by or getting pased in most cases, by 50 to 60 people. The city of boulder is a fitness crazed town. I do not have any numbers to back this up, but I would wager that per capita, Boulder has more professional fitness athletes than any other city in the US.
Boulder may not have all of the best US distance runners, and may not even be the best palce to train, but still there is no denying that there are a lot of great places to run, and a society willing and wanting to back those that do run.
As a side note. CU men won the title with I beleive 5 of 7 from Colorado High School? Vaughn, Schoolmeester, Severy, Scott, Harkrader. Colorado can't be that bad of a place to train.
this is more of a comment on the fitness rather than running aspect of boulder, but as far as i know it (or perhaps it + denver) has the second largest system of biking trails of any city in north america, next to the vastly larger toronto
GBTC wrote:
And I don't think that a club team from Boulder ever (70's, 80's, 90's, or 00's) have ever won a National Cross-Country Title.
As someone pointed out, the Colo. Track Club won the meet in 1974, but they also won in 1975 or 1976. I don't know why that is important.
Ya, Boulder is over rated! There are no good trails to train on, no tracks you can run on, no good local races, no good people to train with, it rains all the time, its very cold, and the community at large will try to run you over if they see you running. Also, the water tastes terrible, the school systems are real bad, there is nothing to do there and if your a girl the shopping is horrible, oh ya, no good food either. Beyond that there are no endurance freaks like in Palo Alto, no good cyclists, no good triathletes (maybe a few decent foreigners like that Lessing bum), nothing interesting ever goes on, there is no good arts or music, the outdoor Shakespeare festival is dull, the downtown running series and Bolder Boulder are over rated and Webb, Kennedy, Lunn and all those fuzzy foreigners are actually never here just local freaks who look like those losers. Shorter, Barrios and Plajetes are all old and mean so you don't want to run into them, not that you ever would since they rarely come out of their holes. Oh, and that CU meet is small and silly at best. Some bums come up from Alamosa and Gunnison and give CU a run for their money on a gloomy fall day with no spectators, maybe a stray mutt or two and a lost coyote wandering the course. The local papers could care less about running and other endurance sports so no one gets any ink out here. Please save yourself and do not come to Boulder, the 2007 US Cross Country race will be a horrible disaster. Some one please save me from this aweful over rated place! Hurry!!!
sdfdsdw wrote:
As a side note. CU men won the title with I beleive 5 of 7 from Colorado High School? Vaughn, Schoolmeester, Severy, Scott, Harkrader. Colorado can't be that bad of a place to train.
Again, nothing new.In the late 60's, CU placed 5th,3rd,and 6th in the NCAA in successive years with all runners from Colorado and most from the Denver area (1 from Boulder).
Boulder is a great place for the cross. If this gets on TV it will look awesome with tons of fans on the side of the course.
Actually, it goes back to when the Fonz tried to water ski jump over a shark during one of the program's later seasons (mid-eighties)... you know, when it wasn't any good anymore.
Also, I think, right now, that more Oly medalists train in St. Moritz than anywhere else.
It will be poorly attended by athletes. If you are a flatlander, why bother racing at that altitude? Save the airfare and save yourself for track in the spring or a money road race.
Jealousy is a bitch aint it boys?
i think only wussy athletes would say that.
Reality Czech wrote:
It will be poorly attended by athletes. If you are a flatlander, why bother racing at that altitude? Save the airfare and save yourself for track in the spring or a money road race.