Top All Time Kansas Distance guys

I was just talking to a freshman out of Shawnee Mission Northwest named Sterling Spencer today at the KC Cougars AAU meet, who has run for our track club, Johnson County Comets, as a youth (he was watching his younger brother). He just ran a 9:43.12 for the 3200 meters at the Regional 2 Class 6A meet at Olathe North. Great kid, confident, cool, no worries kind of guy. I would put him on the list of distance runners to watch in Kansas over the next 3-plus years in HS.

That's a strong time for a Freshman in a Regional meet. I saw he won the Regional, not bad for a frosh.

My Dad. The year he won the Kansas high school state championship in the mile, he beat Billy Mills. The way he tells it, he was practically a Kenyan, running 2 miles each way to a one room school house for grades 1-8. I measured it years later, and it was only 1.68 miles. To his credit, however, it was only uphill one way, and his farmhouse did lack electricity and running water, so despite the lack of elevation and proper pigmentation, I will grant him honorary Rift Valley status.

What is going to qualify someone as being from Kansas? Nic Crider coached me at Ringgold high school in Georgia after he graduated from college. When he made it to nationals running for Tennessee-Chattanooga in 1998 at the University of Kansas, the local paper billed it as "going home" for him. I think he ran high school in Tennessee though. I am pretty sure he ran 3:43 or 3:44 for 1500m. He ran pretty quick for other distances as well.

Is he from KC Missouri? That's close enough that someone could call it a homecoming. They did for Matt Tegenkamp at the KU Relays & he's from Lee's Summit, MO.

First it was Maurice Greene; now totally overlooked, underrated MUNA LEE, of Kansas City winning the 100m in the trials and heading to Bejing! You go girl!

Muna Lee looks like she never lifted a weight or did any leg curls in her life. She looks like a distance runner for sure. Does not fit the mold at all.

all 100 lbs of her wrote:

Muna Lee looks like she never lifted a weight or did any leg curls in her life. She looks like a distance runner for sure. Does not fit the mold at all.

She has the same build as Alison Felix.

similar, but Felix is alot 'harder' in her muscle definition and is bigger in musculature. Felix is similar, but still bigger and stronger.

I saw the below posts on a thread from a year or so ago and was wondering how this guy ended up.

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friday night lights wrote:

Well just off the top of my head. BOYER's 3200 last year as a junior was 9:08, 1600-4:17, and he ran a 5k in the 14's on a cross course. He is from Fredonia, KS. He has won at least 6 state titles for class 3a but with his times he would of won every class.

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Sounds like a blue chipper if he stays healthy, runs in the 8:50s and 4:13ish this year , where do you think he will go to college?

Lane Boyer ran 4:15 & 9:06 I believe. He was a Frosh at Arkansas this year & ran at XC Nationals for them.

so he didn't improve, really, but his times were d1 scholarship, anyway. was he injured or just never went all-out for a really fast time?

congratulations to the Kansas City Smoke, for winning the Mens' Club Championship

http://www.usatf.org/events/2008/USATFClubTFChampionships/results.asp

There is a correction that needs to be made to this Kansas 800 meter list. My dad, David Peterson, is listed as running 1:54.4 in 1967. This is incorrect. His personal best for 880 yards was 1:53.9 at the state meet in 1967, second behing Clardy Vinson who ran 1:53.7. Clardy's time is converted on this list to 1:53.0 (at llth best all time). David Peterson's time should convert to 1:53.2, putting him at a tie for 12th with Doug Peterson (no relation) of Lawrence.

Thanks.

Also, David Peterson (my dad) let me know that he ran the mile in 4:05.5 in 1972 at Wichita. This would put him in the "got close" to sub 4 category.

Thanks.

postpre wrote:

There is a correction that needs to be made to this Kansas 800 meter list. My dad, David Peterson, is listed as running 1:54.4 in 1967. This is incorrect. His personal best for 880 yards was 1:53.9 at the state meet in 1967, second behing Clardy Vinson who ran 1:53.7. Clardy's time is converted on this list to 1:53.0 (at llth best all time). David Peterson's time should convert to 1:53.2, putting him at a tie for 12th with Doug Peterson (no relation) of Lawrence.

Thanks.

How is Pistol Pete these days? Is he still a photog for the Des Moines Register? He was a great runner at Rosedale and KSU. He was a great source of encouragement to me when I was in college, with his 'been there, done that advice', as he was about 5 years older. (esp. on how to approach the 3/4 leg on the DMR, which I had never run until the Relay Circut, starting at the Texas Relays my freshman year).

I saw this on another thread and thought it might belong on this thread even more so......

RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 1/1/2007 7:55PM - in reply to looking back Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

Was it one of the Owensby's? There was Amanda, Jamie, and Alicia. I believe Jamie was the best one of the bunch, and it seems correct that she was 11-12 around '96.

looking back RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 1/2/2007 7:03AM - in reply to jaguar1 Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

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Yea, I think you have it right. I remember she had at least 1 sister who was good also. I'll google/research, but how did Jamie and the rest turn out??

No clue! I was also wondering what happened to them, as I remember racing the two oldest in high school (Amanda and Jamie).

high attrition rate.... RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 1/2/2007 12:23PM - in reply to jaguar1 Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

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I remember a girl back in the 90's, in the suburbs of Kansas City, (maybe Olathe?), who ran a 4:44 mile as a 9th grader...I think she was a military brat, who moved to Virginia/DC area and I never saw her name in results again. Her name escapes me at the moment; but the point is, alot of girls can run as fast as seniors, when they are in 9th grade, a phenomenom you don't often see in boys. Some hang on, some disappear from the results as the years go by.

Colleen Winzeler. I remember her as well-- she was in Track and Field News. She is another one of "What ever happened to....?"

1:48.71 RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 1/2/2007 12:38PM - in reply to high attrition rate.... Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

Heather Burroughs? She was blazing fast in the early 90s youth running. From Kansas or Missouri.

The Assistant Coach at Colorado??

old school? RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 1/2/2007 12:48PM - in reply to high attrition rate.... Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

Sally Arthur? Shawnee Mission suburbs of KC.

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1:48.71 wrote:

Heather Burroughs? She was blazing fast in the early 90s youth running. From Kansas or Missouri.

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Burroughs (yes, the CU Burroughs) would have graduated HS in 93 or 94 and is actually one phenom who went on to do something of substance after her youth glory years.

Jaguar is correct that High Attrition Rate is thinking of Colleen Winzeler.

I remember seeing something several years ago saying Colleen ran at a college in Idaho for a short time.

What about Kelly Bryant (I think that was her name?) and then Dawn Crawford??

JimBobJones RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 7/20/2008 9:03AM - in reply to jaguar1 Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

Colleen Winzeler went to Lewis& Clark in idaho. From what I heard she went in the low 19's for 5K and 4:50's for 1500. Nothing like she did as a high schooler. I also heard she was more interested in partying than in running. Only lasted one year there.

jscott RE: 1996 Chile Pepper XC Results??? - Young Girl Phenom in Race 7/20/2008 9:21AM - in reply to old school? Reply | Return to Index | Report Post

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old school? wrote:

Sally Arthur? Shawnee Mission suburbs of KC.

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I remember Sally Arthur. A little red headed girl that trained with Verlyn Schmidt and the Shawnee Mission South boys. (there was no girls team in the early 70s). I don't know if she even ran in college. Don't recall seeing her name. I think she took alot of crap from the boys back then, so you gotta admire her for being a trailblazer for girls trying to run distances. I sold her one of my "Go Pre" shirts when I got back from the Olympic Trials in '72. I bought some extras to sell back in KC, lol. I sold another one to Clark Hamilton.

Thanks for asking. My dad is doing well. He finished with the Register last August I believe. He is staying busy with freelance work now, however. He helped cultivate my interest in running as an 8th-9th grader. Getting me a copy of the Jim Ryun Story sure helped push me in this direction. I've heard many stories of his days at Rosedale and KSU.

Brian

Is your grandad (on your dad's side) still alive? I used to work with him when I was in college. I had a summer job in housekeeping at Trinity Luthern Hospital in KC and he was in charge of the accounting dept. back then. A great guy. I called him 'paycheck pete', in a takeoff on his job and your dad's nickname; all in deference to the real Pistol Pete Maravich who was a big basketball star at LSU when your dad was in high school.