Recent News and Updates - E-mail
cquick@d211.org
April 8, 2006 - Top Times and Outdoor
Results
It's been a busy couple of weeks and things
will get more hectic this week. We have meets on Tuesday and Saturday,
incoming freshman night on Monday night, and the Boston Marathon (for me at
least) a week from tomorrow. These updates have been a bit sketchy,
but there is a ton in this one. I've created a new
Picture Gallery, updated the
2006
Performance Lists with new PRs, written race reports on the last two
meets, and created a page with
a story about our trip to Chicago.
Illinois Prep Top Times Meet - Finley,
Smoody, Morris Run Well
We stayed overnight for the first time ever
on this trip, and it paid off with some solid results from our big three of
Smoody, Finley, and Morris. Neither of our relays fared too well
though, and Tim Williams had to drop out of the triple jump after hurting
his heel. Still, the meet was a good learning experience, especially
since it lasted forever (8-9 hours) and simulated a bit of the experience of
waiting to race at state.
4 x 800 meter relay - We pulled 3 of
our 4 fastest guys from this, and without Soto and Holbach ready to run yet,
I was hoping for some PRs. Instead, we started badly, got behind
early, and ran poorly. I'm not sure these guys want me to relive this
one so I'll just say that we ran 8:48. Enough said.
3200 meter run - Morris and I have
been plotting his return to track racing all winter and spring, and he was
finally able to show glimpses of his old self in this race. He
finished with a lifetime best of 9:22.3 and placed third behind Christian
Escareno and Ryan Jacobs. More importantly, our pre-race goal was to
go through 1 1/2 miles in under 7:00 and be in the lead at that point.
Glenn executed that goal perfectly, coming through at 6:58 and holding the
lead until 600 meters to go. It was great to see him racing well, and
we will continue to add speed into the mix as we go through outdoor.
800 meter run - Mat Smoody learned a
ton about racing the 800 in this race. He was disappointed in his 4th
place finish, but his 1:56.58 set a school record and is only three tenths
off of the best in school history for a sophomore. Mat hit the 400 in
55.3, the 600 in 1:26.3, and then made a tactical error. He had an
opportunity to get out at the 600 mark, but stayed inside and got boxed for
the entire last lap. He broke free a little in the last 30 meters, but
there was no room for the usual Smoody burst. Still, 1:56.58 is
phenomenal for a soph.
1600 meter run - Steve Finley had not
raced much this indoor season, and he was out to run fast and break the
indoor 1600 school record. He narrowly missed the record in clocking a
4:17.9 (4:18.10 or so FAT), but I was happy with his aggressiveness.
He hit the 400 in 60, the 800 at 2:06 and the 1200 at 3:13, which are solid
splits. Evan Jager, though, ran a more even race and had a great kick
to nail Steve and the meet record in the last 200 meters. His 4:14 was
impressive for a junior. Steve was a bit disappointed, but this was a
key step on our way to outdoor track. With this only being Steve's 4th
race, we know that the sharpness will come soon.
4 x 400 meter relay - We brought Tony
Figueroa and Syed Ajmal just to run this race, but our plans got a bit
screwed up when Tim Williams hurt himself in the long jump and couldn't run.
With Smoody's foot ailing, we put Tom Barsella on the anchor. We got
beaten up, but gained experience. Our first three guys split 54s and
Barsella split a 59 while volunteering to help out the team.
Fremd and Hoffman Estates Triangular
Coming soon...
Picture Gallery
- I created a combined
Picture Gallery for both the Manderson Classic and the team train trip
to Chicago. I only had pictures of my group so check out our
adventures in the city.
Mileage Updates - I updated the
Week 9 and
Week 10 miles as
well as the
Mileage Progression for Track 2006. The averages should be right
this time (thanks Bethke for noticing my error).
March 29, 2006 - Manderson Results
Only on the Palatine distance crew can the
sweet results of a Friday night invite be trumped by the heated action of an
intra-squad CC meet, but the Manderson delivers every year. In the
closest finish in meet history, Gasolina took the title by virtue of the 6th
man tie-break over The Fellowship of the Bean. Those two tied with 55
points, but freshman newb Eric Blyth saved the day with his 24th place
finish, beating Hussam by ten seconds to serve as the tiebreaker.
Behind them, Thug Nasty placed 3rd with 56 pts, Finoody Knights 4th with 68
pts, and Manderson Mafia 5th with 93 pts. Check the full
Manderson 2006 Results to see how the race went down. I'll post a
full race review along with pictures in the next couple of days.
1st place - Gasolina (55 pts, Captains
Ducore and Barsella)
2nd place - The Fellowship of the Bean
(Captains Patel, Reynoso, and Rakaric)
3rd place - Thug Nasty (56 pts, Captains
Morris and Dettloff)
4th place - Finoody Knights (68 pts,
Captains Finley and Smoody)
5th place - Manderson Mafia (93 pts,
Captains Soto and Holbach)
March 23, 2006 - Manderson Classic Preview
Yeah, yeah, I know that we are racing in a
pretty stacked varsity meet at Proviso on Friday night, but the real action
happening this weekend is the Manderson on Saturday morning. Five fine
teams will line up in an epic battle to decide supremacy within the Palatine
distance crew. Five fine teams will vie for the title of Manderson
Champion 2006. As the defending champion, I decided to sit this one
out and give everyone else a chance to share in the glory. Actually, I
couldn't beat OB, Fast Eddie, or McCain with a team of sled dogs pulling me
through the course. In case you want in on the action, here are the
early lines from the expert himself:
Thug Nasty (Captains Glenn Morris and Matt
Dettloff)
Two-milers know little about the universe of
speed, but they are usually smart, level-headed, and in tune with the rhythm
of the long distance runner. These guys stole OB when he fell all the
way to the third pick, and he should be the favorite with the varsity
credentials to back him up. We know OB runs well under the bright
lights, but this team will lean on Kwak, Bethke, and Compton as a solid
pack. I can hear it now...Kwak, KwAK, KWAK!! Bethke the Bleeder
is easy to overestimate since he runs on just a little less blood than the
rest of us, but his late races have been solid. Glennard and Dett got
a steal with Killer Kyle in the 4th slot, but will need help from Juan "Gone
in 61.5 seconds" Perez. The factor that will put them over the top:
Timmy power. The smart money starts and ends here. Odds: 5:2
Gasolina (Captains Mike Ducore and Tom
Barsella)
Fellow seniors Bars and Dookie snagged McCain
with the #1 overall pick so the onus is on the senior to perform.
This a deep team though with both the power of the founder (Manderson
himself) and Kevin "Pepe" LeClair to back up its frontrunner. The
burden of victory will fall though on Cepuran and Lew Dog, who must stick
tight together to keep victory in reach. Colish and Blyth also come as
a nice freshman package with the potential to bump 5th men on other teams.
Some of the loose money might fall here, but smart handicappers see this as
the second best. Only time will tell...Odds: 4-1
Finoody Knights (Captains Steve Finley and
Mat Smoody)
This team hopes to carry the cocky swagger of
its "we are better than you and ready to tell you about it" captains.
They banked on Fast Eddie Lopez as their rock while throwing down big trust
on an ailing Donny Mac (rumor on the street is that it's diarrhea) and
Wojdyla the Gorilla. Dyla starred on a winner last year, but this team
needs Terrence the Gladiator to show up rather than Thigpen the Intimidated
by the 2.5 Mile Distance. These guys also got Morlock and Murph on the
cheap in the late rounds and will get leadership from everyone's favorite
tall drink of water, Andrew Haney. In the end, the cocky act only
carries you so far in life before some gasoline carrying thugs call you out.
Odds: 8-1
The Fellowship of the Bean (Captains
Ulises Reynoso, Sagar Patel, and Dan Rakaric)
Someone put these three in charge of a team,
and I'm not sure if they knew that they were supposed to try to "win" the
race. Give them points for creativity and for their faith in the
beans. Esbo Gonzalez, the Palatine Man of Mystery, has grown a
sort-of-beard and sort-of-rehabbed from a stress fracture. He's a wild
pick, but a total baller if in form. Behind him, they snagged solid as
they come CP and sophomore Omar Herrera. What Omar lacks in
experience, he could make up in guts though. If these guys want the W,
then it will fall on the shoulders of the Killer B's: Bollman and Baran.
We'll just call them the Ninja and the Priest, and they hope to preach some
gospel to their unbelieving teammates. Hussam Sehwail is the total
X-factor here - he's a senior, a chess man, and a mathlete so his intangible
powers may come in handy. Still, these rookie managers will be the
Cubs of the 2006 Manderson - just wait til next year. Odds: 10-1
Manderson Mafia (Captains Alex Soto and
Dan Holbach)
First of all, no one should ever let
half-milers pick a team, decide the pace, or act rational in any way shape
or form. Their simple animalistic, speed-based natures prevent clear
decision making and, at times, rational thought. They nailed an ailing
Kevin "Eye of the Tiger" Yee with their #1 (rumor is that it is either
malaria or a stomach ulcer) and then proceeded to pick Phil Conley who was
so sick on Thursday that he could hardly run. Perhaps they are using
their top picks to spread disease among the others. No, probably not.
After all, they're half-milers. This team will have to lean on solid
pack running and the strong leadership of the Dankowski Burst and Kretsch,
both of whom are on a roll lately. Jacob Stars promises to give it all
and they could receive some 6th man help from BP, who is much improved
lately. In the end, though, picking the Mafia is like Michael Corleone
kissin' Fredo in Godfather Part II: "I thought it was you boys, but you
broke my heart." Odds: 13:1
