Is Maggie Vessey Serious?

Dave Wottle wrote:

Watch Dave Wottle's Olympic gold. I think he was close to that far back. Granted, he actually ran almost perfectly even splits, but it IS possible. Just not smart to try and NEGATIVE split the thing.

As I pointed out before, Dave Wottle's gold was so brilliant because he KNEW the field went out way too fast--sub 50 at 400m, I think. He knew they'd fall apart at the end and he'd reel them all in. But to be fair, if that race would have been 10 meters shorter, he wouldn't have won!

Vessey's mistake was taking a negative split approach when the field goes out at a reasonable pace. You've got to figure it's even a disadvantage to her, because she had to break the wind by herself! This will certainly teach her not to be a one-trick horse. It typically only takes one big mistake like this to learn from it (remember that 800m race where you felt so full of yourself and went out in 55 sec? Bet you learned from that one...)

Unfortunately, in the 800m, the margin for error is exactly zero. You really can't make any tactical mistakes. This wouldn't have been such an issue in the 1500m .

12345 wrote:

HOWEVER, USATF has further stipulations:

2) ONLY the top four finishers in the event's final are eligible for the three A/B spots. So, neither Alan Webb nor Will Leer could make the team, even if NOBODY in the top 4 had a time standard.

Great dig, 12345.

Bottom line, her tactics were so bad we all forgot about Fam's.

Vessey placed 4th, so if she gets the A standard and nothing else changes, then she gets the 2nd position on the team.

Finals

1 Hazel Clark Nike 2:00.79

2 Geena Gall Oregon TC Elite 2:01.01

3 Phoebe Wright Tennessee 2:01.12

4 Maggie Vessey unattached 2:01.19

5 Laura Hermanson North Dakota State 2:01.28

6 Morgan Uceny Reebok 2:01.32

7 Alysia Johnson Nike 2:01.58

8 Katie Waits Reebok 2:01.69

9 Brenda Martinez Cal Riverside 2:09.44

Thanks 12345. That was the information I was looking for.

777, Wottle knew nothing about the pace of that race. Paraphrasing his words, "I felt soooo flat & terrible. Going out that slowly was not planned. All I could think of was how embarrassing it would be to go home having finished dead last. I just wanted to catch up enough to be with the pack and avoid humiliation. Once I caught the pack I reassessed, hey, maybe I can place. Into the turn I thought with a big push I might medal. Upon passing the first Kenyan I thought I had a shot at silver. I didn't think about the gold until 2-3 strides from the line."

No one seems to complain when an 800 runner bolts out to the lead and runs his or her first 200 much faster than the 200 average for the final time. That strategy rarely wins a big race, but it is the most common strategy nonetheless. Everett is a prime example of how that strategy fails more often than not. Vessey has the right idea. I think she was just a bit too nervous on that first 500 meters and should have been five meters closer to the pack. Nevertheless, having to swing so wide on the final 100 proved more costly than the slow start.

I am sure she will gain confidence and I for one hope that she does not abandon her exciting come-from-behind strategy.

First, gotta love her attitude. She was so shocked crossing the finish line at Pre, she clearly wasn't expecting it - no one was. It was so cool to see her move in the last 200.

Second, not expecting it could have been the downfall at Natls. She looked really nervous at the line at the final. I think she has mental interference about being in the field with elite athletes.

I'm a believer she'll overcome it and we'll be seeing a lot more of her in the next couple of years. I'm rooting for her all the way!

BTW, Nick Symmonds seems to like coming from the back, too.

yeah...... wrote:

She is self coached. Saw her run 53.xx in a local all comers meet around 2 weeks ago around the bay area.

IIRC it was 53.61, a PR.

bullet wrote:

...I was there,...saw her race and that was the only time I got really loud. It was total diconnect,..the nerves obviously got the better of her. Too bad...I agree with earlier posts that she could've won this.

Hopefully she will learn from that and come back a smarter racer, and get it done next year!

I was about 10 feet from her at the start. She looked EXTREMELY nervous.

My race call was like huh? Oh no. Oh nooo. She can't make that up. She's not gonna...here she comes..she's not gonna..no! Oh no!

Any word from her after the race? Newspapers, internet? TV? Anything?

tac-tic wrote:

Bottom line, her tactics were so bad we all forgot about Fam's.

i'm not one to cry out "POD!" but your post deserves POD. excellent comedic timing.

p.s. her tactics make me feel that she ran so foolishly that she does not deserve to go to worlds. however, she made me excited to watch the women's 800, and i want to see what she can do in a fast-ass european race. there's no way she can try to pull that same bullsh!t against international comp.

Scoop wrote:

Any word from her after the race? Newspapers, internet? TV? Anything?

nope...race went out at 52.3...perfect pace. wottle was about a second behind and paced it evenly.

Plus...I think she's hot

Lickety Split wrote:

Plus...I think she's hot

I second that! The question should be is Maggie Vessey seriously dating??

Me Like Maggie wrote:

Lickety Split wrote:

Plus...I think she's hot

I second that! The question should be is Maggie Vessey seriously dating??

She is dating a police officer...a large, muscular, cute, no... HOT, police officer!

A police officer? For real? Hmmm. Maybe I should become a police officer.

sjq wrote:

tac-tic wrote:

Bottom line, her tactics were so bad we all forgot about Fam's.

i'm not one to cry out "POD!" but your post deserves POD. excellent comedic timing.

p.s. her tactics make me feel that she ran so foolishly that she does not deserve to go to worlds. however, she made me excited to watch the women's 800, and i want to see what she can do in a fast-ass european race. there's no way she can try to pull that same bullsh!t against international comp.

Yep, no way the strategy works against a Pamela Jelimo or Kenia Sinclair. Wait, it did. Nevermind.

Im actually a fire fighter.