According to the article quoted on letsrun, the twins have college visits set up at Stanford, Oregon, Virginia, Georgetown and Syracuse. I guess everyone would've guessed Oregon. And I guess Stanford is no surprise. Anyone expecting the others?
If you were Joe and your bro had never won a single xc race, would you ease up and let Jim win? Or maybe just hang back and try to pace a teammate to a pr in a small meet?
I'm curious if they'll go to the same school. I sort of doubt it, if I were Jim I would sort of be sick of the shadow. Or maybe he can rise above that, IDK.
if i was jim i wouldnt want joe to let me win...he wants it and wants to take him down the right way
Georgetown is an excellent school with a very strong distance running history. Many students from New Jersey choose to go there, as it away from home, but just a train ride or manageable drive away for visits. The winters are a little milder than in New Jersey, but there's still four seasons.
They probably already know some Georgetown students who speak well of the experience.
Each of the schools listed makes sense for different reasons.
I believe what you describe has already happened - Jim has come first in a meet when Joe didn't go all out - but he is not counting this as an actual win.
I seem to recall that a teammate went to Syracuse; anyone confirm yes/no?
The article on the front page was pretty good. I imagine it would suck quite a bit to be an 8:51 2 miler in HS and to not even win a race, and to not even be the best in your own house.
Wouldn't surprise me if he ends up with the brighter future though.
jon sequeri did. Fun fact he actaully "beat" both of the twins at their county meet last year.
Souless Gingers!
Indeed, Jon Squeri (WWPN '10) is a freshman at SU. And I was wrong about Jim winning over Joe in the past - it was actually both of the Rosas letting up to let Squeri win:
http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2009/10/31/sports/doc4aebb16f8b03e624250388.txtThe article states that both will go to the same school.
Whammy!
hs fan wrote:
According to the article quoted on letsrun, the twins have college visits set up at Stanford, Oregon, Virginia, Georgetown and Syracuse. I guess everyone would've guessed Oregon. And I guess Stanford is no surprise. Anyone expecting the others?
If you were Joe and your bro had never won a single xc race, would you ease up and let Jim win? Or maybe just hang back and try to pace a teammate to a pr in a small meet?
What an empty win that would be. If I were the slower twin, I'd want the faster one to try to beat me every time. If he lets him win, it's not really a win. I sure hope neither of them have such a loser attitude as to do that.
Flagpole wrote:
What an empty win that would be. If I were the slower twin, I'd want the faster one to try to beat me every time. If he lets him win, it's not really a win. I sure hope neither of them have such a loser attitude as to do that.
That's cool. I wouldn't want it either. I was just curious about what others thought. So the consensus seems to be that the pride would come from beating his brother, not winning a race. So what if his bro were injured and he raced and won and beat someone else really good in the race. Maybe he beat Moussa or Gedyon or someone like that. Would that be hollow, too, since his brother wasn't there?
hs fan wrote:
...So what if his bro were injured and he raced and won and beat someone else really good in the race.... Would that be hollow, too, since his brother wasn't there?
In my mind and experience injuries are part of the game - staying injury free takes work ethic, control, practice, dedication, and luck... just like winning some races. The win you describe is a real win. Maybe a little doubt left in the air but if Bekele is hurt for the 2012 Oly 10k the winner is the 10k champ no questions asked.
hs fan wrote:
That's cool. I wouldn't want it either. I was just curious about what others thought. So the consensus seems to be that the pride would come from beating his brother, not winning a race. So what if his bro were injured and he raced and won and beat someone else really good in the race. Maybe he beat Moussa or Gedyon or someone like that. Would that be hollow, too, since his brother wasn't there?
Pride comes from accomplishment. Is it an accomplishment to "beat" someone who is letting you win?
To answer your hypothetical ("Maybe he beat Moussa or Gedyon or someone like that. Would that be hollow, too, since his brother wasn't there?") or any number of others simply ask whether it is a significant accomplishment. Therein lies your answer as to whether it would be a source of pride.
did wrote:
In my mind and experience injuries are part of the game - staying injury free takes work ethic, control, practice, dedication, and luck... just like winning some races. The win you describe is a real win. Maybe a little doubt left in the air but if Bekele is hurt for the 2012 Oly 10k the winner is the 10k champ no questions asked.
This is the correct answer.
Jim has beaten Joe numerous times on the track, and Jim won the Nike Indoor 2-mile last winter in the fastest national time of the year.
From what I know, Oregon is at the bottom of the list, probably because of academics, but who knows what will happen after a visit. I think the Rosa's were beat up by the end of November last year; the early season high level invitationals on courses like Belmont and VCP, combined with then 3 straight weeks of running on the Holmdel course, which is the NJ championship pathway and back to VCP for the FLNE ...that's a very difficult season to survive. Couple that with the fast that the Rosa's continue to run hard even when they are way out in front. I have always felt that most of NJ's top kids are tired by the time the National championships come around.
Not counting what they did at Holmdel and VCP last year, their marks at Belmont in September last year were amazing. There are D1 schools that do tempo runs on the Belmont H.S. course and from my own experience; an NCAA all-American would struggle to run as fast as they did. I suspect their peak fitness last year was in mid November, unfortunately, there is no way to avoid the talent pool or get around the way the NJ XC season is structured or XC in the NE in general. I know this is a similar situation in other areas of the country, but perhaps not as brutal.
TrackCoach wrote:
From what I know, Oregon is at the bottom of the list, probably because of academics, but who knows what will happen after a visit. I think the Rosa's were beat up by the end of November last year; the early season high level invitationals on courses like Belmont and VCP, combined with then 3 straight weeks of running on the Holmdel course, which is the NJ championship pathway and back to VCP for the FLNE ...that's a very difficult season to survive. Couple that with the fast that the Rosa's continue to run hard even when they are way out in front. I have always felt that most of NJ's top kids are tired by the time the National championships come around.
Not counting what they did at Holmdel and VCP last year, their marks at Belmont in September last year were amazing. There are D1 schools that do tempo runs on the Belmont H.S. course and from my own experience; an NCAA all-American would struggle to run as fast as they did. I suspect their peak fitness last year was in mid November, unfortunately, there is no way to avoid the talent pool or get around the way the NJ XC season is structured or XC in the NE in general. I know this is a similar situation in other areas of the country, but perhaps not as brutal.
All True ^
What would be nice would be if the Rosas took it as easy as practical during the season (lay off on the course records) to peak for nationals. A Footlocker matchup (real XC course) between Joe and Lucas V would be epic.
I know it won't happen for many reasons but that's the race that I would pay to see.
I am a twin. Brother and I were pretty good high school milers long ago. Went to different colleges, though. I have empathy for Jim. I did legiitmately beat my brother, but only about 15% of the time. He just had more speed. I would counsel patience. You just never know if you are in the game for the long haul, which I hope these two are. Jim could find or sharpen talent for the 10k, steeple, or what have you in college. He's running 8:51 as a junior. That in and of itself is fun. And he can and already will win plenty of races, even if his brother beats him when they go head to head. Most high school runners can't say that.