TOP 10 HIGHSCHOOL DISTANCE BOYS OF ALL TIME

SouthernSun wrote:

mooonshot wrote:

This should help -

https://trackandfieldnews.com/tfn-lists/high-school-all-time-top-10s-boys/

This list concerns the top ten DISTANCE runners. The 10,000 should carry a lot more weight than the mile.

Check out T&FN's list. The top three, Rudy Chapa, Eric Hulst and Bill McChesney all ran their fastest in 1976. But in 1975 they also had top ten all-time performances as underclassmen. Chapa and Hulst were juniors and McChesney a sophomore! And two of the other top nine performers also ran in 1975. George Watt and Thom Hunt. Hunt was a junior. So 5 of the fastest 9 all-time 10,000 kids were in that one year, 1975.

To make it easy, here is T&FN's list:

10,000 METERS

28:32.7 Rudy Chapa (Hammond, Indiana) 1976

28:55.0 Eric Hulst (Laguna Beach, California) 1976

29:06.8 *Bill McChesney (South, Eugene, Oregon) 1976

29:09.4 ————Chapa 1976

29:09.56 Galen Rupp (Central Catholic, Portland, Oregon) 2004

29:11.0 ————*Chapa 1975

29:11.1 ————*Hulst 1975

29:17.6 Gerry Lindgren (Rogers, Spokane, Washington) 1964

29:27.2 ————**McChesney 1975

29:30.6 ————Hulst 1976

**10 performances by 5 performers**

29:32.23 Parker Stinson (Cedar Park, Texas) 2010

29:33.1 George Watts (Edison, Alexandria, Virginia) 1975

29:42.31 *Edward Cheserek’ (St. Benedict’s, Newark, New Jersey) 2012

29:46.0 *Thom Hunt (Henry, San Diego, California) 1975

29:54.8 Mohamed Trafeh’ (Duarte, California) 2004.

yesstiles1 wrote:

So far, no ...? wrote:

So far, no posters have stated Martin Liquori. He made 1968 Olympic final, 1500m at age 19. No one else listed on this thread made an Olympic final before age 20.

Ummm.......Gerry Lindgren age 18. Hello?

What place would they get at the US trials in 2019? How many rounds would he get through at worlds in 2019?

Edward Cheserek is definitely in the top 5 of greatest high school boys distance runner/performer of all time. Posting bests:

800m -1:49.98

Mile -4:02.21

2Mile -8:39.15 (Indoor) National Record

3000m Steeple -9:00.11 Top 10 Performance

5k 13:57.04 -(Indoor) National Record

10k -29:42

DMR 9:51.97 (4:02.3) # 3 All Time

No other runner on this list has more top 10 All-Time performances in multiple events than Cheserek.

His X-C talents were unprecedented, winning 2 Foot Locker X-C titles and a runner up finish to Lukas Verzbicas in the Nike NTN. On the courses in which he raced, he re-wrote the history books by breaking every X-C course record in NJ and NY.

Holmdel 14:53 (5k)

Van Cortlandt Park 11:55 (2.5 Mile)

Brookdale Park 14:18.7 (5K)

All of these times were accomplished on less than 50 MPW.

The fact that he was able to record such elite high school times while racing every weekend to focus on team goals and not individual goals is impressive by itself and warrants the conversation of being the GOAT.

And what were the ages of all of these guys when in high school?

It seems very few top high school male runners graduate when they are 17 or 18. They are usually 19 and that one extra year makes a huge difference on boys.

Cheserek was way older and it is a travesty that he was able to break national high school records simply by being considerably older than normal high school age.

Show a top 10 list of 17 and 18 year olds. That would have greater meaning to the rest of us who graduated from HS at a normal age.

DISCUS THE BOYS wrote:

Forgot to list Rudy but he was one of the 5 honorable mentions. 28:32 10k (HS record)

DISCUS THE BOYS wrote:

Forgot to list Rudy but he was one of the 5 honorable mentions. 28:32 10k (HS record)

That is three sub 9:10 3200m runs, back-to-back-to-back, and then another half-plus lap.

sub 9:10 wrote:

DISCUS THE BOYS wrote:

Forgot to list Rudy but he was one of the 5 honorable mentions. 28:32 10k (HS record)

DISCUS THE BOYS wrote:

Forgot to list Rudy but he was one of the 5 honorable mentions. 28:32 10k (HS record)

That is three sub 9:10 3200m runs, back-to-back-to-back, and then another half-plus lap.

Half-plus- yes indeed, in fact a full lap (if talking about a 400m circuit).

Top 10 HS distance boys that graduated when they were 17 or 18 wrote:

And what were the ages of all of these guys when in high school?

It seems very few top high school male runners graduate when they are 17 or 18. They are usually 19 and that one extra year makes a huge difference on boys.

Cheserek was way older and it is a travesty that he was able to break national high school records simply by being considerably older than normal high school age.

Show a top 10 list of 17 and 18 year olds. That would have greater meaning to the rest of us who graduated from HS at a normal age.

You make a legitimate point. But Chapa, Hulst, and McChesney were all 18 when they graduated - and 17 for all, or almost, all of their senior Cross Country seasons.

Birthdates:

Rudy Chapa - Nov. 7, 1957

Eric Hulst. - Nov. 28, 1957

Bill McChesney. - Jan. 8, 1959 (so his sophomore year 29:27.2 was at age 16 and his junior year 29:06.8 was at age 17).

For high school kids when people say DISTANCE they are usually referring to the mile and 2-mile. The 10,000 is not a traditional H.S. event; who knows what Lukas, Ritz, Salazar, Rupp of Ches for example could have run in a serious 10,000 paced along by college or pro athletes. The mile is and has always been the premiere DISTANCE event for H.S. athletes.

Thanks, friend! I sort of wimped out in my reply because the harder part is organizing the rest. I was/am an expert on HS distance running from the 60's through about 2007-8 when I stopped followed it nearly as as closely, so I didn't feel comfortable commenting on Verzbicas and Fisher. Having reviewed Verzbicas' accomplishments, I think he is in the conversation with Ritz and a few others to follow Ryun, Lindgren, and maybe Webb in third.

Someone else replying to my post pointed out that Lindgren's shattering of the indoor two mile record was a sign of how bad the record was, and that's precisely the point. I know technically Edward Cheserek broke his record like fifty years later, but even factoring in Verzbicas' outdoor record, I think it's a fair assessment to say that Lindgren's high school times have not been improved upon/bested in any significant way in fifty years, which is just mindblowing. Guys like Lindgren and Ryun are analogous to someone like Jimi Hendrix. They weren't chasing anybody, they just shattered every thinkable barrier in a way that still has not really been repeated. It's arguably impossible that anyone could have that kind of effect again, because the competition/training/etc. has become so well-honed, but the fact that their times would still be national championship-winning times today more than makes up for the "you can't give them too much credit just because the competition was bad back then" argument.

I think Webb's 3:53 is so good that, combined with his range, he has the best argument for 3rd. Ryun is the only guy on his level in the history of the HS mile, and as has been noted, his range was ridiculous and he was close to setting national records from 800-two mile and possibly could have if he had focused more on those pursuits (and I know getting into a lot of hypotheticals is dangerous.)

After that, probably Verzbicas to be honest, with his range and huge number of top performances and national championships across disciplines. Following him, there are arguments for Ritz, then maybe Chapa (it's hard to put so much on that one 10k, but damn it's so far out there.) I'm not familiar enough with Hunter's resume to rank him.

Intergalactic wrote:

... there are arguments for Ritz, then maybe Chapa (it's hard to put so much on that one 10k, but damn it's so far out there.)

To grasp what Chapa running three sub 9:10 3200m runs in a row try this:

Take an HS runner who can run sub 9:00 for 3200m. Ask them to run three sub 9:10s 3200m runs on the same day (within 8 hours--like a work day). How many HS runners could do that?

Grant Fisher - April 22, 1997 which means he just turned 18 when he broke the four minute mile, and was 16 and 17 when he won Footlocker XC as a junior and senior.

He was aged 19. Shouldn't even count.

I'm pretty sure all the legendary boys mentioned here were all 17 or 18. The only one older was Kjng Ches who was 19, even before his senior outdoor season started. Verzbicas too would have been 19 senior year, but his times are all from junior year when he was 18. However, I believed he was doping anyhow.

The HS Mile Record Holder prior to Jim Ryun was also 19 (Tom Sullivan 4:03 in 1961).

Gerry Lindgren ran his famous 8:40 flat when he was 17. Ryun ran his 3:39 flat when he was 17. German did his amazing double when he was 17. Virgin was 17 when he broke Pre's 2-mile HSR. Bruce Kidd was 17 when he was North American 2-mile leader. Etc, etc.

You can't compare the guys from the 60's- 70's to the kids today.

The tracks were much slower, the shoes were less scientific and heavier to say the least, no carbon fiber plates etc..

The races were actual races, where winning or beating the comp was the goal as opposed to todays races with pace setters and time trial efforts.

Astounding that everyone wants to forget Mr. Drew Hunter when these lists come up. No one, with maybe the exception of Alan Webb, had the range of Mr. Drew Hunter in HS: 1:48, 3:57 (with 3 or 4 times 3:58 or faster), 7:59 (3k), 14:20 (5k Cross), Footlocker Champion, 1:48-8:43 double. I don't get it?

Probably because Drew Hunter lost too much in his career to nobodies.

Chapa did more than the 28:32. In 1975, he broke Lindgren's HS 10,000 m record while winning the AAU junior meet against a quality field, followed by a win in the US vs USSR. In 1976, he ran 29:09 at the FL Relays a few weeks before Drake.

coach d. wrote:

Chapa did more than the 28:32. In 1975, he broke Lindgren's HS 10,000 m record while winning the AAU junior meet against a quality field, followed by a win in the US vs USSR. In 1976, he ran 29:09 at the FL Relays a few weeks before Drake.

And with the evidence of his 3000m American Record 7:37 in college, it's obvious that if Chapa weren't so focused on the 10k Trials in high school, and did more anaerobic stuff instead of mega-mileage, he would probably currently own the 2-Mile High School Record.

Really? The only big meet losses came against Grant Fisher and DH evened the score at Brooks* and U19 Nationals.

*I believe DH closed in 53-point.