First off, I just want to apologize for not being able to post recently. It’s been a very hectic two weeks for me school-wise and I’m going to try to catch up with as much as I can. Unfortunately I will not be reviewing the past two weekends I missed simply because that will take forever. I will, however, try to get more posts out rather just weekly reviews. Maybe a meet preview? Alumni reviews? Throw me some ideas! Let’s get started…
If you told me that a man from Montana State by the name of Cristian Soratos would be leading the NCAA mile field this year, I would’ve most likely laughed you. Especially if you said he would run a 3:55. It would’ve been preposterous to think that anyone but Cheserek would be grabbing headlines in the mile field this year. Even if EddyChes didn’t declare for the mile other names were surely to take that spotlight whether it be McGorty, Rotich, Kidder, Creese, or any name from Georgetown. No one thought Cristian Soratos would ever be in the mix.
When the season first started, Soratos immediately put himself on top of the mile list during the opening week of racing. His time read 3:56.87. I couldn’t help but think to myself “Who is this guy and why have I not heard of him?” After consulting with Jarrett, I later found that this 3:56 had been a conversion from a 4:05 he ran at altitude (Montana State Open). The same thought of “Wow that was generous” ran through the minds of every athlete in the country. I tried my best to push my doubts aside and hold onto the idea that Soratos could be a surprise challenger to Rotich’s throne. I had even written about his performance claiming that he could contend against Cheserek, although in my heart I knew I didn’t really believe it. Even a reader was able to say what I wasn’t. “No way the King gets upset”.
As the season progressed and Soratos’ name fell down the cutoff list, it was tough to think that he would ever really make a name for himself again and he essentially became forgotten…That is, until February 13th. Soratos stepped onto the track at the Husky Classic. A loaded field stood next to him with names like Brandon Kidder, Michael Atchoo, Jake Hurysz, and Daniel Winn. This would be the true test to see if he was worth the 3:56 time next to his name. Not only did Soratos win the race but he won it by nearly two seconds over some of the most skilled milers from the most prestigious programs in the country. Cristian Soratos is for real. The man that was once a 4:06 miler and barely cracked 1:54 last winter is now being chased by the entire NCAA mile field.
Will Soratos win NCAA’s? Maybe. The field behind him is still dangerous and he is by no means a “heavy” favorite.Cheserek is a winner and anyone able to hang with him will have to cover his kick as well. The mile title will not be an easy one to obtain. Nonetheless, Soratos might be the glimmer of hope that the little guys of the running world need. He could prove that the underdogs still have a chance in a sport dominated by naturally talented athletes. Perhaps I’m blowing this out of proportion. Maybe him getting a title won’t hold the importance I believe it will. But one thing is for sure. He’ll have another fan in me come March 14th.
Run on,
Garrett
Garrett
If you had to, who of the 4 G'town guys would you pick for the win in the mile?
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DeleteSorry messed up my last comment. Lengthy reasoning up top, TL;DR below...
Delete-As of right now, only Bartelsmeyer is qualified for the NCAA mile field at the last spot (16th). Bile and Manahan are on the cusp of qualification sitting at 17th and 18th respectively. Lederhouse is probably somewhere around mid 20's with his time. It would be really cool to somehow see all of those guys in there. However, I'm not completely sure they'll all go after the mile. Gtown clearly has some DMR aspirations they want to pursue and an all out mile effort might not be the most ideal situation heading into NCAA's. It's tough to say what they'll do and they'll choose to go after the time. My guess is that Bile goes after the time while the others prep for the DMR by running some 800's. HOWEVER, if all four of them were to somehow get in and race, I've got Bartelsmeyer barely beating out Bile. I'm a fan of Bile. I watched him when he was in high school and he is a gutsy runner. But he couldn't hang with Denault's (Villanova) closing speed when they went at it at Penn State. Bartelsmeyer has been very consistent all season and shows up when he's needed. He beat out a mile veteran in Robby Creese on a DMR anchor. He's shown me a lot of maturity as a racer so that's why I'll pick him.
TL;DR- really close between Bile and Bartelsmeyer. I'll pick Bartelsmeyer because he is clutch and consistent.
How the heck is an altitude conversion 9 seconds?
ReplyDeleteI asked myself the same thing and I'm still trying to peace it together. Although, the conversion wasn't entirely wrong seeing as how Soratos has now run faster than the converted time.
DeleteI'm pretty sure the altitude conversion is less that 9 seconds. Soratos got a 9 second conversion because his race was also on an undersized track. In other words, he got 2 conversions that added up to a total of 9 seconds.
DeleteGBC
Ah that would explain it. I wasn't aware of the short track. Much thanks.
DeleteI like this kid's stuff. How about an article on this kid with a really cool tomato colored car. I think an article on his rise too fame in the track world would be incredible.
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