Racing a sprinter in the 800 - any advice?

Take off after 400 and just work the hell out of the 3rd 200 using it to gap him as much as possible. This will take the kick out of him, so you should be able to coast onto victory.

The only advice you should need is to not let it come down to a kick.

Just kick with 400 to go.

i was a 1:50 indoor 800 guy in college and i raced our best 400 guy (46 point indoors - think a jeremy wariner body type) over a 600yd (approx. 550m) indoors.

it was about a week before nationals so we were in top shape. he took me through 400m in 49 hi then wasted me by about a second and half (1:10 mid vs. 1:12 low). I think in a 600, the 400 guy has an edge.

You are toast if his name is Matt Scherer :-)

http://www.schererspeed.com/

400 guy won't break 2:05, maybe 2:10

I am a 200/400 guy with a pb of 49 who has run a handfull of 600's and 1 800. Firstly, it sounds like the distance is a better runner overall and should win for that reason. He's a 1500/5k and his 800 is mercied to be better than the 400 guys pb. However, I broke 2 on my only 800 and think that he'll do better than you think. I am, however, a 400 guy who does believe on some volume in our training.

results?

I've just finished the race, and it actually turned out pretty close.

To my surprise, the sprinter takes the lead as soon as the race starts. He passes the 200 at 27 seconds, and I'm 2-3 meters behind, drafting off of him. The fast pace continues, and I let the sprinter gap me by about 6-8 meters since I'm not used to this pace and am beginning to feel uncomfortable. We hit the 400 mark at 55 and 56, the sprinter still in the lead.

During the second lap, the sprinter begins to tire, but much less than what I initially expected. I pull even with him after a lap and a half, and our 600 split was 1:25. By this time, I'm hurting pretty bad, but I figured that a tired distance runner would beat a tired sprinter over the last 200 in a two lap race. I try to pass him with about 190 to go, but he somehow manages to hold me off for 30-40 meters. I finally take the lead with 150 to go, and I held on to it all the way to the finish.

My final time was 1:53.5, which barely broke my old PR of 1:53.7. The sprinter also broke 2, and his time was 1:56.8

Excellent move by running your own race!

nice work. show em' who's boss

very solid run. good work.

sprinters are not runners so this victory means NOTHING.

what are you going to do next? race 13 year old girls?

grow a set of NUTS.

Nice running. Thanks for the update. :)

great job in PRing in this race. That is pretty impressive in and of itself.

How did your teammates react? Sounds like a fun time all around.

2:20 marathoner wrote:

sprinters are not runners so this victory means NOTHING.

what are you going to do next? race 13 year old girls?

grow a set of NUTS.

question: is it true that marathon runners are just distance guys who aren't fast enough to race anything else?

I called it on the first reply :) Homeslice really stepped up, though: 1:56 off of those 200/400 PRs and 55/61 splits is way solid. You ran smart and PR'd. Doesn't get much better than that!

think fast wrote:

Actually he will probably go out too fast- just sit on him and slice and dice from 250 out. If he goes out slow, just blast from farther out.

A 49/400 sprinter is good for 1:58... at best. If he wins you did something wrong (like lead the first lap).

Fat Boy wrote:

I agree. Going out in 55 sounds about right. He'll die.

Sam wrote:

Go out in 55. This guy might well be with you with 200 to go but he won't be able to sprint.

i don't agree. if he hasn't put a ton (and i mean alot of consulting from really good people) of thought into it, he will run a tad off his 400 PR pace and die. pace yourself and pick up the pieces

Nice race. Kudos to the 400 guy for hanging tough and to you on the pr.

I believe you should allow him a re-match at 600m. With your 1:53 speed it may be a much more exciting race. He'll probably hit the 400 at 49 so it may be a bit out of your comfort zone. But it'd be a nice followup race if you think you could hit the 400 @ 51-2 and see if you walk him down or if he get's himself out there enough to stay out of reach.

oh and video it next time.

LHD wrote:

I believe you should allow him a re-match at 600m.

Yeah just race him at 400 -- 800 is short enough to make it a contest.