Or it could be the collegiate greatness just doesn't translate over. Great collegiate emotional energy and confidence , its a different game as an open athlete. This kid has the physical talent he just needs to get squared away between the ears.
BTW , Vig is nothing more than a great college coach.
It's early yet, and Andrews really isn't in all that bad of shape. Will he make the Moscow team? Probably not. But if he gets over to Europe he'll probably be able to get a 1:44.mid or better this season. I think people on Letsrun are consistently too quick to write off people -- remember last year, when Manzano was "done" because of some crappy races? How'd that turn out?
To say that it doesn't look great for Andrews to make the 2016 team is just stupid. There is a long time to fix the problems. I would even say that it is too early to say he won't make the team to Moscow. There is still a month and a lot happens in that time.
Andrews is clearly one of the best talents in the US in the last 10-20 years. Vig is a great talker but I am not convinced he is as great a coach as he thinks he is. That said, I am also tired of seeing athletes change coaches so often. It usually takes a good two years for a coach to truly figure an athlete out.
Robby Andrews should never have left Virginia. Just because Vig "left" Virginia doesn't mean Robby should have.
Was Robby ready to turn pro.....I mean mentally.
Now Vig is coaching Princeton, how much attention can he give Robby?
A dog cannot serve two masters - just sayin'.
I don't know if I agree that Andrews is that physically talented. Yes, he's strong and has a great kick but his form isn't smooth. His arm action is weird and he can't handle fast races.
Where would he be now if he had stuck to his guns and continued specializing in the 800? I think at least a mid 1:43 pb and an Olympic team.
Sometimes a fast time at 1500 can be deceiving, especially when you're dragged to it and the race plays out exactly in the favor of your racing style. Now, to give some credit to Vig, Robby did run 3:34 (closing in 53.x!!) out of nowhere, so I can see the appeal of moving him up to 1500 for the trials and assuming he would have a massive advantage in what almost always amounts to a slow race with a blazing finish.
But I question the long term wisdom of coach Vig. It seems like quite a rush the move the young Andrews up to 1500, especially given the knowledge that he clearly has trouble being in pain from the gun. The wise choice, in retrospect, would be to keep him at 800 and gradually get him comfortable with the 1500 meter distance over a couple years, and once he stopped showing improvement over 800, think about moving up permanently. I think Wheating made a similar mistake in trying to move up immediately after college (albeit a more justified mistake considering his unbelievable 3:30.9 in Monaco).
The other thing is the bringing in of Alan Webb. Even ignoring his host of psychological issues, I could not think of a worse training partner for a 20 year old just starting his pro career than a once-great has-been who is clearly in a completely different mindset about his career. Maybe if it was a big group like Jerry's, where webb's influence would be more spread out, I could understand. But subjecting Andrews to Webb's state of mind day in and day out is just a plain stupid move. The more you think about times, miles, steps taken...the harder it is to just put your head down and make breakthroughs.
Please get Robby back to basics and he could be an unbelievable 800 (and soon enough, 1500) runner.
[
Leg speed? Leg speed? What about arm speed? Nose speed? Belly button speed?
SPEED IS SPEED, MORON
(...unless, of course, you are talking about leg speed velocity. Now there is a special speed indeed.)[/quote
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"Leg speed" is a term used by Lydiard to define a persons
natural speed. You are so dumb, so f. ignorant, I can't even get mad at you.
Robby is a fun, gregarious guy who needed the team concept which he got in the college system....needs to do like Shorter: college/graduate student in morning, club workouts in the late afternoon. To sit around all day thinking about your next workout is wrong. Student/athlete is the way to go.
In college Robby would always come up big at Penn Relays and NCAAs. Everything else was powder puff races he'd win in 1:48-1:50. He's just running against more talented athletes each and every race as a pro. He never crushed it early as a collegiate and it's more apparent in the professional context.
Vig is extremely single-minded and they will be looking to run well at USAs as the focal point of the season. He'd rather have athletes under-perform than over-perform early and mid-season.
Obviously the kid is still adjusting to the recent changes in his life and training set up, but I like his odds for a spot on the US World team. He'll be more in the mix at the trials than an international-level race and he's deadly when that is the case.
Well, the ace in the hole for Robby is the new passport which should eliminate some drug-stars who might finish in front of him in a big race..... Come on Rudisha is one dirty mf
Well, the ace in the hole for Robby is the new passport which should eliminate some drug-stars who might finish in front of him in a big race..... Come on Rudisha is one dirty mf
I love how the more changed my name in the original post to "I like to criticize others."
What on earth do you people want? Everyone to sit around talking about how great every coach and runner is without ever criticizing anyone? Criticism is the only reason these boards are so popular. It's a freaking sport and we're allowed to express our opinions even if they're negative. God you guys are such a bunch of pvssies.