This makes no sense to me. Im in HS, and in almost every 1600m race the pack all goes out at an even pace, lets say 66s, and then the winner wins by running a 59 second last lap. Which would make sense if it was a tactical race, but usually this is a PR. But in XC, these same guys have outrageous positive splits. I feel like a lot of these guys would have much better luck going out fast and not being able to speed up at the end. I just find it very weird how during track season in the 1600 or 3200, coaches really emphasize pacing yourself, but in XC races the advice is to “go out hard and attack the hills.”