Molly Huddle sets new american 5k age group record

another impressive performance was turned in yesterday by an incoming college freshman. bobby lockhart ran a 23:55 at the Tom Ausherman 5 miler in chambersburg, pa, finishing 3rd overall behind a pair of kenyans. pretty solid for an 18 yr old.....or anyone for that matter.

Um... I could be wrong, but I thought Lockhart was 19.. He's one of those, oooold highschoolers.

Anyone who uses the phrases "age group" and "road race" in the same sentence knows little about competitive running. Once the girl runs 16:23 on the track, and I certainly believe she will, then there is promise. Being better at something few people do such as a high schooler running road races, proves little and is beneath a good coach. Any coach allowing an incoming freshman to run an August road race must have an unconventional plan for the athlete. Maybe it is a better plan. Good luck!

jam it up your ass & all of your available orifices. Molly runs 2-3 road races in the summer & you have her running shitty in Nov. Get over yourself. I guess you never were able to break age group records or any type of records along your career. I say if you can't say something positive about Molly then shut up. She is no Josh Cox, who?

Red dinosaur, You would encourage a graduating high school athlete to lay it on the line in an August road race? And we wonder why people are always complaining about the long-term development of US athletes on this board. Nice plan guy! The turkey trot trophy on Pre's mantel must've been his proudest moment. Only time will tell about this very talented girl's development. Hopefully, this Lydiard-like brilliant coaching decision will not affect her in November, but look around at 'the facts', because overzealous summer racing for youngsters usually does retard development. No, one race alone will not do this, but if it sets a pattern,...? Will the dual meet with X State take precedent over solid training? And if she does shine in November, well, who knows what she could've done with a little long-term planning. Are you directing her? Your extremely witty response seemed laced with a little tension. Please get someone to read my orignial post to you again. I said that this seems unconventional for such a promising athlete and made no mention of November. I finished with "Maybe it is a better plan. Good Luck!" Try the decaf Igoly!

Hey asshole, lay off. A tough run off base training won't hurt her season. Many good coaches recommend summer road races as a way to get a tempo in and keep the runner interested, a break from the normal daily run. Dathan smoked a 23:05 5M the same day, but do you think he'll be hurting his national performance because of it? I doubt it.

I'm sure her coach has a plan for her, which will be focused on nationals considering the lady Irish were 2nd at the GL district last year and return everyone.

By your use of explatives, I hope all Irish fans don't go the way of the priests. What exactly do you want me to lay off? Distance running like everything else in a free society will probably do much better if no one ever questions anything. Is that your take? I have not said anything in the least derogatory toward this talented girl or her school. I questioned why a coach would encourage August racing when history shows long term, it usually retards development. Rather than show your intelligence with cursing, please pull your head out where the air is fresh and contribute by answering my queries. I have acknowledged that the people directing this girl may have a better plan. I have simply asked, "What might that plan be?" Your defensiveness indicates to me that you are at least a little concerned as well. You answered the Ritz question with "I doubt it". As you correctly said, there is no way to be sure. It probably won't affect a young man as strong as Ritz & one race shouldn't affect this young girl. I just hate to see long term development possibly comprimised by a dime-a-dozen road race and wondered what the plan might be to encourage this?

I know much about competetive running, and a 16.23 by a 17 year old girl, even on a short road course, impresses me. Incorporating a few summer races into summer training will hardly burn out a collegiate athlete.

She was not training for that race, she just has a VO2max and a set of lungs that any of us would die for. She has that much talent.

Whats up JTF,

Just relax a little bit there. I can see where you're coming from if this was a race that Miss Huddle was training towards. If this was a goal race, then there is a problem. Running that sort of time on base training alone tends to send up warning flags. I hope she did run it solely on base work. If she did, then there is really no harm in it at all. Most Coaches I know believe it is a good thing to get a couple of races in over the summer for a couple of reasons. One is that you can look at what you are doing, and reevaluate any flaws (as long as it doesn't detract from your main goals down the road.) in your training. The other is that coming into the season without any races tends to leave the athletes stale in their training. You train all summer, only to get to that first practice to train for another month before you get to see any results. It allows a little break from the monotony of training to kind of let fly and go show what you can do on base work. From here, you can argue all sorts of things on what is wrong with American distance running, but that isn't what I'm here for. That follows more under the State of the Union, rather than a distance running Nirvana. Later.

- Tim

JTF, I agree if I was coaching Molly I would not have allowed her to run a road race in August. I know this to be her 3rd & her last road event since June. I just get wound up every time someone can't give a little credit after the race performances she has pulled off this season. Your type always has to point out the potential negative side affects of anything that goes against the status quo. The ND coach was consulted before the race. Before the ND coach I really believe that her father has done very well by her in her rise to the current level.

The Dragon

Red Dragon, Maybe you are too close to the situation to see clearly. You seem to be very defensive and that's okay. There is nothing wrong with defending and wanting the best for a young person. I'm sorry if you saw my original post as negative. What 'type' am I, by the way? The type that wants to know more than what's on the surface. The type that wants to learn more about the sport and the people involved in it? Remember, a question does not make something negative unless the answer pushes it that way. Looking at things closely goes with the territory. If the girl was 'average' would I or anyone else wonder if summer road racing was too much? Of course not. We question because we are impressed with her, her talent, and the people who help her succeed. I asked about the plan for her and meant no disrespect toward anyone. Finally, obviously her father/coach have done a super job and I would still like to know the long range plan for her and how road races fit into this. The race is not my true concern, but the apparent sharpness at this time of the year. If she is third at NCAA X-C, 4 seconds back, would you be concerned how her summer helped/hindered her? Don't be defensive, I'm just trying to learn and grow.

........but the apparent sharpness at this time of the year

FACTs, she just ran 10:01.08 in I believe June @ AOC why would she have lost ALL of her sharpness?

Would you expect that she would be dull as a butter knife?

MJ, Of course I don't believe a runner would loose ALL sharpness, but which is more important, an August road race, or an NCAA X-C season. For most, the latter, so I would think that summer following a 10:01 would be used to unwind a little, then begin a base period for the fall. 16:23 in August made me wonder if the summer intensity has remained a little high. 10:01 & 16:23 are not physiological opposites. 5:00 for 2 miles versus 5:17 for 3 show she is still somewhat sharp. With a runner showing that much talent and promise, it makes sense to me to error on the conservative side, and maybe she has. Maybe she is just that much stronger already and a 16:23 is a base training average effort. Does anyone have the connections to answer my original question. What is the long range plan for this talented youngster?

JTF's concern is touching, but not needed. Do you honestly believe that a road race in early August, off of base training, is going to hurt her in November? I've seen many examples in my day of college kids racing in late July and early August as ways of getting motivated and as a good workout. If anything it's the norm. I don't know of a lot of college runners who DON'T race now and then during the summer. They certainly don't peak or taper for such events, they just run hard to see where their fitness level is at. So, it's nice to see that you're deeply concerned and raise such great points, but it's ok, everything will be alright.

Racing per se does not burn runners out....high pressure racing however does.

She ran a fun 5K with her family and had a laugh and ran a good time. She is 17 and enjoying a few low key no pressure road races and running fast.

Its the months of high pressure during a collegiate XC season that burns young runners.

She's doing it right. Why take a big break and get rusty and work her way back in September when she's got so much momentum going. Some of the biggest mistakes I made were listening to my college coach the summer before my freshman year and taking three weeks off in August because I raced the high school invites and juniors meets all summer. Fuck that. When you either get injured or wake up and decide you can't stomach the thought of running hard for a while then its time to back off. Otherwise good quality training or racing can be done year round. Planned breaks equals overcoaching. This girl ought to keep hammering it clear through november. Then she can lay off if she needs it.

I'm not saying the girl should go for it or back off, but anyone who thinks they can stay sharp and race year round has obviously never raced at a very high level. If some one is sharp and 'keeps hammering', they will eventually fray. They will have no control as to when this will occur, thus possibly when things are most important to them. Did you ever think your 'racing all the worthless invites and junior meets all summer' could've been the problem, and not the 3 weeks downtime. August is far too late for a rest. I am not suggesting an 'off' period of no running, rather a lowerkey training-only time of rebuilding a base. I too hit all the summer meets before frosh year in college, was tough early, then sucked when it counted in November. Using you and I as examples, you can see, people can screw things up in a variety of ways.

People do tons of things that may not be totally the best for their training simply because they want to... she thought it would be fun to run a local 5K and win. It migh help keep running a little lighter and maybe a little more fun. It's a tough call.

Obviously, a local race can not compare to an Olympic or some other high caliber achievement (referring to your earlier Pre reference), but Huddle is a little young to expect that. Do you know for sure that Pre didn't run a local road race before college and was proud or had fun winning it?