This thread has pretty much run its course. It has devolved into pro-Lindgren forces stating that he was a good fellow with a sad background, and anti-Lindgren forces saying he was a bad fellow and not THAT good of a runner.
I think the historical record speaks for itself, and one has to at least grant that he was one of the best runners in the world for a couple of years.
None of this has much to do with the original debate over whether or not he ran a 4:08 mile at the start of a 10-mile training run. We'll never know for sure. Unlike some of Lindgren's other claims, this one is clearly possible at least, given that he was capable of faster than a 4:08 mile flat-out, and for all we know he could have jogged 9 minute miles the rest of the way.
However, the general theme of this thread would seem to be that you can't believe any of Lindgren's claims. Given that he also claims to have run sub-2 hour marathon pace for 26 miles and weekly 88-mile long runs in high school, any further claims by Lindgren to undocumented superlative performances should be taken with a good dose of suspicion.
My opinion of the 4:08 claim: unlikely, but I wouldn't rule it out completely.