I bet 5-to-1 that Chris Solinsky will lose in Sandiego

Dathan didnt burn out, did he?? Okay, then Deak wont burn out.

Deak isn't yet good enough to talk about burnout.

I don't know anything about Ryan Deak from first-hand knowledge, but from what I've read, I almost get the feeling that he's running for his dad as much as he is for himself. I hope for his sake I'm wrong, but any athlete whose parents/coaches/whatever is more motivated than they are is headed for a short career.

Solinsky will win - 14:49 in sub 20 degree weather and 25mph winds at Regionals - just 14 secs. off of Ritz's record...sub 15 at State on a hard course...8:48 PR in the 2 mile as a Jr.!

Solinsky is a machine - don't worry about burn out - he's a natural - solidly progressing since he was a frosh - 6th in State and then all first places.

The only thing I will say is that he looks physically very mature for his age - perhaps it's just the long locks that he's currently sporting? He's large for a distance runner - kinda like Webb...

Solinsky all the way!

I also think he's got a shot at Lingren's 2 mile record of 8:37...

Must have missed that 8:37 "Lingren" record. Can you tell us more?

Yeh, Scott Fry only ran 13:38 in college!

Usher's comments are dead on right. Burnout is so much more of a mental phenomenon. Yes it's easier to stay motivated however when you are improving greatly due to increasing your workload and those that train very hard sooner may discover a plateau at a young age while others around them are still enjoying the upswing. How you handle that plateau and maintain your drive and enthusiasm and optimism will determine if you continue to more success and improvement or become disenchanted and lose focus.

Many kids simply hit their talent potential earlier because they got a head start on hard training.

Any kid who can run under 8:50 should have a reasonable shot of being a 13:20/27:40 type in the future but of those that had not all went on to do that. I refuse to believe that the mileage they ran at a young age had any thing to do with that personally. You have to stay in this sport a long time, handle adversity well, stay optimistic and relatively injury free and not everyone is mentally and emotionally strong enough for this to occur. There are many life adjustments and stresses to experience between the ages of 16 and mid to late 20's and how kids cope with these will greatly determine how their running careers go. Not all are able to handle these experiences as well as others and their running suffers as a byproduct.

You cannot predict what any 18-year old's future will hold, whether they go on to greatness or obscurity.

Deak is good, but not in the same league as Solinsky at this point. Top 10 seems like a realistic possibility, but a win is not likely. As was mentioned earlier, Solinsky ran an 8:48 3200m last year, with Deak finishing in 9:00 in the same race. Deak recently has run an 8:56 3200m time trial alone on the track, and a 5 miler on the trails at 25:30. He has incredible aerobic fitness, and I don't think burnout is an issue at all for him. I also disagree that he is running for his dad. He is one of the most motivated individuals I know. His dad is also one of the most enthusiastic people I've ever met when it comes to running, and has really done a lot for the sport in Florida. Meridian is definitely not either of them.

Actually, Ritz was the favorite to win his junior year, nationally and regionally.

I don't recall Ritz being the favorite his junior year. I always thought that was considered his big breakthrough nationally. Dobson might have been one that was considered a favorite but that was a hell of a competitive race to the finish. After that race I think Ritz established himself as the favorite from then on out.

I remember seeing the results and all those times around 14:30 and thinking that course HAD to have been short but it was even remeasured afterwards and came up accurate. That was a phenomenal race.

13:38 and 28:33 right after college. Also NCAA finishes of 11th, 4th, 7th in the 5000 and 5th in the 10,000. And 8th in the olympic Trials 5000 as a 21 year old. Also 5 Big Ten Titles and 3 meet records.

Not great by any means but not that bad for a 5:04 High School freshman who never managed to break 56 for the 400.

Still, I probably should have run 45 miles a week and walked on at Bowling Green with most of my friends.

I wasn't slamming Scott Fry. He has said so himself that the high mileage in high school and then no break through college shortened his promising career. When I said go ask Scott Fry, I meant exactly that. Go ask him. He is of the opinion that you shouldn't run as much as he did in high school if you want long-term success. I know he ran 13:38 in college. Point is that he could perhaps have done better if his career had lasted longer.

Since when does Lingren have the 2 mile record? I was pretty sure that Nelson had it with an 8:36... :)

Fredo wrote:

I don't recall Ritz being the favorite his junior year. I always thought that was considered his big breakthrough nationally. Dobson might have been one that was considered a favorite but that was a hell of a competitive race to the finish. After that race I think Ritz established himself as the favorite from then on out.

I remember seeing the results and all those times around 14:30 and thinking that course HAD to have been short but it was even remeasured afterwards and came up accurate. That was a phenomenal race.

His big break through was his sophomore year, winning the national title in the 2 mile in Raleigh. That race, plus his great XC season kind of made him a favorite his Junior year.

Ritz is better than solinsky and he always will be period

Umm. Ritz won the national 2-mile championship as a sophomore and was considered the favorite going in to the Footlocker race his junior year. His breakthrough race was that 2-mile race as a sophomore; the first time he beat his senior teammate Jason Hartmann.

Coach Fry,

If this is you (it seems that it is because I think all the times are right), then you know that what I've said is true. I saw you give advice to Wesley Smith on another message board and said you hoped that he would not run the mega mileage that you did, and you proceeded to say that you think it cost you in the long run.

Obviously you were a great champion, and that is why we are talking about you at all and not Brian Martin your high school teammate, but you said what you said before about the mega mileage and how you think it hindered you as far as having a longer career. If you want to change your mind on that, then fine, but that is what you said.

O.k. I remember that and what I was more referring to is I would like to see him wait for college to put all his heart and soul and everything rather thatn pull out all the stops to win Footlocker and go for records. He has already run 9:00 as a junior so he'll get a scholarship and I think it would be an advantage to save a little. As far as 90 miles a week goes for me that was like running 65 for most people-nothing. What I did to the extreme was to race 50-60 times a year and try to break records and set p.r.'s in every single race. I observe that most high schoolers only run to their max effort when they are pushed and maybe that's better in the long run. I broke 14:50 in high school duel meets where I won by over a minute, as well as ran under 9:00 for 3200 or 2mile/3000 equivilant 10 different times, 6 of those after running 1600 between 4:08 and 4:12. And I really didn't need to run that hard, it was a weak year nationally for competiton, not as good as today.

I'm never going to preach against high mileage. It can open doors that may not have occurred for less talented runners like myself. But for a gifted kid like Smith(or Kennedy or Goucher) they already have college scholarships wrapped up early. They should always train and compete to win, but high school stuff doesn't mean anything once its over.

O.K. I remember that. What I meant was I would like to see him wait until college to put all his soul and maximum effort into running. He already ran 9:00 as a junior so he's getting a scholarship to somewhere good.

As far as 90 plus a week goes for me that was like 60 for most. It wasn't hard. What I did to the extreme was to race 50 to 60 times a year and try to break records and set pr.s every time I ran. I observe that most high schoolers give their maximum effort only when they're pushed and that might be better at their age. I broke 14:50 in high school duel meets where 2nd place was over a minute behind. As well as ran under 9:00 for 3200(or equivilants) 10 different times, 6 of those coming in doubles with 1600 in 4:08 to 4:12. I didn't need to run that hard to win.

I'm never going to preach against high mileage. It can open doors for less talented kids like myself. But for a Kennedy or Goucher talent who fall out of bed running 4:48 in 8th grade, they can get away with holding back a little with the training and single minded emphasis on running. High school achievements don't mean a lot once you're graduated.