Who's Running Career would you rather have? Solinsky, Webb, Ritz, or Hall

He's offering running career not his wife you horny toad

Ritz

even as a kid Ritz was in every race to win

Great post, OP.

Really great answers, all of you.

But in the end, for me,if i ran 3:53.43 as some punk 18 year old and single-handedly inspired an entire generation of runners and was the impetus for the revival of American distance runner, I would consider that one moment alone more amazing than any one of the runners mentioned.

Dont get me wrong, Ritz is Ritz, and Hall is Hall, but wow, give me that title any day.

Who will American distance runners remember the most 30 years from now? Who will average/apathetic public spectators remember 30 years from now? That guy who got bronze in the half marathon championships...?

3...53...43

Holy shit, the Midwest trolls are back pushing hasbeens.

Webb

I've seen them all at various events the past couple of years. Without a doubt, Hall is the rock star. More people swarm to him for autographs etc than the others combined.

As previous posts indicate, it is highly debatable who had the best career.

However, I think "the people" have chosen Hall.

I agree with the above... I've seen NCAA champs seek photo-ops (selfies) with all except Solinsky. They seemed most pleased to have a picture with Hall.

As a distance guy, I'm biased towards Ritz. The arguments for Webb though are compelling. Without a doubt he has the best resume for iconic races that'll live on in history for decades. His HS Mile record of course is stuff of legend. It's the modern generation's equivalent of the legendary high school races of Jim Ryun, Gerry Lindgren, Pre, etc... Webb was also an International player in the most competitive distance race (1500/Mile). When healthy, he raced far more often in a given year than any of the other guys. Anytime he raced, it was the biggest news on LetsRun for that given week. Although he doesn't have the longevity of Ritz, I still have to rank Webb #1, Ritz #2, Hall #3, Solinsky #4.

Ritz was a 3 time Olympian (2004,2008,2012)

also Hall is only the American Record holder for the marathon for any course. Otherwise on record eligible courses the AR still belongs to Khannouchi

Slow Bro wrote:

Ritz

+

Lots of HS titles and records.

Briefly held 5K AR (I think?).

Still competitive.

Two-time Olympian

Ritz is a 3 time Olympian.

If he makes a team for Rio it will be his 4th team.

He's also the only one who is still competitive at an elite level.

It's Ritz without a doubt.

Anyone who picked Hall, Solinsky or Webb is is confusing accomplishments or inspirational/favorite runner with best career. If you are going to assess a career, you have to consider all the performances that make up that career, and for these three, it's pretty ugly.

Webb by far. Mile/1500 is the best event and he has the best relative performance

Case in point

Easy.... wrote:

Ritz has physical proof that he has had made the sweet-sweet-love, not once, but twice. That's more than the other guys, or any Letsrunner with less than 2 kids, can say. I vote Ritz.

We still deliver in those areas.

I'd pick Chad Hall

I'm only a dog but I'll give this a go. Yes, I'm still alive. Bet that's a surprise. I know I am. Anywho...I'll make this real easy on you human lame-Os.

Iconic Performances

Webb - 3:53 and 3:46 - High school monster and super leet

Solinsky - 26:59 - First non-African under 27:00

Ritz - None

Hall - None

The only thing anyone will talk about when they mention these four runners are their times. Quick, who was the silver medalist at the 56 Olys? Ok, who was the first to crack 4:00, 8:00, 13:00, 27:00?

Now between 3:53/3:46 and 26:59. Webb's mighty, no doubt, and those are crackin' times but 3:46.99 versus 26:59.99, hmmm, tough to decide.

Maybe it's easier when we consider only 2 non-Africans have ducked under 27:00 in the 10K. 27:00 isn't as elegant as 4:00 but it's still a stratospheric performance. So is 3:53 for a high schooler. Still can't decide.

Different perspective wrote:

Although he doesn't have the longevity of Ritz, I still have to rank Webb #1, Ritz #2, Hall #3, Solinsky #4.

Did you just put "longevity" and Ritz in the same sentence? Ritz rarely races and still somehow is injured all the time.

Solinsky's Dog wrote:

Now between 3:53/3:46 and 26:59. Webb's mighty, no doubt, and those are crackin' times but 3:46.99 versus 26:59.99, hmmm, tough to decide.

Maybe it's easier when we consider only 2 non-Africans have ducked under 27:00 in the 10K. 27:00 isn't as elegant as 4:00 but it's still a stratospheric performance. So is 3:53 for a high schooler. Still can't decide.

Being the first non African is a silly qualifier. Webb's 3:46 stands on its own. It is truly a great time and doesn't require knowledge of his skin color. 27:00 isn't a gold medal contender. 3:46 is.

I don't think the decision is difficult at all.