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by John Dye
Handley Winchester VA sr Bobby Lockhart is training for the USA
Cross Country Winter Nationals at Vancouver OR next week to
try to make the US junior team for the World Cross Country championships.
So what is he doing at a minor regional meet 10 days before? Answer:
he wants to run in the Virginia State Meet, and he needs a qualifying
time.
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It was only close at the start
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Even if he makes the US team for the World Cross in Dublin, Ireland
March 23-24 by finishing top 6 at Vancouver, Lockhart plans to run
for Handley in the Virginia Class A State Meet at Virginia Tech
March 3. Hence, here is Bobby at the PG County Sportsplex in Landover
MD, site of the Nike Indoor Classic in March.
Lockhart's goal is to run at training pace, for him, and knock
off a 4:20 and 9:20 for 1600 and 3200 meters. He hits it almost
right on the button, with 4:21.96 and 9:18.3. Lockhart got away
from the pack on the first lap of each race, and he turned laps
with metronome accuracy -- 32-33 seconds in the 1600 and 35 seconds
in the 3200 -- before cruising across the finish line barely winded
with a 10 second margin in the 1600 and 42 seconds in the 3200.
"It felt real good," Lockhart said after the 1600. "I
was never strained. My fitness is really high this year. I could
easily have gone 10 seconds faster."
Looking ahead to Vancouver, Lockhart, "There are tons of good
guys who will be running there. I can't even think about time. I'll
just stay with the pack and see what happens."
It was getting late, so they combined sections of the 3200 for
a huge 3-row start,
but Lockhart got out front on the first lap and had no trouble after
that
Winter Invitational
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