HS Marathon recrord

Don't know which is the high school record but these are US age records.

M 14 2:41:31 WESLEY PAUL 012569 OVERLAND PARK, KS ROCKET CITY, AL, 121083

M 15 2:29:11 MITCH KINGERY 070356 REDWOOD CITY, CA WEST VALLEY, CA, 021372

M 16 2:23:47 MITCH KINGERY 070356 REDWOOD CITY, CA WEST VALLEY, CA, 021173

M 17 2:24:06 THOM HUNT 031758 SAN DIEGO, CA WESTERN HEMISPHERE, CA, 120775

M 18 2:17:44 KIRK PFEFFER 073056 SAN DIEGO, CA MISSION BAY, CA, 011175

M 19 2:15:28 AR PAUL GOMPERS 020464 FAIRVIEW HGTS, IL ROCKET CITY, AL, 121083

What are the world records? I'd imagine all of these times have been obliterated by Africans (Stop yourself, Alan).

very very sad!!! with the exception of Hunt(decent pro career but nothing spectacular),Pferrer(did ok on the roads as a pro), Gompers(ran at Harvard, made a junior xc world team in '83 finished fourth at the '88 marathon trials and his time was a world jr record). "their candles burned out long before they ever did anything"

Kingery still holds the course record at the famed Crystal Springs course in Belmont, CA

I believe it is 14:28 for the hilly 2.95 mile course

Kirk Pfeffer was my middle school and high school cross country coach... his was definitely the junior world record in his day. He went on to run 2:10:29 when he was 23 but his back started going out pretty early.

allknowingpeeps wrote:

very very sad!!! with the exception of Hunt(decent pro career but nothing spectacular),Pferrer(did ok on the roads as a pro), Gompers(ran at Harvard, made a junior xc world team in '83 finished fourth at the '88 marathon trials and his time was a world jr record). "their candles burned out long before they ever did anything"

As I recall, Thom Hunt set a U.S. 10K road record. Pfeffer came very close to winning the NYC marathon (Rodgers overtook him in Central Park). Gompers finished fourth in the Olympic marathon trials when he was, I believe, the second-youngest runner in the field. (Timely trivia question: Who was the youngest?) He left big-time road-racing to concentrate on big-time academics.

In other words, three out five developed into exceptional distance runners when they got older. Not bad, in my view.

Was Pfeffer still in HS when he ran that time?

TDF wrote:

M 17 2:24:06 THOM HUNT 031758 SAN DIEGO, CA WESTERN HEMISPHERE, CA, 120775

Is that 4:02.7 former indoor HS mile record holder Thom Hunt? How many people have ever been the best - at any level - in the marathon and the mile at the same time?

I've heard of him before, but don't know details. How strong was his deuce in HS? 5k/10k in college?

Thom Hunt

29:46.0 for 10,000 in 1975 as a HS junior (!!)

4:02.7 indoor HS mile record holder

8:42.30 in 1976 Arcadia HS 2-Mile

World Junior Cross-Country Champion

U.S. Record Holder for Road 10K (28:12) (I think his track 10,000 was in the 27:5os

Marathon: 2:12:++

10 Miles: 46:15 (two seconds off the WR)

Four-time Olympic trials qualifier (steeple, 10,000, and marathon)

A very long, extremely distinguished career. It was surprising to see his career described here as nothing spectacular

Yes, it is the same Thom Hunt who, in my opinion, was one of the top two HS distance runners of all time. The only other runner with his type of range was Gerry Lingren… How's that for company? His range was from the mile thru the marathon. Nobody has come vaguely close to matching his range.

He and Lingren were close in the mile, considering that Hunt's time was run at the old LA Times meet, on a 10 lap to the mile wooden track. I remember watching the race on TV. I believe Hunt was the better marathoner in HS. Afterwards, I don't know.

travis

Everyone knows that Brandon Moen has the high school marathon record in addition to his numerous state records... Duh!!!

According to Track and Field News:

Marathon 2:23:47 Mitch Kingery (San Carlos, California) Burlingame, California 2/11/73

Mar (aided) 2:23:05 Clancy Devery (South, Salem, Oregon) Seaside, Oregon 2/26/77

And while I'm at it the top ten junior list (probably hasn't been updated recently, so may not be up to date).

MARATHON

World List:

2:10:46 Zuhong Li (Chn).............10/14/01

2:11:43 He Li (Chn).................10/14/01

2:12:49 Negash Dube (Eth)...........10/18/87

2:12:49 Tesfayi Dadi (Eth)..........10/ 9/88

2:13:33 Leikun Gebremedihen (Eth)....4/16/89

2:14:45 Samson Ramadhani (Tan).......8/ 5/01

2:14:54 Luis Carlos da Silva (Bra)...7/25/93

2:14:55 Shouhui Han (Chn)...........10/14/01

2:15:07 Li....................10/15/00

2:15:28 Paul Gompers (US)...........12/10/83

(end of performances)

2:15.30 Takahiro Sonada (Jpn).......12/20/92

U.S. List:

2:15:28 Paul Gompers (Harv).........12/10/83

2:17:44 Kirk Pfeffer (GrossJC).......1/11/75

2:18:22' Dan Renchner (unat).........10/23/83

2:18:41' Joe Metcalf (unat)..........12/ 4/82

2:19:07 Pfeffer...............12/ 7/75

2:20:28' Michael Axinn (unat)........12/ 1/79

2:20:52 Pfeffer................6/ 7/75

2:22:48 Herb Wills (FlSt)............6/ 6/79

2:22:52 Metcalf...............12/ 5/81

2:22:55 Dave White (FullSt).........12/ 5/71

(end of performances)

2:23:04 Mark Anderson (unat).........9/11/77

2:23:05' Clancy Devery (OrHS).........2/26/77

2:23:47 Mitch Kingery (CaHS).........2/11/73

now someone tell me what any of these guys did beyond 20 yrs old. And i will now eat crow and take back what i said about Thom Hunt just being a decent runner- the guy was a beast and amazing for sure!

"Lindgren"

If I remember right, Hunt came down with mono during the spring of his senior year. And was thus denied a crack at 4 minutes in the mile.

Interestingly, Wesley Paul and Gompers ran their age records in the same race - '83 Rocket City. Also in that race Lisa Martin ran her first marathon setting an Australian record of 2:32:22. I think that may have been the women's world debut record at the time.

allknowingpeeps wrote:

very very sad!!! with the exception of Hunt(decent pro career but nothing spectacular),Pferrer(did ok on the roads as a pro), Gompers(ran at Harvard, made a junior xc world team in '83 finished fourth at the '88 marathon trials and his time was a world jr record). "their candles burned out long before they ever did anything"

Pfeffer was a monster on the roads. How little allknowingpeeps knows. Sad.

Herb Wills was the 2nd American finisher at Boston one year if I am not mistaken

Thanks to christopher Barr and Avocado's Number...

So why is Thom Hunt not talked about with the greats of American running from the 70s? As someone who is way too young to know alot about that time period, but still knows a decent amount about it from these boards, I could have told you loads about Pre, Ryun, Lindgren, Shorter, Moore, Kardong, Chapa, Salazar, Centrowitz, Rodgers, Scott, etc..

Up until now, about all I knew about Thom Hunt was that he held the indoor HS mile record before Webb broke it.