More Than a Feeling?
(Note: Much like the Sopranos final episode, I decided to reference a cheesy 1970s power ballad to wrap up the season, as you can see by the title. I wasn't a big fan of Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" being my last audible memory of the Sopranos, but if it's good enough for David Chase, it's certainly good enough for me.)
The APP's All-Shore issue comes out Saturday, but a couple stories and some athlete capsules don't seem like enough to put a bow on this season. Nationals are under way as we speak, but for all intents and puroses, the 2007 High School season is in the books.
I'll be honest. I don't know if this was a great season. There were some broken records, some great races, some surprises, and the kids were a pleasure to cover. But this was the first season I've ever covered track on a daily basis, so I have no season to measure it against.
All I know is that this season felt special. For a two-month span leading up to the Meet of Champs, Manny Mayers looked invincible, even drawing praise from his coach Skip Edwards as one of the best athletes he's ever seen. Then again, that's what a coach should say when he has an athlete of Mayers' caliber. Was Mayers realy that good? It's hard for me to say, but if you'll recall, I wrote this of Mayers after watching him run what was essentially a throw-away race for him at the Husky Relays:
The most impressive athlete at Matawan was indeed Manny Mayers. He didn't perform at his highest level, but I have watched enough sports to know a true talent when I see one. Everything he did was effortless - especially the 3 x 400 hurdles when it actually looked as though he could have backpedaled to victory - and making your sport look easy is the sign of a good prospect.
Manny Mayers a good prospect? Ya think? I didn't exactly discover the wheel with my scouting report, but his effortlessness turned out to be a sign of his potential. He lost just one event leading up to the MOC (the Group III triple jump) and rose to every challenge in doing so. It seemed pretty impressive. But Mayers looked like a different person at the MOC, and it wasn't just the red one-piece he sported in favor of his traditional blue Lakewood threads. Mayers got a win in the 400 hurdles, but the 52.44 time was a step back from the 51.98 he ran five days earlier. His 110 hurdles time and triple jump were also both regressions from his previous performances at the Group III meet.
Maybe it was the random drug test he had to take after his 400 hurdles win, maybe the stumble at the end of the race rattled him a bit, or maybe he just didn't have it (which is what he would tell you). Had Mayers beat Trenton's Tykeen Fulton and Mike Cuppari of Hanover Park in the 110 hurdles and finished top three in the triple jump, he would have cemented himself, without a shadow of a doubt, as one of the best Shore athletes ever. Now, it's debatable where Mayers ranks among the Shore's all-time best. But it sure feels like Mayers had an especially great season.
Robby Andrews of Manalapan may have established himself as the heir to the Shore Conference distance throne. That's all well and good for Andrews, but even better from a spectators' standpoint than Andrews' promise was the style Andrews established in his races. The sophomore lets his top speed do the talking late in the race, using his final kick to get himself to the front of the pack.
Andrews and Brick Memorial's Andrew Brodeur are the two best at this in the conference, and their styles made for some great races. In both his Central Jersey Group IV and Group IV 800 wins, Andrews moved from the back of the pack to the front in the final lap. He tried to do the same at the MOC, but came in fourth despite a personal best 1:52.56. Brodeur did the same in winning the Ocean County 3,200 and during his third-place finish in the CJ IV 1,600.
If I listed the 10 best races this year, Robby Andrews would have been involved in at least three of them. I don't know if Andrews is going to be able to continue winning races in the same fashion and become an NJ distance star. But when I watch him, it feels like I'm watching the future.
There were some great team performances in the Shore Conference this year: Colts Neck's win over CBA, Monmouth's dominance at the bog meets, Rumson's win over Shore, etc. But for some reason, there was a different feel to a Toms River North win. Whether it was the Toms River tri-meet, the double victory over Jackson and Southern, or the Ocean County Championship meet, there was a camaraderie about the Mariners that stood out above the rest of the teams. The way Rick Villanova nailed his pole vaults on a bum shoulder to give his team the deciding points against Toms River East, the way A.J. Gilman ran the sprinters' gauntlet at the Ocean County meet, and the way the entire team rallied around its coaching staff to have its best season in 15 years had a special feel to it.
Then there was Craig Forys. The first time I saw Forys was in his attempt at the 3,000 meter record at the Sam Howell Invitational at Princeton University. It was a cold day, and I remember because I walked from my house to the track (and ran home). I was going to stick around for what turned out to be a record-breaking performance by Ashley Higginson, but my fellow APP track colleague Josh Newman, aka Jose Newman, was there so I had no obligation to bear the elements.
Forys did not break the record that day, and despite his time (14.28.95, the third-best in state history), I didn't feel like I was watching anything special. Then again, it didn't feel like I had any fingers at the time either. But even if he broke the record, there was an evident lack of excitement surrounding the event (no disrespect to Mr. Howell) from Forys' standpoint. Maybe Forys felt it too.
Fast forward to the Penn Relays. As the Colts Neck DMR team prepared for its race on Friday, April 27, there was a much different feeling. After a long day of rain, what was left of the crowd at Franklin Field prepared to watch the High School DMR like it did any other race. And for the first two-and-a-half legs of the event, it seemed like any other race. But once Kevin O'Dowd reached the final 400 meters of his 800 leg, a buzz started to build in the stadium. Maybe it was just because it was the last leg of the race, but watching Forys warm himself up for his leg made it seem like it was more than that.
Forys took the baton in ninth place and within the first 400 meters, the crowd took notice of him. The PA announcer kept giving the crowd his splits and implored us to watch Forys' charge toward the front of the pack. But he didn't need to say a word. The crowd could see it. In fact, they could feel it. He fell short of a complete comeback depite running a 4:04.4 split, but from that moment on, the Shore Conference Track season belonged to Craig Forys. Everyone else just had their moments.
Forys could have put up the numbers every week and been the the best runner in the state, but it's the feel of the races, and the thrill of watching the athlete that makes the performance memorable. Forys and the rest of the Shore Conference gave us plenty of those moments this year. I don't know if that makes this past season particurlaly special. But it sure feels like it.
The APP's All-Shore issue comes out Saturday, but a couple stories and some athlete capsules don't seem like enough to put a bow on this season. Nationals are under way as we speak, but for all intents and puroses, the 2007 High School season is in the books.
I'll be honest. I don't know if this was a great season. There were some broken records, some great races, some surprises, and the kids were a pleasure to cover. But this was the first season I've ever covered track on a daily basis, so I have no season to measure it against.
All I know is that this season felt special. For a two-month span leading up to the Meet of Champs, Manny Mayers looked invincible, even drawing praise from his coach Skip Edwards as one of the best athletes he's ever seen. Then again, that's what a coach should say when he has an athlete of Mayers' caliber. Was Mayers realy that good? It's hard for me to say, but if you'll recall, I wrote this of Mayers after watching him run what was essentially a throw-away race for him at the Husky Relays:
The most impressive athlete at Matawan was indeed Manny Mayers. He didn't perform at his highest level, but I have watched enough sports to know a true talent when I see one. Everything he did was effortless - especially the 3 x 400 hurdles when it actually looked as though he could have backpedaled to victory - and making your sport look easy is the sign of a good prospect.
Manny Mayers a good prospect? Ya think? I didn't exactly discover the wheel with my scouting report, but his effortlessness turned out to be a sign of his potential. He lost just one event leading up to the MOC (the Group III triple jump) and rose to every challenge in doing so. It seemed pretty impressive. But Mayers looked like a different person at the MOC, and it wasn't just the red one-piece he sported in favor of his traditional blue Lakewood threads. Mayers got a win in the 400 hurdles, but the 52.44 time was a step back from the 51.98 he ran five days earlier. His 110 hurdles time and triple jump were also both regressions from his previous performances at the Group III meet.
Maybe it was the random drug test he had to take after his 400 hurdles win, maybe the stumble at the end of the race rattled him a bit, or maybe he just didn't have it (which is what he would tell you). Had Mayers beat Trenton's Tykeen Fulton and Mike Cuppari of Hanover Park in the 110 hurdles and finished top three in the triple jump, he would have cemented himself, without a shadow of a doubt, as one of the best Shore athletes ever. Now, it's debatable where Mayers ranks among the Shore's all-time best. But it sure feels like Mayers had an especially great season.
Robby Andrews of Manalapan may have established himself as the heir to the Shore Conference distance throne. That's all well and good for Andrews, but even better from a spectators' standpoint than Andrews' promise was the style Andrews established in his races. The sophomore lets his top speed do the talking late in the race, using his final kick to get himself to the front of the pack.
Andrews and Brick Memorial's Andrew Brodeur are the two best at this in the conference, and their styles made for some great races. In both his Central Jersey Group IV and Group IV 800 wins, Andrews moved from the back of the pack to the front in the final lap. He tried to do the same at the MOC, but came in fourth despite a personal best 1:52.56. Brodeur did the same in winning the Ocean County 3,200 and during his third-place finish in the CJ IV 1,600.
If I listed the 10 best races this year, Robby Andrews would have been involved in at least three of them. I don't know if Andrews is going to be able to continue winning races in the same fashion and become an NJ distance star. But when I watch him, it feels like I'm watching the future.
There were some great team performances in the Shore Conference this year: Colts Neck's win over CBA, Monmouth's dominance at the bog meets, Rumson's win over Shore, etc. But for some reason, there was a different feel to a Toms River North win. Whether it was the Toms River tri-meet, the double victory over Jackson and Southern, or the Ocean County Championship meet, there was a camaraderie about the Mariners that stood out above the rest of the teams. The way Rick Villanova nailed his pole vaults on a bum shoulder to give his team the deciding points against Toms River East, the way A.J. Gilman ran the sprinters' gauntlet at the Ocean County meet, and the way the entire team rallied around its coaching staff to have its best season in 15 years had a special feel to it.
Then there was Craig Forys. The first time I saw Forys was in his attempt at the 3,000 meter record at the Sam Howell Invitational at Princeton University. It was a cold day, and I remember because I walked from my house to the track (and ran home). I was going to stick around for what turned out to be a record-breaking performance by Ashley Higginson, but my fellow APP track colleague Josh Newman, aka Jose Newman, was there so I had no obligation to bear the elements.
Forys did not break the record that day, and despite his time (14.28.95, the third-best in state history), I didn't feel like I was watching anything special. Then again, it didn't feel like I had any fingers at the time either. But even if he broke the record, there was an evident lack of excitement surrounding the event (no disrespect to Mr. Howell) from Forys' standpoint. Maybe Forys felt it too.
Fast forward to the Penn Relays. As the Colts Neck DMR team prepared for its race on Friday, April 27, there was a much different feeling. After a long day of rain, what was left of the crowd at Franklin Field prepared to watch the High School DMR like it did any other race. And for the first two-and-a-half legs of the event, it seemed like any other race. But once Kevin O'Dowd reached the final 400 meters of his 800 leg, a buzz started to build in the stadium. Maybe it was just because it was the last leg of the race, but watching Forys warm himself up for his leg made it seem like it was more than that.
Forys took the baton in ninth place and within the first 400 meters, the crowd took notice of him. The PA announcer kept giving the crowd his splits and implored us to watch Forys' charge toward the front of the pack. But he didn't need to say a word. The crowd could see it. In fact, they could feel it. He fell short of a complete comeback depite running a 4:04.4 split, but from that moment on, the Shore Conference Track season belonged to Craig Forys. Everyone else just had their moments.
Forys could have put up the numbers every week and been the the best runner in the state, but it's the feel of the races, and the thrill of watching the athlete that makes the performance memorable. Forys and the rest of the Shore Conference gave us plenty of those moments this year. I don't know if that makes this past season particurlaly special. But it sure feels like it.
posted by Matt Manley at 4:34 PM
2 Comments:
You seem pretty high on Andrews, Waite and Brodeur and rarely mention Galasso. George put on a show at the NON Elite Mile this past weekend, beating Andrews by like 9 seconds and Brodeur by even more. The only local distance boy doing any better was Forys. I think Galasso's spot on the All-Area second team is a sham.
I guess you could say I'm high on Andrews, but Galasso certainly deserves similar recognition. The reason Andrews is on the first team and not Galasso was because he won the Group IV 800, which gives him two advantages. First, and most obvious, he won a state title. Second, he was the best 800 runner at year's end (with the obvious exception of Forys) and Forys and Waite's spots on the first team took care of the 1600/3200 portion of the team. While that last spot can certainly go to a 1600/3200 runner who is clearly better than an 800 runner, we try to get 800, 1600, and 3200 specialists covered on the first team.
As for him beating Andrews, Nationals are not taken into account for All-Shore. It sucks, but I'm given the date when All Shore is going to run, so the body of work up until that point is what gets considered. Even so, I would have had trouble leaving Andrews off with the way he was running the 800 at the end of the year.
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