t-and-f: Alan Webb

[Geoff Pietsch]

Well, maybe we're near the end of the endless thread on MJ and TM and Charlie F (I can hope), but it fascinates me that there have been hundreds of posts on that topic and almost nothing on Webb's poor race in Gainesville last Sunday. I was there (I live a mile away).
Very disappointing effort. He got shuffled back at the start and was last in his 8 man heat almost all the way. Made several half-hearted efforts to pass people but never showed any of the power and acceleration that amazed us all a couple of years ago. Finally passed one guy and was 7th in his heat (8th over-all). Good people ahead of him, of course, but you'd think a T&FN cover guy ("Webb Training Like a Pro") could beat someone who had just had 13 stitches from a spike wound a couple of weeks before (Moise Joseph of Florida) and some of the others. Joseph, unlike, Webb, competed well. Had the lead for awhile but faded a bit probably due to lost training time from that injury.
Now? Webb needs to race. Stick his head in there and get callused again.
My two cents (if I haven't already spent them): Webb should have run cross country last fall. His 3:53 was set up, I believe, by the hard training he did for cross country the previous fall. Yeah Ritzenhein crushed him at Footlocker Nationals (the most amazing thing I can recall seeing in ages - opening up 20 seconds between 2 and 2.5 miles) but Webb was still so fit. He had shattered the Regional course record in Charlotte. And despite trying to stay with Ritz at Nationals he held off Ryan Hall who had had a super season.
Geoff Pietsch
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