I’m 19 years old; I’ve had a year off from track due to injury, and I feel like Im just starting to get my speed back again where it was. I have a lot of potential left in me (at least in my opinion); I think eventually I will hit 49-48 seconds for 400m… this is the goal… Shit I ran 51.79 at 16 years of age, split 50.3 on the 4x4 at 17, then boom senior year and I am out with injury… But yeah… It’s nice to be competing again. Good luck with your season… My make or break meet is next wednesday, conference trials… I am seeded 11th currently, so I will have to run my ass off to make that final…
Pretty damn quick, man. I’m really impressed. Best of luck to you.
Tommorrow is the biggest meet of the year so far. 26 teams, alot from bigger schools. We are running around with bullseyes on our backs from that 3:32, it’s giving me some nerves for tommorrow. I sure hope we win.
Meet: Missoula Ct. Invitational
Conditions: 70ºF, winds 0-20mph tail
100m: 11.7h
200m: 23.3h (wind aided)
400m: DNR
4x100m: 45.91 FAT
4x400m: DNR
Today sucked. I ran a poor 100m and strained my calf in the last 20m of it. I ran the 200m poorly as well, getting passed by kids I beat. Coaches began telling my I looked hurt, and while I hadn’t thought too much of my tight calf ealier, after the 4x100m it was so tight that a decision had to be made. I probably could have run a mediocre leg on the 4x400m, but the risk of pulling it early in the season was too great and I became worthless. It sucked really badly, I hated, hated, hated it. The 4x400m ran a 3:32 without me for 3rd. The kid who replaced me split 54, if I had been in and healthy I think we could have won, 1st was 3:29. I’ll take tommorrow off and see if I can run a limited schedule on Tuesday, and maybe get a massage Wed.
Don’t rush yourself back, I pulled my quad or something 2 weeks back, tried coming back after a week and re-injured it now it seems like it isn’t getting better. I’d just take a rest and focus on getting it better above all.
Meet: Western Montana Top Ten
Weather: Cloudy, low 60s, swirling winds, light rain
4x400m: 3:30.69 (3rd, PR)
Felt good about this. I’m back in the saddle, ready to roll again. Our 1st leg ran well, our second leg got caught up in a back and almost tripped, and I had to run a guy down that was 40m in front of me. I was haulin balls on the back stretch and still got aggresive around the curve. At 380m, though, I slowed down pretty badly, I hit a big wall. I still had my fastest split of the year, 51.9. With some conditioning I think I can go 50.xx on my split. We’ll see about that open. I’m running the 4x100m, 4x400m, and 200m on Saturday at a fast track.
Meet: John Tomich Invitational
Conditions: Mid-30s, variable winds (as always), partly cloudy
4x100m: DQ
200m: 24.12 FAT (3rd)
4x400m: 3:35.60 FAT (1st)
It was cold. I mean COLD. It sucked. No one ran fast, 1st in the 200m was like 23.8 by a kid I should beat. I ran a good curve and a tight last 65m, feeling those 400s on Thursday. 4x100m we ran out of zone on 1st exchange, both legs fell, it was bad. Redemption came a little bit in the 4x400m, we won easily. Kind of wanted to break the meet record of 3:31 but it was terribly cold and the wind on the backstretch was brutal. I split a 53, but I’m not too mad because of the conditions. It wasn’t a great day, but not terrible either. We won the meet by 50pts, our anchor on the 4x400m broke the meet record in the 800m (2:00.98) and our discus stud broke the record (153 somethin). It was alright, in the end.
Meet: Wayne Estes Memorial
Conditions: 50s and 60s, wind increasing throughout day
100m: 11.91
200m: 23.41 (5th)
400m: 52.81 (4th)
4x100: 44.44 (2nd)
4x400m: 3:34.6 (2nd!)
Today was frustrating. I could tell that I missed a couple weeks of training, kids I beat were beating me. In the 100m, I must explain the time. The kid next to me shifted in the blocks right before the gun went off and almost fell, and I nonchalantly got up (stupidly) thinking they would call a false start. They didn’t. I ran the whole race standing straight up, it was rough.
In the 4x100m we were winning and I got passed in the last few yards. We can beat them, I just had a mental breakdown when he came up on me.
The 400m time was a little slow, and I could see here where no practices hurt. I died really bad. It was only my 2nd 400m of the year, so I have time to improve. I’m not too scared.
The 4x400m was just a sign of fatigue. We had all our kids run their full divisional schedule today and we showed a little, and a fresher team beat us. Not much we could do. We’ll get 'em next week.
No longer running the 100m. There is a chance I’ll long jump at divisionals, if I jump well next Saturday. We’ll see how she goes.
Meet: Beaver Booster Invitational
Conditions: 70s, slight wind
Results:
LJ: 19’4 1/2" (2nd)
400m: 53.10 (2nd)
200m: 23.47 (4th)
4x100m: 44.67 (1st)
4x400m: 3:31.6 (1st)
It wasn’t a bad day, but it wasn’t great either. LJed for the 1st time since the 1st meet of the year, scratched a few good ones, and then knocked off a decent 19’4. Got 2nd by half an inch, it was not the most competitive meet in LJ. I know I can do better once I harness my 18 step approach.
We won the 400m relay easy. The only team that would have been close (and close they would have been) DQ’d on the last exchange. I ran all alone.
400m was baadd. I came out too slow, and then pushed it too early, and I died. Just a poorly run race, I barely got 2nd. I could see my lack of conditioning there. Dammit.
The 200m was about 30 min after the 400m, I was still not seeing very clearly when I got in the blocks. Fresher kids beat me, no regrets.
In the 4x400m (only 30 min after the 200m–I was tired) we had a hell of a battle. We led wire to wire, but it was always close. I ran a terrible split but managed to hold off the kid from the other team that was good. Our anchor out kicked him on the home stretch, it was sweet.
I realize I need a good 400m workout, and I need to run it strategically better than I have been. I feel like my injury slowed my peak down. We’ll see. Divisionals next week.
Saturday is Divisionals, one of the big meets. Gotta place in the top 5 to qualify for state. Right now I am 6th in the 200m, 400m, and Long Jump. I have momentum on my side for LJ, nowhere to go but up, and most of the kids have been doing poorly. I think this is my best shot out. I think I can get up for 5th in the 400m, I just have to beat one kid who hasn’t run well lately. The 200m will be interesting, there are three kids that have the same time coming in (including me). I hope I can make it out. We have a good shot at winning the 4x100m, seeded 3rd, but not by much. We should win the 4x400m barring some major mishap. Our team overall is a heavy favorite to win Divisionals, and if we do it will be the 1st time it’s happened in Dillon since 1968. Let’s go make history.
Good luck man.
Back from the big meet, thanks for good wishes Cortese. Turned out well, for the most part.
Southwestern A Divisionals
Conditions: Partly sunny, moderately variable wind, mid 60s to 70s
Team: 142pts, 1st place, 1st Divisional Championship in Dillon in 37 YEARS!!!
LJ: 18’10" (7th)
4x100m: 44.56 (2nd)
400m: 52.59 (6th, PR)
200m: 22.71 (5th, PR)
4x400m: 3:31.1 (1st)
Let’s start with overall description. 6 teams from the area, our size, top 5 people move on to State, top 6 place.
Long jump was bad, I just didn’t jump well to start, and on my last jump, scratched the one that would have got me to state. Dammit all. I have no excuses, just not agressive until I scratched; that’s how she goes sometimes.
In the 4x100m our 1st leg ran up on our 2nd, and I got the baton at the same time as the soon to be Class A state champ (11.1 100m) and held him off for 80m, then he finished strong. I’m not upset, if we have a good handoff, We’ll beat 'em. I ran well, I was told.
The 400m had a stiff wind into the face on the backstretch. I was in lane 7, with a kid outside of me in lane 8, and all the faster kids inside of me. I ended up missing 5th by .01, just getting nipped at the line by a kid in lane 3. I scored one point for the team and I don’t have to run it at state, which works because I wouldn’t have done well there; it would have been wasted energy for my other events. PR’d, but not by a lot.
The 200m was sweet. We had an over-legal tailwind, but it was still easily my best race of the year, sub 23 w/out wind. 5th in our division could be 5th or 6th at state, we’re stacked. I was only .3 away from the 11.1 kid, but he was a little sore. The whole field was very close. Going to see how she does at state. It will be my first competition in an open event at state, I’m way excited.
By the 4x400m, we knew we had won the division title, but we wanted to win anyway. The wind had picked up slightly since the 200m (doesn’t it always work like that–wind in 400m) and our 1st two legs ran sub-par, and I had to catch up. I got the baton in 3rd, behind by about 15m, and ran probably my best split of the year, factoring wind. I handed off tied for 1st and we ended up winning handily, because 2nd place’s anchor was a fill-in. I split 52.1, and our anchor split 50.8. The other kids were slower, one was kind of sick and the other was tired. It’s alright though, we won. yay!
My 200m time from yesterday is the 2nd fastest in BCHS history, and the school record is kind of bogus (21.75 in 1968, all dirt tracks, and our 100m record is 11.0–not held by the same guy) so they are thinking about posting an alternate record, which for the time being would be mine.
results:
http://www.montanatrack.com/05Results/southwest.htm
Wow congrats on your record, that’s a blazing 200 time.
Thanks, man. It was a little wind-aided but I guess I don’t have to tell people that 
. It was a damn close race, if you look at the results, I beat our 100m stud by .01, and everyone was w/in .3. Do you have any post-season competitions?
Tommorrow we leave for State. This is the big one, the grand finale to the season. We have to qualify in every event on Friday. 4x100m is at 9:45, we’re in lane 5 of our heat and are the fastest team in it, top 2 go to finals. In the 200m, at 4:05, I’m in the outermost lane but have the 3rd fastest time and top 5 go to finals. At 4:55, we’re in lane 4 for the 4x400m, which we are number one in Class A in right now. Again, top two to finals. We’re ranked 4th in the 4x100m, but we’re lengthening out our exchanges, and I honestly think we have a dark horse shot to win the damn thing. I’m ranked 6th in the 200m and one kid above me is nursing a hyperextended achilles tendon, so hopefully I can beat him. I’ve had a great week of practice, I’m so excited that I can hardly think. I dreamt of track last night for the 1st time ever.
Meet: Class A State
Conditions: HOT, breezy crosswind, sunny
Results:
4x100m:
Prelims: 44.80 Finals: 45.01 (3rd). In this race, we ended up with a short handoff that cost us a place. The track was very hot and soft and caused alot of slower times. Not upset about this.
200m:
Prelims: 23.33 Finals: 23.34 (7th). In Montana track, one is not the lonliest number. It is 7. Placing six makes 7th the best loser in the state. And that’s me. I ran a good 125m in both races, and then the heat or nerves or something got to me and I hit a wall. I got leaned at the finish line by .06 for 6th by a kid I made the stagger up on.
4x400m:
Prelims: 3:29.41 (PR) Finals: NT
This was the most heartbreaking moment of my track and field career to date, and hopefully nothing ever happens this bad ever again. Sitting in a good position coming onto the homestretch, our 2nd leg had a kid’s foot hit the baton out of his hands, and knocked us to 30m behind the pack. We finished the race, but it was terrible, especially since we ran a faster prelim time than the team that won. I feel we would have won this event had this not happened. All I can do now, however, is work harder for next year, and make sure it doesn’t happen.
man, sorry to hear about a lowly state meet… That’s weird about your 4x400, because that happened to my 4x400 team in high school at a huge invitational. It was one of the close races where all 8 teams come around the last turn in a huge pack on the 3rd leg fighting for position and this guy comes through and knocks the baton out of our guys’ hand…I was waiting at the anchor leg and could not believe what just happened… We still ran 3:34 with probably 5-6 seconds delay, but hey that year we ended up running 3:27… Sorry about that though, just come back and run with a vengance next season. That’s all you can do.
I will be disappointed in myself if I don’t have at least one gold medal next year from State after what happened this year.
Cortese, it’s a really rough deal. It would have been nice to have a good pick up, we probably could have at least caught the pack, but the baton got knocked backwards 10 or so feet. We were miles behind when I got it. It sucked. I’m definitely feeling motivated, and our team will be just as good next year. The drive for state starts this summer for me.
That’s a good attitude to have. It seems the closer you get or the more disapointing way you go out the more you wanted. I left my best race on the table in provincial qualifyers and because of that I’m gona work till I can’t stand all year round so nothing will stop me from qualifying next year.
Oh, I’m gonna win state next year, so help me God.
Competing in one meet this summer, the Big Sky State Games, July 17…alot of sports go on at this, and the Montana Mile is pretty famous for having fast kids in it (this year will be the first time a sub-four minute miler competes in it…the only Montana native to accomplish this). As big as the activities are, the track meet is usually fairly week, and I go in fully expecting to win three golds. I am running the 200m, 400m, LJ, and maybe TJ, just for fun, if I’m not too tired after the 400m. It’s a notoriously hot meet, I ran it two years ago and it was 122ºF on the track. Shooting for 23.7, 53.5, 19’5" and maybe a good old 38’ TJ (lol).