Inside California’s Brutal 800m Postseason Battles | Stride for Stride EP.4

Who do they see themselves as, as they show up on the track tomorrow? They get to decide who they are.

But that school record for For both me and Jack, I think that's going to go down.

Well, I'm really willing to PR whenever I can.

Nice!

We've been through a lot as coach-athlete group, and tonight's a great place to end it. What do you think about prelims? I think it's the hardest, the hardest meet to get out of to get to state, because if there's 6 people already running the state qualifying time in races that aren't meant to be like the fastest, like state qualifying time, um, and they're all going after 9 spots, that's gonna be pretty intense and probably harder than any of the other qualifying meets because there's just more spots after that. Like, 9 is the smallest amount of spots that there is going forward. There's more spots open. Can we act like we're like fans walking by? We don't know them, but we act like we know them.

We're not going to probably cool down.

You're not. It's hot, but you're not going to cool down.

So you think we should do our 10 minutes now?

Yeah, you can do your 10 minutes now. So you just got to get your strides in. You got to be ready to go. The biggest thing is being lethargic because it's hot.

Yeah. So don't be.

Don't be like, "Oh, I don't want to put effort in." No, you got to be ready to go.

But with prelims, it's just, it's rough because finals has a qualifying time, masters has a qualifying time, and state, obviously, you know, if you hit the time for masters, you go to state. And so the issue with prelims, it doesn't have that. It's only placement. First place from each heat goes, and then the next 5 go on, you know. And so it's 9 people total. Um, if you hit a PR, if you hit 1:53, 1:51, but you're 10th, you're not going through to finals. And that's just rough. But, uh, yeah, that's just how kind of dangerous prelims is. You really have to It's definitely tactical.

Heat 2 over here, please. Heat 2.

Heat 2 over here.

Automatic qualifiers on the next week. Wrigley to go on into including an automatic qualifier as well. On your marks. Go, Nathan! ¡Vamos! ¡Let's go, Jacob Frisby!

My individual season's over from here if I don't make it through. Obviously 9 go through. I don't know, I'm like 5th right now. I doubt that I'll make it, so.

There was kids last year who ran 1:55, didn't even make it to CIF Finals for Southern Section. And so CIF Prelims is just really, really fast. I always tell people, I'm like, it's basically a state final, but just in a section. There's kids coming out and they're just PRing left and right and they're not even gonna make it just because it's really placement-based. The winner of each heat goes plus the next 4 or 5 people, I believe. And so it becomes really, really difficult and really, really competitive to race. People who are one of the top kids in the state are being dropped out just because they had one bad race.

On your marks.

Go!

Go! Go! Casual pace, especially for the last heat of the 800 meters, but everybody just kind of sitting around and seeming asleep. ¡Vamos!

I don't know what that was.

Why'd you take it out of 58?

Tactical. Say tactical. Ah, tactical races take you through CIF. I knew I had it in the tank to kick, so I just took it. Oh man, that hurt though.

Hot.

It is really hot. I was just scared that last 10 seconds. Oh my gosh. You know that feeling when like you're in the front and it would just be so embarrassing if you got hopped down? That's what I did. And if no one takes it out, well then maybe help Jacob out a little bit here. Hopefully he can get in. I don't know what he ran. So slowing a heat down that you know you can win, help out your teammate a little bit. You know what I'm saying? I'm sure I looked a little goofy back there. Anytime I saw anyone, I hit a surge. You kind of look like me. Get this on camera. He kind of looks like me.

Yeah, it's your doppelgänger.

Except I used to have a buzz. Should I do it again? First, yeah, yeah. Should I buzz again? I'm thinking about it. I don't know if my girlfriend would like it though. I'm tired.

So the start was rough.

I know the start was rough.

So was the start just because you just didn't get a normal Jacob start?

No.

Okay.

Yeah.

Um, your first alternate.

Okay.

So that means your, your mindset needs to still be racing.

I know.

Okay, so whatever you need to do emotionally today, do it. You got to throw things just make sure it's not human. Like, just do whatever you need to do, but you're still in it. And we've had people get in as first and second alternates. Yeah, every year.

Yeah.

So you just have to go with the attitude of, if I get an opportunity to race, I'm going to take the opportunity to race.

No, of course.

So first alternate, we work on it next week. Okay. But regardless, 4x8, okay?

Yeah.

I'm really sorry, Jacob.

Okay.

I'm not happy. I went into league finals, and league finals was comfortable at a 1:52.5, you know? So I knew I had so much more in me. And so it's just really— I'm really angry, you know? It's like— I don't know. Last year, I had the worst race of my season. This year, I had the worst race of my season. You know, I don't want to be that person. I have beaten pretty much all these people that have beaten me, you know, besides like a few. So I should have been in that pack, but you know.

All right, thank you, Jacob.

Yeah.

Okay, we are also having a little bit of a, like, a showcase. We're gonna make Weston run a full 800. Yeah, I'm thinking we should. So, like, all out, but yeah.

Um, I think he said he did bring spikes. Wes, did you bring spikes?

Yeah.

Okay, so, um, I was gonna have him do the regular, but we're testing him.

What happens if he has a faster time?

We'll deal with that problem later. Oh, that's a nice problem to have, right? We don't even know if his hamstring can do it, so we gotta, we gotta see what his hamstring can do. Ready? Go! Well, I get 57. 1, 2, 3.

First 400 felt like great, and then—

sure, I'm taking out You're okay. Walk. Keep walking while you talk. Um, I think it's kind of—

it felt really hard to get my legs through the motion.

Did you— so, okay, that just tells us where you are.

Okay.

Okay.

Yeah.

What was it like?

A 2:03. But you— but you swerved out because of that football.

Yeah, that wasn't helpful.

But honestly, that's not— that's not much of a difference. So, okay. Now we know. Okay, get your break in and then 4 200s. Okay. Can you talk a little bit about SAF Masters? Like, that there might be a possibility of you running the 4x8?

Really what it comes down to is just how strong my hamstring is at the time, like when we get to Masters. The kind of the issue that I'm having right now is my hamstring is not really necessarily hurting while I'm running, It's more about sustaining power over time. So I can go and do a 200 and I can run that really strong, but once I start kind of like, as like last week when I was running the 400s, I would run the 100 fine, 200 awesome. When I started getting to the 300, it was okay. I was kind of having to push a little bit more through that other leg, through my weaker leg. And then by the 400, you know, I was really struggling to it's really hard to get that turnover and, you know, your leg just feels overall kind of weak. I just need to keep working on my speed, keep testing it. I've been, like I said, I've been doing different leg exercises that are like meant to, you know, help increase that strength overall. I think I would say, yeah, 50/50 chance. But, you know, I'm remaining optimistic. I think that it definitely could happen.

And what does it take to be part of the 4x8? 157. But the problem is I need to see that Weston can repeat that. And can he do it with a baton without dropping it? He hasn't been an integral part of relays, so protecting the baton is part of the battle. 51, 52, 53, 54, 55. But it was good. You came through a little too fast here. You came through at a 53.

Yeah.

Okay, CIF Finals has changed a little bit, which is beneficial, I think, to many athletes. Over the last few years, we've seen athletes at CIF Finals who have hit the auto-qual time for state and then didn't get through because you can't auto-qual at CIF Finals. So I think the change to 18 athletes getting through at finals is a appropriate. It's the right way to do it so that we have more of a chance of these high-level D1 athletes getting through. But for sure, Jack has the confidence going into finals to know that the training works. The training has worked all year. It worked for him last year to PR at this point in the season, and CIF Finals is a great race for PRing. You're receiving medals. It's a CIF championship day. It's a It's a big competition day. So for him, it's all the things that make Jack fast. It's good competition. It's a big competition day. The training has gone really well for him. He feels really good. He's, he's going to feel really confident and know that, hey, I've PR'd this late in the season before, I can do it again. So I, I think we could see a really fast time from him. He's also mature enough to know that It's all about getting the Masters. In second place, representing SCALED California School for the Deaf, Darius. Hi, division?

1. Last name? Paradise.

Jack?

Yeah.

Cool last name. Lane 9, stickers are right behind me.

Division?

Checking if anyone has checked in as I'm alternate coach. Scratch?

Yeah.

Um, uh, 1-800—

yeah. What's your last name? Brown.

You can just sit there for a little bit.

Okay, uh, No one has scratched, but I'll let you know if you want to stay in this area.

Let me see if I have any. I didn't have any changes to get.

You know, warm-up goes through. I'm so just optimistic. I'm ready. I feel good. And then, you know, time comes around to check in and it's like, who do I know is going to be in that 800 race that is here right now? And I'm counting 1, 2, 3, 4, Jack's 5, 6, and 7, whatever. There's 2 people I can't see. 6 people have checked in so far, okay. You know, wait around. And I see another guy go, and I see another guy go, and it's just like, yeah, it's not happening. I look over one last time at that, you know, check-in sheet, and it's someone I know who I saw. I was like, okay, yeah, no. I'm not racing. So it's just obviously something really irritating. And then watching that race, and I was like, "Ooh, yeah, I could really be there, and I'm not." That made me even more mad, and so overall, it's just a really frustrating time.

Hey, Max Douglas!

There's a total of 36 people running this weekend, so half of them will make it, and I think that just changed my mentality to, you know, I just have to really go for it. And last week it was very strategic and like, I just need to win my race. And now it's switching to if I just go really fast, I just, I can get that placement that I need. That was a hard last 100. Everyone wanted it. I remember I got out into lane 2 and then Adam Divinity came up right next to me and that was just like a race of sheer willpower between me and him. My lean is what really placed me in third. I ran like a 1:52.41, and so I'm pretty happy with that time, especially with, you know, not feeling super great going in. I was just kind of out of it, and so running that time and taking third, I was really happy. I was really surprised that there was that many guys that went 1:52 on Saturday. I think 1:52 is a really hard mark to hit, and the sheer number of guys that hit it was really impressive.

It hurt.

I got stuck in the back.

Yeah, I'm really— this season I'm really reminding myself like I've been here before, I've made it before, and like I belong.

Yeah, you guys look great! So who wants to pace? I'll do it.

Well, aren't you guys all going to be—

if I'm doing my rep, I'm going to—

you need to go faster.

Yeah, so I'll do it.

Doesn't he need to go faster the first— I'll do it. 6, 57, 58, 9, 2, 1. Your form was better. Your turnover was good. It was exactly what we needed at the end of— after that.

The speed is there.

Yeah, it's there. It's just that you're just fatigued.

Be able to maintain it.

Yeah, it's just you're fatiguing, but you're not fatiguing as much as you were, right? So we're making progress. It's good.

Okay, cool down.

Yep, cool down and then the easy post-run. Nice work. The fastest 9 performances will be seeded into the first heat. This is talking about lane events. Then it says The formula for lane assignments is 5, 6, 4, 7, 3, 8, 2, 9, 1. Normal. Then it says the 800, 1600, 3200 will be seeded from the outside in with the best times on the outside. All 3 races will be run in 2 alleys for the first turn, blah blah blah. So that doesn't tell you— I mean, it tells you that you're gonna have more than 2 people. I mean, you're gonna have more people in the race, but it doesn't say they're all in one heat. So, and And usually we've had 12 people, and now it's 18. I don't like 18. That's like an invite. That's a bad formula. It's not good for an 800. No, it's terrible. Like a 32 and maybe a 16, but for an 800, they're together like the whole time. Yes, they're all like a second apart. Right, and then you end up with a situation where you're going to have a physical interaction on the track that determines the race instead of just their racing. So this— but this is where it says the top 6 finishers in the first heat for each event, for each event, will advance to the state meet at Buchanan High School in Clovis on Friday and Saturday. It doesn't say for lane events, it just says for each event. Jack should be guaranteed a spot into state as long as he is top 6 in that race. Race.

On Saturday, I am racing the 800 at 3:01, and then the 4x8 is scheduled for 3:51. So I have about 50 minutes, um, from one gun to the other, and so I'm really just trying to think about how I can manage that 50 minutes and how I can recover the best I can to perform in that 800.

Feeling right. I'm excited. How are you feeling about today in general? I'm good.

You're good?

Yeah. I'm not the one racing, and I've done everything I can do, so I feel good about it. They're ready. So 66-65 splits there. Terrell Superski, she will add to that list, so we'll be 7.

7 girls Um, the only person in my heat not to make it, which kind of sucks. But, um, we have the 4-way in like 40 minutes, so I need to recover for that. But I can't go back to the tent in a sad, upset mood. Some of the boys were still racing. I gotta, you know, have that mental strength to not get upset, hold that until I get home, and just try to like stay optimistic for this next race. I kind of blew up in the individual 8. I ran a 1:54. 54, which wasn't good enough to make the auto qualifier. So I would say I'm disappointed. I definitely know I can hit that mark, so I'm not sure what went wrong that day. I just feel like I couldn't make anything happen.

Top 4. Top 4 in the 4-bagger. Last year we got 4th, and it was really close actually. I got real scared. Honestly, mentality for the 4x8 is just run faster than everyone's running individually. Honestly, I really I want to like just, I don't know, I'm not trying to prove to the world and stuff like that and prove to the people who are actually racing or just in general that I should be there. I'm gonna just show out and really help my team. I know Jack is gonna definitely feel the burn on his leg on the 800, so I really want to give him a good lead on that first leg. But yeah, you know. I'm looking for something really great. I'm obviously going to run that race all out. I'm going to take it out and just see what I can do.

On your marks.

A little slow by me.

It's all good though.

We'll see what happens, you know. Uh, he shows first.

Very qualified in the 1600 meters.

That's Oak Christiansen.

I'm so proud of you. And what we did today was the very best we could have done out there today. Jacob ran his leg like a champ. He ran a 1:52. He did exactly what he needed to do. It's worse than heartbreaking. I don't really have words for it, but— You worked hard. You ran a 1:58. You worked hard all season. You did a great job in that leg. Christian ran the best time in a 4x8 that he's run all season today. He ran 1:58. That was a crappy place to be in a race. And you gave it everything you had. I know you did. Marco ran that like a champ. He had to take on what was the responsibility of a 4th leg in a race that had huge consequences when that wasn't going to be the leg you needed to run. Jack was going to save the day, and Jack couldn't save the day today. Doesn't make Jack weak, doesn't make him less of a runner. He's had to run more weeks than any of you all season. I'm really proud of all of you. And I wish I had something else to make it better, but I don't. You're the best of the best, and I know that. So go take a minute and then come back on Tuesday and be ready to be the best of the best again. I went to, uh, okay. Oh, you went back there? Yeah. Okay. All right, you guys ready? Runner set, go!

Yeah, you want Instagram Reels, buddy.

How fast are these?

Faster than 8.

Yeah. Hit the 50. So the decision hasn't been made yet for Christian and Weston? No, but Weston's not doing anything to make me want to pick him. But he's not keeping up with Christian on the reps. He's not— he's not running the reps the way he should be. Okay, runners set, go! 6, 7, 8, 9.

So Weston's been doing these time trial 800s just by himself with like us pacing. Gump has a 1:58. It's been, for Weston, it's been 2:03 for the first one. That was like a while back. And then it was 2 flat or 2:01. So it's like steady increase in improvement. And so I think this week he's gonna have another one. Set, go! If Weston's faster, Weston's faster, right?

57, 58, 59.

Ooh!

What was that? 59?

Yeah.

Let's go. Okay, he's gone.

There was always Nike Outdoor. I was like, I could see that on the horizon, like, oh well, maybe I'll have the chance to run at Nike Outdoor, maybe I'll be recovered by then. And to get I got to the point where, you know, I was doing 800 time trials every— about every week, trying to get fit enough. And, you know, I progressed. I started with like 2:03, moved up to 2:01, 1:59, and then I hit 1:57, you know, on Monday. I guess it's just hard from my perspective to hit a fast enough time to get into the relay but still not be able to race it, if that makes sense. You know, Gump has run a 1:58, and I ran a 1:57 at practice, and I understand why Coach made her decision to put Gump in because he'd been racing the relay all year, but to, I don't know, just be so close but not make it is just kind of— I don't know how to feel about it. It's just, it's a, it's a little disappointing to me, I guess.

Um, again, it's still to be seen. The winner of each heat that automatically qualifies for the final later this morning. Christian needed to give us a reason that he should be replaced, and Weston should give us a reason that Christian should be replaced. We didn't get either of those. Christian has been running in front of Weston on every rep of the workouts, exactly where he needs to be. If if he's gonna show that his time is improving. And Weston has been improving rapidly, and I think if we had 2 or 4 more weeks, we would be having a potentially different discussion. But we don't have 2 or 4 more weeks. We have right now. Really, there wasn't a good coaching reason to do the replacement. It didn't make any logical sense.

Yeah, like it's a track.

What's your example that you were saying to the boys? We went to see How to Train Your Dragon, and in How to Train Your Dragon there's a scene, and when the scene happened in the movie, I just thought of the runners. Astrid and Hiccup are having a conversation, and Hiccup sees himself as a failure, and he sees himself as a bad Viking. And Astrid basically says, "Okay, maybe, but you're also the first Viking to ride a dragon." And you see Hiccup's entire demeanor switch from "I'm a failure" to "I can do this." And so that's what I talk to the runners about. They get to choose who do they see themselves as, as they show up on the track tomorrow. Do They're going to be the same runner either way. Hiccup didn't change before or after Astrid's comment, but his perspective changed. They get to decide who they are. It's really hard for somebody to just put themselves out there and say what the goal is, say it loud and proud and make others aware of what they're trying to accomplish. That takes guts. It takes serious commitment and it's hard. It's really hard. But if you never set the goal, then there is no failure, there is no success, there is nothing. And these boys were willing to say, "I want this. I want to go for this. This is the goal. This is what I'm after." I'm so proud of that. If you're not willing to set the goal, then you don't accomplish anything. They were willing to set it. They were willing to say it. In the end, they got the school record for the 4x800. That's not just collateral, inconsequential, anything, that's a result of them setting these really big goals. So big goals matter. Big goals matter to them. And in my world, failure doesn't mean final. Failure means I'm still working on it. So let's see where they go from here, because in my eyes, it hasn't been failure. It's been a new school record in the 4x800. It's been amazing growth as individuals and as a team. As far as I'm concerned, all they did was build their grit.