My thoughts on the race of Zach Panning fluctuated while watching and have started to settle post race. Of course I have the benefit of hindsight and am not suggesting I know better than the racers who are caught up in racing but I have some thoughts.
When Panning took the lead early I thought it was a bad move it seemed too early to pass Young and Mantz who would have no problem running from the front and probably expected to. I thought runners like Panning or Fauble were strongest running a conservative first half and gobbling up people who went out too fast, as they have done in their best races. By mile 15 I was sold on Panning front running he looked strong and confident. By the end I realized my first impulse was correct, validated by the results.
Panning paced his two biggest competitors to victory for nothing in return. It was brave in a sense but also foolish for the same reason. If he stuck to the strategy that made his run at worlds so impressive he could have snuck on the team, although Korir and CJ closed so aggressively it may have still been very tough.
In his post race interview Panning said the race plan was to run from the front. If you assume the BYU alum would run together and Mantz is known to push races, would you not rather go into the race planning to let them do that and stick on them? They could take turns at the front anyway since there are two of them rather than letting the two fastest guys sit on you for 20 miles.
A lot of people are hype on his run and it was exciting to watch, as a fan what he did was great but after he died so hard I can’t help but think this strategy hurt him.
Was it the “simulator” that made him think he could easily muscle out 2:08 from the front? He should move to Utah and train with the Mormons for LA 2028.