Ricks just looks so easy in that first lap. 1:16 is no joke. It will be no shock if he runs 1:45 next year. For this year, 1:47 is likely. For Sahlman, his in-season performances don't necessarily tell you anything about his peak. Just look at his xc season. He won the title after going out quickly but then wisely dropping back in the wind and reserving something for the end. As he gets more comfortable going out in 52, maybe he'll get that 1:46 at the end of the season. But if I were him, I'd knock out the mile, two mile, and 5000m pr's along the way, because those are surely much better distances for him as a national xc champ.
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zxcvzxcv wrote:
Ricks just looks so easy in that first lap. 1:16 is no joke. It will be no shock if he runs 1:45 next year. For this year, 1:47 is likely. For Sahlman, his in-season performances don't necessarily tell you anything about his peak. Just look at his xc season. He won the title after going out quickly but then wisely dropping back in the wind and reserving something for the end. As he gets more comfortable going out in 52, maybe he'll get that 1:46 at the end of the season. But if I were him, I'd knock out the mile, two mile, and 5000m pr's along the way, because those are surely much better distances for him as a national xc champ.
His performance at the APU meet of champs DOES usually tell you something about his peak, as the previous two years he ran his best race at that meet.
He has ZERO chance of breaking that record.112 -
APU every year wrote:
zxcvzxcv wrote:
Ricks just looks so easy in that first lap. 1:16 is no joke. It will be no shock if he runs 1:45 next year. For this year, 1:47 is likely. For Sahlman, his in-season performances don't necessarily tell you anything about his peak. Just look at his xc season. He won the title after going out quickly but then wisely dropping back in the wind and reserving something for the end. As he gets more comfortable going out in 52, maybe he'll get that 1:46 at the end of the season. But if I were him, I'd knock out the mile, two mile, and 5000m pr's along the way, because those are surely much better distances for him as a national xc champ.
His performance at the APU meet of champs DOES usually tell you something about his peak, as the previous two years he ran his best race at that meet.
He has ZERO chance of breaking that record.I'll agree that it's not looking good for Aaron and his goal of breaking the record ( a very ambitious goal even he was running as well as he was last year). The thing about his XC season was that he was injured early so he had a couple weaker performances because he wasn't back to full fitness but then seemed to be really firing once he got to NXN. So far he just hasn't had a race that seems to match his form last spring and, if he decides he's running state, he's going to need to pull off an NXN level performance to beat Ricks.
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No high school 1:46 guy has the sub 8:50 endurance Sahlman has. Dude needs to realize his strengths.
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Not to take anything away from Xai Ricks, who is incredible for a junior, but I just want to mention how I thought Tinoda Matsatsa‘s 1:48.27 indoors was seemingly overlooked on this site. There’s another guy with a better chance at Granville’s record than Sahlman, IMO (2nd placer Charles Leath IV, too).
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Jgt11 wrote:
No high school 1:46 guy has the sub 8:50 endurance Sahlman has. Dude needs to realize his strengths.
I think Sahlman is very stubborn. I get the feeling that he tells his coach that he's running the 800 and it's not open for discussion.
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100 through 800 the US has the talent to always win Gold
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Xai went 47.15 for 5th out of lane 9 in the 400 INV at Arcadia
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Googled his surname and it’s from Malawi. That’s East African - he’s American but still has the genetics
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Jgt11 wrote:
No high school 1:46 guy has the sub 8:50 endurance Sahlman has. Dude needs to realize his strengths.
What’s wrong with a 17 year old miler working on his speed as an 800m guy before moving to altitude and training his endurance up?
Even if Aaron only runs a couple of 1:48s this year that kind of speed is great for a future 1500m guy to get used to the speed endurance at those paces
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Speed development Worked for Ovett wrote:
Jgt11 wrote:
No high school 1:46 guy has the sub 8:50 endurance Sahlman has. Dude needs to realize his strengths.
What’s wrong with a 17 year old miler working on his speed as an 800m guy before moving to altitude and training his endurance up?
Even if Aaron only runs a couple of 1:48s this year that kind of speed is great for a future 1500m guy to get used to the speed endurance at those paces
My statement actually wasn't telling Sahlman not to run the 800m. What I meant was that because Sahlman has 8:4x 3200m endurance he should be running the 800m as pretty close to an even split. However after Arcadia when he opened in 53.32 and still slowed down to 55.76, I don't think the problem is pacing, just fitness.
This post was edited 3 minutes after it was posted.60 -
mt sac relays update
4 x 800: led off for his team and per the announcer went 54 (waaaay ahead of 2nd place) and 1:54.6
4 x 400: anchored for his team and got the come from behind victory splitting a 45.70 per Rich Gonzales, prob equivalent to about a 46.5 open 400
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Malawian "genetics" have never led to a world class runner before in any event. There's just no system for developing talent, no regular track or xc setup, though some run well more or less by themselves. I had a couple hs students running on their own run high 2:30s, low 2:40s barefoot on dirt at the Kamuzu Academy marathon. There were no running clubs or coaches hardly in the country. They did have some informal meets and a few tracks in cities. So, it was nothing like Kenya even if the people are genetically similar to Kenyans.
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Jgt11 wrote:
Speed development Worked for Ovett wrote:
What’s wrong with a 17 year old miler working on his speed as an 800m guy before moving to altitude and training his endurance up?
Even if Aaron only runs a couple of 1:48s this year that kind of speed is great for a future 1500m guy to get used to the speed endurance at those paces
My statement actually wasn't telling Sahlman not to run the 800m. What I meant was that because Sahlman has 8:4x 3200m endurance he should be running the 800m as pretty close to an even split. However after Arcadia when he opened in 53.32 and still slowed down to 55.76, I don't think the problem is pacing, just fitness.
His first lap at Arcadia was a ridiculous sh-tshow. Might as well have been 51.9 without the shenanigans.
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kid has the right body wrote:
mt sac relays update
4 x 800: led off for his team and per the announcer went 54 (waaaay ahead of 2nd place) and 1:54.6
4 x 400: anchored for his team and got the come from behind victory splitting a 45.70 per Rich Gonzales, prob equivalent to about a 46.5 open 400
Ricks ran the anchor leg on the 4x800. Splits were about 25, 28, 30, 29, for ~1:51. In the first 200 meters he gets caught behind two other teams that handed off right in front of him, slows down to get space before passing them on the turn; and proceeds to close the 25 meter gap to 1st place within the next 150 meters.
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No high school in the nation has produced as many NFL players as LB POLY.
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HillWornWilliamHorne wrote:
kid has the right body wrote:
mt sac relays update
4 x 800: led off for his team and per the announcer went 54 (waaaay ahead of 2nd place) and 1:54.6
4 x 400: anchored for his team and got the come from behind victory splitting a 45.70 per Rich Gonzales, prob equivalent to about a 46.5 open 400
Ricks ran the anchor leg on the 4x800. Splits were about 25, 28, 30, 29, for ~1:51. In the first 200 meters he gets caught behind two other teams that handed off right in front of him, slows down to get space before passing them on the turn; and proceeds to close the 25 meter gap to 1st place within the next 150 meters.
Thanks for the correction on that
Video below should cut straight to the first few meters of Xai's relay leg
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kid has the right body wrote:
Previous record was 1:18.91 by Isaac Cortes, who went on to run 1:50.20 in the 800 during the outdoor season.
Poly is (was?) the 4 x 800 national record holder. Gotta assume we'll see Xai in a relay if not an open 800. Looking like a future all-american collegiate 800 runner.
Now that the official CIF season is over, I just wanted to come back to here.
Xai Ricks: 21.1 @ d1 finals
46.06 @ state finals (2nd) (started the year at 47.74)
1:49.19 @ APU meet of champions
At states, he ran the 4x100 (3rd leg, team placed 4th), 400 (2nd), 4x800 (1:49.5 anchor leg, 51.9 first lap), and the 4x400 about 30 mins later (46.94 FAT anchor leg).
He has stated that he will be focusing on the 800 next season. Go crazy. I genuinely think that this kid is a once-in-a-generation type talent. I have little doubt he would have run into the 1:47s this year had he focused on the 800, and I have no doubt whatsoever he will break the national record in the 800 next year. I wouldn't be surprised to see him run into the 1:45s.
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Looks like Xai didn't do XC in 2023 as he did in 2022. Sprint coaches can't handle the truth?!
2023 v 2024 Outdoor Champs:
300 - 33.23 v 33.85
600 - 76.13 v 77.60No clue where he's at with training 2022-2023 v 2023-2024, current health etc. but being a 400-800 type myself, I think skipping XC isn't typically the best play for an athlete like Xai
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random Xai fact:
5:07 for 1500 in 5th grade!
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