Simeon Birnbaum had to be the one to take the pace so heat 2 didn’t run 3:55

Balls ≠ brains.

still great experience

May actually have been the smartest move for him. He would not have placed higher in true sit and kick, at least not in this stage of his career

It's kinda sad that the hs runners were the ones to push the 1500s even to the slow paces they were

1:52.80 last 800.

Odds were really long that he’d advance in any scenario, so credit to him for running the way he did instead of hiding near the back and running 3:49 in a complete jogfest.

I actually think he would have stood a better chance advancing if he didn't take the lead and tried to just outkick. All these guys have more strength and speed than him. The slower pace sit and kick plays better for him. I say this from experience as a guy who would always advance and score at conference despite being seeded middle/bottom. Can this hs kid run a 3:53 mile? No. Can he run a 50 second 400m? Yes. And at a slow pace that's what it becomes

Oh, the last 150m or so, I was cheering so hard for him! It looked like Birnbaum was going to pull it off! Everyone knows he has an excellent kick; leading from the 800m onward he did all the work though. That ended up costing him the last 50m, I imagine, compared to the people who relaxed and let Birnbaum carry them through (if that makes sense). He expended more energy.

I imagine that pace just didn't feel right for him, compared to his high school racing; you can't blame someone for going with their gut and racing based on their intuition. isn't that how Geordie Beamish wins with his kick, like every time? One thing for sure, he turned some heads with that move!

leading with 800m left, I mean. IIRC.

Yeah, but everyone else at that level can close the last 400m like that. He would have been lucky to not get last if he let it come to a last 200m sprint.

Yea that proves my point. It evens the playing field and gives anyone a chance, not just the guys at the top. Most upsets happen when the pace is slow. He was racing guys out of his league. If the pace was honest he would never advance because as I stated earlier, he's not running a 3:53 mile. But when the race is basically a rolling 400, the rest of the field isn't any faster.

Except that they still were.

They were faster because he fatigued himself from leading. The main problem with sit and kick isn't his speed, it's positioning. Simeon is less experienced with tactics and manuevering traffic to set up for the last 400 so he just decided to lead off a slow pace. It was a gamble that didn't pay off but wasn't a bad play.