Meb says, "Don't count Ryan Hall out"

Word. I'm hoping both Hall's somehow make the team. I'm already jazzed for the Marathon Trials.

Ditto. The trials race will most likely go out in 1:04-1:05 for the half. Hall could drop a 14:40 5K around 30K and by that point have a top-3 place wrapped up

Agreed. You'd have to be an idiot to count Ryan out. When he's on, he's the best male marathoner we have.

Hall does even have to be nearly as good as he used to be to make the 2016 team. A 2:10:30 will probably make it.

Who Else Is There wrote:

Hall does even have to be nearly as good as he used to be to make the 2016 team. A 2:10:30 will probably make it.

This is exactly his problem. He needs to realize he doesn't need to be a 2:05-2:06 guy to make the team. This goes for the race itself (not going out at a pace he can't handle like in LA) but also in training; not killing himself trying to hit the same volume and intensity as when he was in his prime. He's the same as Ritz; as long as he can get to the starting line uninjured, he's talented enough that he can beat almost any other Americans even is he's only at 90-95% fitness.

Why 2:10:30? LA is harder than Houston, but look at 2012. Biggest wildcards here will be if people like Derrick or Rupp hop in, or if someone like Puskedra returns to form, not to mention someone like Diego Estrada, or Tyler Pennel.

1 Meb Keflezighi 2:09:08

2 Ryan Hall 2:09:30

3 Abdi Abdirahman 2:09:47

4 Dathan Ritzenhein 2:09:55

5 Brett Gotcher 2:11:06

6 Andrew Carlson 2:11:24

7 Fernando Cabada 2:11:53

8 Nick Arciniaga 2:11:56

Men Place Women

$80,000 1 $80,000

65,000 2 65,000

55,000 3 55,000

25,000 4 25,000

20,000 5 20,000

How much money does Ryan make right now in appearance money for hyping a race, standing on the starting line and not finishing?

He might be talented, but his drive is gone.

I hope Ryan Hall is not on the team. I have little doubt that he will fail to deliver when it counts once again.

I was thinking about this the other day. I think Ryan will be a definite for the team if he races to win against other Americans. It will not take a 2:04 or 05 to get on the team. If he goes out smart and races for spots 1 or 2 it should be fairly easy.

I believe when he gets in the big marathons lined up against Africans he tries to race on their terms even if his fitness isn't there.

Is Ritz really no planning to run the trials? Rojo reported that on the Boston thread. I hope this is not the case.

agree that the talent does not suddenly vanish. The key is exactly what Meb pointed out above.

Ritz Fan wrote:

Is Ritz really no planning to run the trials? Rojo reported that on the Boston thread. I hope this is not the case.

No, I do not think that is what Rojo reported. There was a typo in the relevant post which made some people interpret it that was.

As long as he is healthy, Ritz will be on the line at the trials.

Brock Landers wrote:

I hope Ryan Hall is not on the team. I have little doubt that he will fail to deliver when it counts once again.

I also hope he doesn't make the team. I'd rather it go to a younger up and coming marathoner who develops well.

Hall can definitely make the team but will likely DNF at Champs

road rashed wrote:

LA is harder than Houston

That remains to be seen. The trials in Houston were on a criterium course with a bunch of turns and a big u-turn that came up a couple of times. The organizers tried to simulate the London course.

The trials in LA will also be on a closed course the day before the LA marathon. It may actually end up being on a faster course depending on what the organizers come up with.

I would be very down on Ryan Hall except for the fact that the other non-Meb and Ritz US marathoners have turned in some very mediocre performances recently. If Hall can just get into adequate shape and run a 2:10, he may have a spot on the team.

The talent doesn't suddenly vanish, it takes a couple of years a la Webb.

Men is the best.

Olympic medal and 4th at Olympics

Won Boston and New York.

Did well other years too.

In the interview after Boston I thought Meb said he wants to do New York then the trials. That would be 3 marathons in a pretty short period. And I thought he was interested in going after the masters record.

For pete's sake, Ryan Hall is done. He hasn't had a good race for many years. Years. There are hardly any examples of top marathoners who utterly collapse and then came back. Yeah, one or two did it.

Maybe he runs 2:13 if all stars align or he catches another tailwind. Maybe he gets one freak good day. But he's shot through with holes and anything to the contrary is wishful thinking with no evidence.

The bad news for the US is that 2:13 might be good enough to make the team...

agip wrote:

For pete's sake, Ryan Hall is done. He hasn't had a good race for many years. Years. There are hardly any examples of top marathoners who utterly collapse and then came back. Yeah, one or two did it.

Maybe he runs 2:13 if all stars align or he catches another tailwind. Maybe he gets one freak good day. But he's shot through with holes and anything to the contrary is wishful thinking with no evidence.

The bad news for the US is that 2:13 might be good enough to make the team...

Hall has completed one marathon since the last trials and ran 2:17. He does not have an "A" time and is the 62nd fastest qualifier. It will be an epic comeback if he makes the team.

To the person suggesting Hall could "could drop a 14:40 5K around 30K" -since the 2012 trials, he has run one 5k marathon split under 15:00. A 14:51 in the first 5K of the LA Marathon, which he followed with a 15:48, a 16:14, a 16:28 and a DNF. His 30K-35K split in Boston last year was 17:29.

I'm pulling for the guy, but it's a long shot.

Good call.

Besides Hall, Meb is the only runner on the team who is a true believer int the power of Jesus Christ, son of god.

He knows everything is possible (e.g. NYCM and Boston wins) if you put your trust in his hands and put the work in on the road.

In the end, the Kenyans can run as much as they want but Ryan and Meb will always have that edge.

And at the end of days, they will be saved, while others will not.

Just my 2ct.