rcs wrote:
Dkny64 wrote:I think that kind of 800m would give Salazar [and Cain] more insight into where her race fitness stands than would a 1500m in which she's off the back of the lead pack before the real racing begins.
Ok, you are, of course, still free to think I'm a moron, but there you have my point of view.
An 800 will give more insight into 1500 fitness than a 1500?
Yes, that is moronic.
Is that you, Rupp-Certified Saladbar? If so, I say go back to the full form of your screen name - it remains my favorite letsrun handle.
The 800m is a very simple event for Mary Cain. Go out in 59.xx, come back as best she can. Doesn't really matter what the rest of the field does so the result gives a clear indication of Cain's conditioning and gets her back to running under race conditions, something she hasn't done in quite a while.
The 1500m is more complicated and the result can be significantly influenced by the other runners and by psychological factors that make the result tougher to read than the result of an 800m. Suppose, for example, Can chases an early pace of 48-65 then blows up badly and finished in 4:10. All we've learned is that she isn't ready to run that hot a pace, but we haven't really learned how fit she actually is. Or suppose she goes out 49-68, is completely out of contact with the lead, gets discouraged and runs a mediocre 3rd lap of 69, then closes in 62 for something like 4:08. Again, all we've really learned is that she isn't currently competitive with best in the world but we haven't learned much about her actual fitness level.
There are all kinds of things not to like about Salazar but this situation arose because Mary Cain decided to make other things in her life a higher priority than getting started on her outdoor racing season. [If it had been up to AlSal she would have opened her season at Oxy if not earlier.]
Anyway, I hope she runs one of the races and that it goes well for her. I also hope Cranny hits a big PR in the 1500m. And I hope Efraimson does well with whatever she decides to make her next priority. I think it's fair to say that this is the first time the US has ever had 3 HS mid-d / distance girls of this caliber and Ajee is only a couple of years older and seems to be extending her range - exciting times.