February 2, 2004
from Somewhere in Seven(teenth) Heaven (17 US#1's)
by Rich Gonzalez,
editor of DyeStatCal and DyeStat national correspondent
Victor Gras and Devon Williams take different paths to success, but each has monster weekend en route to Millrose Games miles in New York this Friday
SOMEWHERE IN SEVEN(TEENTH) HEAVEN -- If each had their druthers, Victor Gras would eagerly be doing plenty more miles each day, while Devon Williams would gladly be doing plenty less. But despite their contrasting recipes, these two East Coast multi-lap wonders served up satisfying main entrees for track and field fans on Super Bowl weekend.
 Gras (right), a feverishly committed senior at Belmont HS in Massachusetts, made the most of being granted a personal favor in 11th-hour reseeding at the Boston Terrier Classic to post among the fastest 800-meter indoor times in national prep history. Although Gras' 1:51.73 tabbed him as the viable favorite for this coming weekend's Millrose Indoor Games High School Mile, "The Flyin' Frenchman" wasn't about to mince words about revealing his most desired goals for 2004.
"Millrose is not that important on my schedule really," said Gras in his cutting, deep foreign accent. "I mean, it's not really a very fast track. My main goal this year is to run as close to four minutes (for the mile) as possible. That's it."
While Gras' target is crystal clear, Williams' is more abstract.
"I just want to keep having fun, being happy running around on the track," gushed the exhuberant ninth-grader from Towson Catholic High in Maryland, whose talent stretches well beyond her years.
The frosh phenom turned the female American prep sprint world on its ear over the weekend, with a thrilling 500-meter indoor national high school record, piggybacked on her freshmen-class national indoor record for 1000 meters achieved earlier in Saturday's meet.
"I was very surprised, not expecting to (set the national record)," gushed Williams. "I have a great deal of respect for Natasha Hastings (the New York wonder and former recordholder, whom she defeated in this, their first-ever head-on encounter). "I've known about her for a while, so I'm honored to be able to beat her."
not-so-similar paths to success
Gras and Williams have taken not-so-similar paths to success, with the former always tempted to test his body's mileage limit on a weekly basis, and the latter admitting she's anything but a mileage hound.
Gras at Foot Locker Northeast regional in November. photo by PhotoRun |
According to Gras' coach (Bill Brotchie), his biggest challenge has been to collar his star pupil's training enthusiasm in hopes of 'getting more from less.'
"I think kids read 'Running With The Buffaloes' (a book detailing NCAA powerhouse University of Colorado's distance training approach) and they think they've got to log these amazing miles (much like at Colorado)," said Brotchie. "I try explaining to Victor, 'Hey, distance is great, but don't think it's the panacea for everybody.' "
Compounding the issue of high mileage (Brotchie estimates Gras now tops out at 60 miles a week this school year, rather than the 80 to 95 he was used to) is the thought in the Gras camp that an iron absorption problem has plagued him in recent years, account for a myriad in late-race and post-race physical problems.
"Combine the iron problem with the miles, and that spelled trouble more and more" Brotchie added.
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Since then, reduced mileage, more iron supplements, and a careful diet ("He's sold on the virtues of the rich iron in Cream of Wheat", Brotchie added) have resulted in a more lethal race-way warrior. Brotchie entered this year determined to preach speed-development to Gras, since the endurance had already been built up over years.
Gras entered this past weekend with a lifetime PR in the 1:55's, and was seeded as such, meaning his afternoon heat was to conflict with evening plans to watch the Boston Indoor Games elsewhere. A few discussions later between his coach and meet management, and Gras was allowed to run in an added heat early in the day, against faster competition.
"I felt good in the race, especially when I wanted to go," Gras stated. "The strength and the speed was there at the finish. I was hoping for 1:53, so this was a nice surprise. It was only a speed tuneup for Millrose, which I hope someone takes out fast. I don't want a slow pace and a kicker's race."
While one of last year's staples workouts was having Gras run 'a 4-minute mile in five minutes' workout (60-second/400m w/ 20-second jog, 60-second/400m w/ 20-second jog, 60-second/400m w/ 120-second jog, 60-second/400m), this year's emphasis on approaching a four-minute mile has including revamping workouts geared toward quicker turnover, and altering their barometer workout down to a 57- to 58-second/400 w/ 20-second jog recovery x 4... all in hopes of preparing for that chance at a four-minute mile.
"I don't really care about being national indoor champion or Millrose champion or anything like that... I want to run fast," Gras said curtly. "I'm going for time."
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| Which one is the freshman? Lanky first year sensation Devon Williams (in maroon) breaks up a battle of Pennsylvania seniors (Amy Kelly and Frances Koons) as they approach the bell in the Hispanic Games mile at the New York Armory Jan 10. Williams outkicked the veterans on the last lap to win in 4:50.76, second fastest in the US this year. photo by John Dye |
Although not fixated by it, Devon Williams will end up going for records.
Ever since running competitively at the age of 8, Williams has been turning heads. It was at that young age that she stunned teammates and coaches by running a 5:01 for 1500 meters, or a 5:25 mile equivalent... at age eight!
"At first, everyone thought I was slow and would never be fast," recalled Wiliams with laughter. "My older sister and her friends would be running their races and I'd be on the side drinking all their Gatorade and all the apples. They'd finish their races and have nothing to drink or eat afterward because of me."
But not long after, age-group national records began falling left and right, as Williams' feet whirled magically around the oval. From the long sprints to the distances, Williams has prospered, even dabbling with success in soccer, basketball and cross-country along the way.
The 14-year-old with the electric smile admits the 800-meter run is her favorite event ("It's a hard event and I think I'm able to be tough late in the race, when it starts getting difficult"), although she's not afraid of taking on the mile as well.
"Anything above that, like 3000 meters on up, is not something I really get into," she giggled.
Ever do any 5-mile or 6-mile distance runs?
"Five or six miles? Me? Oh never!"
the rest of the country wasn't idle
While Williams and Gras topped the national headlines, there were several standouts across the map proving worthy of capturing their own news sound bites.
 Out on the West Coast, it was Long Beach Poly's Shalonda Solomon (right at US Junior Nationals at Stanford last June - photo by John Dye) who dazzled in her senior-year coming-out affair by posting two impressive victories while competing unattached at the Silver State Invitational in Reno, Nevada. Solomon, the main cylinder in a supercharged Poly machine tabbed to successfully defend its California state team title this spring, fired off a 7.00 victory in the 55-meter final to go along with a sensational indoor lifetime-best 23.84 200-meter victory that pushed her ahead of Marion Jones and into 5th-place on the all-time California indoor list.
Solomon was kept very honest by a fine collection of sprinters assembled here in sprint-aiding high-altitude conditions, including TeeKay Track Club (Wilson, Long Beach athletes) frosh Ebony Collins, whose 24.27 third-place clocking set the national freshmen indoor record in the event, shelving Natasha Hastings' 2001 mark. Collins also played a key role in her club team's nation-leading 3:47.15 prep performance in the 4x400-meter relay. Also at Reno, Merrill West High's Brittany Daniels bounded her way to the top of the yearly national triple jump list, representing the Tracy Flyers Track Club while measuring out to a best effort of 40 feet, 9.75 inches.
 On the boys' side in Reno, it was Logan High (Union City, CA) junior Kevin Craddock (at left in US Junior Nationals at Stanford last June - photo by John Dye) who demonstrated yet another fine off-season breakthrough in confirming previous reports, this time rolling to a stellar 7.45 performance in the 55-meter high hurdles set at the collegiate, 42-inch height. Although an official 55m/42" all-time list is not kept, Track & Field News stat guru Jack Shepard confirmed the clocking intrinsically ranks as the third-best showing in national prep history, as only two high schoolers have ever run faster at the 60-yard/42" challenge, with that distance being a mere five inches longer than the 55-meter distance.
Ashley Owens, the Liberty HS dash flash registering as the latest speedburner in the traditonally sprint-rich stable of Colorado, raised the bar for America's elite 55-meter blazers this winter, sizzling to a 6.84 clocking at the CU All-Comers. Back on the Eastern seaboard, it was Hopkinton's (MA) Tiara Riel who was caught by the beams in 8.02 to record the year's top 55-meter high hurdles showing thus far. New Hampshire home-schooled talent Chantelle Dron established a new 2004 standard for 800-meter runners, dipping to 2:09.93 undercover at the Terrier Classic. Also on the East Coast, Bethel HS (VA) shined in home-state action by registering a 1:39.82 effort in the 4x200m challenge at the Virginia Tech Invite.
Closing out the national list-toppers on the female side were a pair of fine field-event performances occuring a couple of thousand miles apart. Down in the Panhandle State, it was Coral Springs High's Viktoria Andonova slinking over the crossbar to record a 5-11.25 clearance at the Gator Invite. Over in Boise (ID), it was Ralston's (NE) Michaela Wallerstedt powering the iron shot out to a distance of 46-2 in claiming the nation's leading 2004 mark there.
more US#1's
For the males, the weekend's top collective efforts might have come from Wilson High's (Portsmouth, VA) Lashawn Merritt who emerged from obscurity to post THREE sensational dash victories at the Virginia Tech Invite in one of the finest open sprint triples in indoor prep annals of recent years! Merritt's best solo effort came in the 300-meter dash, where his 33.51 rocker moved him into 5th on the all-time prep indoor list, For good measure, Merritt added a nation-leading 6.33 in the 55-meter dash and a1:04.83 in claiming the 500-meter win. He'll have a way to go before breaking into the state' s elite in the longest dash, however, as more than half of the nation's top 20 all-time indoor 500m marks are held by Virginia athletes.
Great baton battles also took place between Maryland teams at the Virginia Tech Invite, with DeMatha (Hyattsville, MD, the perennial basketball national superpower) claiming the national lead in a hotly contested 4x200m clash (1:28.10), and Suitland (Forestville, MD) 4x400 quartet ripping a 3:19.80 showing to earn America's top billing there.
Out in the Pacific Northwest, many of the nation's finer collegiate talents assembled in Washington for the Husky Invite (contested along the oversized, 307-meter rack), but it was prepster Laef Barnes of storied powerhouse program Mead HS (Spokane, WA) that delivered an impressive statement with an authoritative finishing kick in the mile. Barnes, who finished third to since-graduated megatalents Bobby Curtis and Carl Moe at the Golden West Invitational last June, motored home in the final last lap to catch an army of adversaries in clocking 4:09.61, the 2004 yearly leader and among the top 20 indoor miles time in prep history. If one were to get truly technical, an 18th nation-leading mark occurred in the New Jersey Group 4 Meet, as a duel for the ages played out and Mo Khadroui prevailed over fellow New Jersey-man Chris Pannone, 9:02.72 to 9:02.84. Khadroui's time is the nation's best in a 3200-meter race, and only better by the sansational two-mile efforts put forth by New York's Josh McDougal (home-schooled, Peru, NY) and Oregon's Galen Rupp (Central Catholic, Portland) at the New Balance Games last weekend.
Can next weekend get any better? With Millrose on tap, but a slew of meets across the map, we think so!
Rich's Recap index
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