Conner Mantz, from Sky View High School in the small town of Smithfield, Utah, just won state championships in the 1600 (4:10) and 3200 (8:57). And he's just a junior. Great job for a young man from my home state! His PR for the 3200 is 8:52, but he ran this 8:57 at an altitude of nearly 5,000 feet at BYU in Provo, Utah. The sky's the limit for his senior year. Way to go, Conner!
That's really impressive. I saw some goals he posted a year ago that seemed way out there at the time. I'd have to go back and check but I bet he pulled them off.
That's what sports are about I guess: Establish a goal, work toward that goal, then execute.
Alberto needs to clean up his form for him.
His form is actually pretty decent. His arms aren't good, but he has a decent stride and doesn't heelstrike, it just looks like he's doing butt kicks the whole race. Altitude adjusted, his times are crazy; something like 4:06 and 8:45 run completely alone. The most amazing thing is how good his endurance is: he never runs more than 55 miles a week, can't break 56 for the 400, yet has run 1:56, 4:10, 8:52, and 14:24. And is only a junior.
Well, we all like to see beautiful form--the smooth efficiency of a Bekele or Dibaba, but there have been some awesome runners with form that doesn't meet the ideal. Another great Utah high school runner who easily beat me in the only race we both competed in was Ed Eyestone. Ed never had great form--it looked awkward and loping to me--but there's no denying he was a great runner. And the ugliest form ever for a woman, in my opinion, was that of Paula Radcliffe, but she was also an awesome runner. But perhaps you're right that a coach/trainer like Salazar (who also had ugly form, by the way) could make young Conner Mantz even better. Anyway, Conner is an incredible runner who has a good shot at even beating Ben Saarel's records in his upcoming senior year. Again, congrats to Conner!
Just one bump for a deserving young runner.
Conner is truly an amazing talent, he ran 1:11 in the half marathon as a 14 year old I think, without a ton of training.
More than just running, Conner is an extremely good natured individual. He is a good team player and helps out his team mates. He seems to know just about all the local runners, fast and slow, and he is always very congratulatory to them after their races. He isn't arrogant or cocky at all, instead he is soft spoken and reserved about his running ability, he always makes the conversation about the other guy and the neat things the other guy is doing.
Whoever recruits Conner is sure a lucky coach. I just hope it's Ed Eyestone at BYU!
What's his training like? He seems to be far better suited to the very long distances than the short ones; I bet he'd be unchallenged in a nationwide high school half marathon but his speed isn't so incredible. I'd hate to see him burn the flame too hot in high school and have a frustrating collegiate career.
Pasadena wrote:
What's his training like? He seems to be far better suited to the very long distances than the short ones; I bet he'd be unchallenged in a nationwide high school half marathon but his speed isn't so incredible. I'd hate to see him burn the flame too hot in high school and have a frustrating collegiate career.
From his training log, it appears that he shouldn't be one of those who burn out early. His coach knows when to push him and when to hold him back, and Conner seems a lot smarter about training than we were back in the late 70s when I was his age. I'm not going to link his training log here because I haven't asked permission, but if you search just a little, you'll find out more about this great young runner and how he trains. He has the potential to be the best runner Utah has ever produced, and that's really saying something.
1:13:19 as a 14 year old, but still, holy crap.
also, that half has a 750' net loss, but still, holy crap.
this kid is obviously a big talent.
one-eleven? wrote:
http://www.utahvalleymarathon.com/utah-valley-half-marathon-records.php1:13:19 as a 14 year old, but still, holy crap.
Yeah, that's real talent. Not just Conner's times, but also that overall winning time of 1:05 makes you think the course must have had some major overall downhill, especially at altitude, but I don't know. I'm hoping Conner can beat Ben Saarel's records--at least in the 1600 and the 3200 next outdoor track season. But even before that it's really going to be exciting to see him run Footlocker next fall.
really hope he doesn't end up as another drone at BYU.
Utahrunner wrote:
Conner is truly an amazing talent, he ran 1:11 in the half marathon as a 14 year old I think, without a ton of training.
More than just running, Conner is an extremely good natured individual. He is a good team player and helps out his team mates. He seems to know just about all the local runners, fast and slow, and he is always very congratulatory to them after their races. He isn't arrogant or cocky at all, instead he is soft spoken and reserved about his running ability, he always makes the conversation about the other guy and the neat things the other guy is doing.
Whoever recruits Conner is sure a lucky coach. I just hope it's Ed Eyestone at BYU!
nbskis wrote:
really hope he doesn't end up as another drone at BYU.
Utahrunner wrote:Whoever recruits Conner is sure a lucky coach. I just hope it's Ed Eyestone at BYU!
I don't know if he's Mormon, but so many great young Utah runners go on Church missions at age 19. Many never reach their potential after that because they get married soon after their missions and start a family very young. But Ed Eyestone did it. Doug Padilla did it. Henry Marsh did it. Eyestone is a good coach, and he understands the challenges and potential of kids who are great runners but then take two years off for their church right out of high school. So, BYU might be the best fit, if Conner's a Mormon kid. While it appears that he is, it's really none of our business, and it has no bearing on his already brilliant high school performances.
Pasadena wrote:
What's his training like? He seems to be far better suited to the very long distances than the short ones; I bet he'd be unchallenged in a nationwide high school half marathon but his speed isn't so incredible. I'd hate to see him burn the flame too hot in high school and have a frustrating collegiate career.
If he has a frustrating college 'career', it will be because he is essentially yet another endurance monster without enough basic speed. His distance times look spectacular on 90-100km a week, but extra mileage can only get you so far. He needs to focus more on getting his sprint times down.
Shawn H wrote:
one-eleven? wrote:http://www.utahvalleymarathon.com/utah-valley-half-marathon-records.php1:13:19 as a 14 year old, but still, holy crap.
Yeah, that's real talent. Not just Conner's times, but also that overall winning time of 1:05 makes you think the course must have had some major overall downhill, especially at altitude, but I don't know. I'm hoping Conner can beat Ben Saarel's records--at least in the 1600 and the 3200 next outdoor track season. But even before that it's really going to be exciting to see him run Footlocker next fall.
750 feet start to finish, to be exact.
http://utahvalleymarathon.com/utah-half-marathon-map.phpShawn H wrote:
I don't know if he's Mormon, but so many great young Utah runners go on Church missions at age 19. Many never reach their potential after that because they get married soon after their missions and start a family very young. But Ed Eyestone did it. Doug Padilla did it. Henry Marsh did it. Eyestone is a good coach, and he understands the challenges and potential of kids who are great runners but then take two years off for their church right out of high school. So, BYU might be the best fit, if Conner's a Mormon kid. While it appears that he is, it's really none of our business, and it has no bearing on his already brilliant high school performances.
Also, the mission age is now 18, so if he is Mormon he could be gone right after graduation.
Eyestone does a good job developing speed. I hope as well that he ends up at BYU.
Lydiard is God wrote:
Pasadena wrote:What's his training like? He seems to be far better suited to the very long distances than the short ones; I bet he'd be unchallenged in a nationwide high school half marathon but his speed isn't so incredible. I'd hate to see him burn the flame too hot in high school and have a frustrating collegiate career.
If he has a frustrating college 'career', it will be because he is essentially yet another endurance monster without enough basic speed. His distance times look spectacular on 90-100km a week, but extra mileage can only get you so far. He needs to focus more on getting his sprint times down.
He can focus all he wants on getting his speed down, but it just isn't going to drop that much, and honestly doesn't need to. Altitude adjusted, he ran 4:06 and 8:45 within 18 hours of each other. Maybe he won't be any better than 3:55 or something by the end of college, but the mile isn't going to be his distance. You don't need amazing 400 speed for a great 10k or marathon, which is where his wheelhouse will be as he matures.
But. . . wrote:
He can focus all he wants on getting his speed down, but it just isn't going to drop that much, and honestly doesn't need to. Altitude adjusted, he ran 4:06 and 8:45 within 18 hours of each other. Maybe he won't be any better than 3:55 or something by the end of college, but the mile isn't going to be his distance. You don't need amazing 400 speed for a great 10k or marathon, which is where his wheelhouse will be as he matures.
I disagree with you somewhat. Without improving his top-end speed, I doubt he cracks 4:00, and that will limit him up to 10k. Don't get me wrong, a true distance guy can run a brilliant 10k on 4:00 speed (ala Rupp at Oregon), but the difference between brilliant and world class 10k runner is the mile speed (ala Rupp post-Oregon, Geb, Bekele, and any other world-class 10k runner).
Those are impressive times for 5000 feet. His arms look fine to me based on that photo, very similar to Bekele.
