#24 - Fisher Gets Redemption

Inside This Issue

• Pro News: Another American Record For Fisher

• The Untold Story of Ritzenhein’s Mile PR

• Latest HS XC Results

• Feedback Needed

• About Last Week

• Legend: Erin Finn’s Work Has Gone Beyond Running

• Interview: “Guts” — Madison Osterberg of Lumen Christi

• Little Things at the End

Latest Pro News

Diamond League Final, Eugene (9/16-17): 5000, 3. Grant Fisher 7:25.47 AMERICAN RECORD
110H, 6. Freddie Crittenden 13.15 season best.
Women’s 400H: 5. Anna Cockrell 54.48.

Fantastic to see both Anna Cockrell and Freddie Crittenden finish well, Crittenden with his fastest time of the year, but the biggest news from a Michigan perspective was Grant Fisher’s American Record. What an amazing plot twist after he missed making the World Championship team this summer and missed a big chunk of the European season with a stress reaction.

It’s always fun to look at world class performance like Fisher’s from a high school perspective. What’s that 7:25.47 worth at our more familiar 3200 distance? 7:58.27 according to the tables in the Track & Field News Gold Book. And 8:01.07 for the full 2 miles. He went through 1600m in 3:59.0. He finished fast: 13.2 for the last 100, 27.0 for the last 200, 55.1 for the last 400. BTW, he has told me that it’s funny to him and his training buddies that his mile PR is still the 3:59.38 he ran in high school. He obviously could do faster than that in his sleep now. His four fastest laps from Sunday add up to 3:53.9; convert that to the mile and it’s 3:55.3. Over 1500, he’s run 3:35.33, worth 3:52.56 for the mile. Maybe someday before he turns to the marathon we’ll see him run a fast four laps.

News flash: Just talked to Grant (a day job thing), and he said this: “It does feel like redemption for me. I would've rather been on the team and had a shot at Worlds. But that's just the way things work sometimes. Emotionally that was terrible. Missing out on a team, sitting on a couch, watching people do what I wanted to do and not even have a chance to even try. It didn't feel good. So I needed to prove to myself that I can still compete with the best guys in the world. And I think I showed that.”

Since we’re on the subject in the newsletter this week, I asked him if his Michigan fans would ever see him race a mile again. His response: “I would love to. My PR is still from high school. I literally haven't run any miles since high school. Most of the time when I race, they're 1500s, so not a ton of opportunities for it. I think indoors is a really good time for it. There's sometimes miles outdoor, but at that time I'm getting more into 5K mode. So I think indoors would be the highest likelihood for me, but it would be really fun.”

Look for the rest of my talk with Fisher to appear as a feature at www.trackandfieldnews.com either this week or next.

The Untold Story of Dathan Ritzenhein’s Mile PR

The conversation about Grant Fisher’s mile PR brings to mind an earlier Michigan legend, Dathan Ritzenhein from Rockford High. His best 1600 as a prep was 4:05.9, a mark he ran at the OK Red conference meet. Could he have broken 4:00 in college or his pro years? Indisputably. But he never tried. At Colorado, his best 1500 was 3:42.99, a little bit short of the mark. But as a pro, remember he ran an American Record 12:56.27, a mark which would surely reflect sub-4:00 abilities. Just look at the current all-time top 10 list for Americans in that event. The times range from Grant Fisher’s 12:46.96 AR to Lopez Lomong’s 12:58.78 in No. 10. Every one of the 10 men on that list have a mile or 1500 PR that’s under the 4:00 level, except for Ritzenhein.

So what exactly is Ritzenhein’s official mile PR? Not that 4:05.9, because the 1600 doesn’t count for anything outside of the prep world. If you look at the World Athletics database, or the much better Tilastopaja site, you’ll find they both say that he never got an official mile time. But he did. It happened on March 16, 2000, at the MITS State Indoor Championships. Interesting story.

There I was, announcing the meet. Looking over my notes, it was clear that Ritz, then a junior, was the overwhelming favorite to win the 1600. He already held the state indoor 1600 record at 4:12.6. The mile record was 4:13.1 by Pontiac Central’s Steve Elliott, set in 1975 when Bob Parks let him jump into a college tri-meet at EMU. I told the meet directors that we had the chance to get a double state record if we set up a second line with some timers at the mile. We only had one FAT camera, so that would stay at the 1600 line. We used several officials with stopwatches at the second line 9.34m away. I talked to Ritzenhein, told him about the double lines, and he was excited about the prospect.

The race went great. As expected, Ritz romped, coming through the 1600 line in 4:09.75, the first Michigan prep to run under 4:10 indoors. And then—horror of horrors—he immediately stopped, just short of the mile line. I started yelling through the mic, “Dathan, keep going!!” He blurted something along the lines of “Oh crap!” and dashed/dove to the second line. He made it in 4:12.4, a new state indoor mile record by 0.7 seconds. It would have been more like 4:11.0 if he had remembered to run straight through, but hey, a record’s a record. Little did any of us imagine that through his incredible college and pro career, with all the titles and records and three Olympic appearances, Dathan Ritzenhein would never get a chance to race the mile again.

Ritzenhein, now one of the world’s top coaches, is probably not too broken up about having a mile PR of only 4:12.4. Two of his star pupils outperformed the master in a big way over the weekend, Yared Nuguse breaking the American Record with his 3:43.97 and Mario Garcia running a Spanish record 3:47.69.

BTW—I know there’s going to be at least one stickler out there who’s going to say, “Wait a second! Ritz had to have run faster than that 4:12.4 when he ran his American Record of 8:11.18 for two miles!” Yup. But in that race, there was no official split taken at the halfway mark, and them’s the breaks.

Latest HS XC Results

SEC Jamboree 1 (9/13, Indian Creek):
Boys—1. AA Pioneer 48; 2. Pinckney 73; 3. Saline 84; 4. Adrian 91; 5. Dexter 121 (13 teams)
1. Evan Loughridge (P) 15:28
2. Braylon Petty (A) 15:38
3. Kamari Ronfeldt (AAP) 15:46
4. Brandon Anderson (D) 15:47
5. Truman Johnson (S) 15:51
Girls—1. AA Pioneer 24; 2. Saline 74; 3. Dexter 121; 4. AA Skyline 145; 5. Chelsea 162 (11 teams)
1. Rachel Forsyth (AAP) 16:45
2. Laney Alig (S) 18:43
3. Natalie Mello (AAP) 18:51
4. Lydia Bowman (AAP) 19:07
5. Sylvia Sanok Dufallo (AAP) 19:12

Spartan Invitational (9/15):
Boys Elite—1. Brighton 93; 2. Northville 93; 3. Grand Haven 126; 4. Dublin Jerome (OH) 139; 5. Bay City Western 215 (19 teams)
1. Thomas McMahon (Upper Arlington OH) 15:06
2. Samuel Ricchiuti (Dublin Jerome) 15:06
3. Connell Alford (Chelsea) 15:10
4. Seth Norder (GH) 15:25
5. Thomas Westphal (Anchor Bay) 15:27
6. Brendan Herger (Northville) 15:28
7. Solomon Kwartowicz (Cranbrook K) 15:33
8. Ethan Powell (Northville) 15:37
9. Noah Selveraj (BCW) 15:39
Boys Green (D1)—Canton 31; 2. BC Lakeview 121; 3. Byron Center 122; 4. Rochester 138; 5. Salem 153 (21 teams)
1. Aiden Moore (BCL) 15:46
2. Mitchell Clark (Canton) 15:59
3. Boden Genovese (Coloma) 16:16
4. Aiden Pengelly (Canton) 16:22
5. Adam Dicken (Canton) 16:27
Boys Bronze (D2)—1. Allendale 76; 2. Capital Homeschool 119; 3. Yale 153; 4. Alma 155; 5. Gladwin 156 (31 teams)
1. Nolan Pinion (Lk Fenton) 15:58
2. Kilian Whalen (Allendale) 16:11
3. Noah Lambers (Holland) 16:12
4. Logan Zahn (CH) 16:13
5. Thomas Larson (Alma) 16:16
Boys White (D3-4)—1. Hanover-Horton 111; 2. Jackson LC 120; 3. Stanton Central Montcalm 131; 4. Kalamazoo Homeschool 164; 5. Ithaca 198 (30 teams)
1. Isaiah Dinverno (JLC) 16:21
2. Gage Hoffman (SCM) 16:38
3. Mitchell Hiatt (Onsted) 16:40

Girls Elite—1. AA Pioneer 79; 2. Brighton 114; 3. Goodrich 129; 4. Northville 144; 5. Okemos 146 (18 teams)
1. Rachel Forsyth (AAP) 17:00
2. Madison Osterberg (JLC) 17:45
3. Lucy Cook (Rochester) 18:11
4. Natalie Fouts (Dublin J-OH) 18:23
5. Cassie Garcia (Northville) 18:28
6. Emma Drnek (Zeeland E) 18:45
7. Ella Christensen (Northville) 18:47
8. Valerie Beeck (Grand Haven) 18:50
9. Kamryn Lauinger (Goodrich) 18:54
10. Natalie Mello (AAP) 18:57
Girls Green (D1)—. Marquette 142; 2. Novi 143; 3. Salem 162; 4. Lake Orion 167; 5. Bay City Western 174 (20 teams)
1. Isabelle Becker (BCW) 18:52
2. Hannah DeRoeck (Lk Orion) 19:14
3. Annabeth Hazlewood (Salem) 19:33
4. Leah Corby (Stoney Creek) 19:33
5. Lauren Thomas (Anchor Bay) 19:44
Girls Bronze (D2)—1. Toledo St Ursula (OH) 136; 2. Croswell-Lex 148; 3. Alma 150; 4. Chelsea 165; 5. Dearborn Divine Child 168 (31 teams)
1. Katie Berkshire (Gaylord) 19:10
2. Ezgi Kurt (Alma) 19:13
3. Eva Thompson (CL) 19:13
4. Natalia DeMea (Chelsea) 19:17
5. Jenna Pilachowski (Monroe Jefferson) 19:32
Girls White (D3-4)—1. Stanton Central Montcalm 87; 2. Ithaca 153; 3. Hanover-Horton 153; 4. Kingston 158; 5. Clinton 165 (29 teams)
1. Emmry Ross (Onsted) 18:32
2. Kyah Hoffman (SCM) 18:36
3. Izzy Brooks (Adrian LC) 19:43
4. Ashley Choponis (SCM) 19:55
5. Cylee Elkins (Clinton) 20:15

Ottawa Hills Invitational (9/15):
Boys 1—1. GR Christian 62; 2. East Grand Rapids 86; 3. Jenison 97; 4. Holland Christian 122; 5. TC St Francis 140 (18 teams)
1. Alex Thole (EGR) 15:29
2. Bob Jazwinski (Hart) 15:34
3. Seth Conner (J) 15:37
4. Simon Triezenberg (GRC) 15:46
5. Jonah Workman (EGR) 15:55
Boys 2—1. Forest Hills Central 55; 2. Portage Central 106; 3. Kalamazoo Central 115; 4. E Kentwood 134; 5. Zeeland West 142 (17 teams)
1. Logan Begeman (PC) 15:37
2. Evan Nickoles (EK) 15:49
3. Liam Walters (GROH) 15:51
4. Jasper Kane (KC) 15:58
Girls 1—1. GRC 39; 2. EGR 71; 3. Jenison 109; 4. Holland Christian 116; 5. TC St Francis 134 (16 teams)
1. Jessica Jazwinski (Hart) 17:30
2. Natalie VanOtteren (GRC) 17:57
3. Drew Muller (EGR) 18:25
4. Emily Tmes (GR Catholic) 18:27
5. Mylie Kelly (Benzie) 18:30
Girls 2—1. TC West 113; 2. Forest Hills Central 119; 3. Rockford 132; 4. St Joseph 145; 5. TC Central 156 (18 teams)
1. Selma Anderson (GROH) 17:33
2. Gail Vaikutis (SJ) 17:39
3. Elena Figueroa (SJ) 17:44
4. Clara James-Heer (FHC) 18:20
5. Ella Kirkwood (TCC) 18:56

Holly/Duane Raffin (9/16):
Boys D1—1. Oxford 83; 2. Romeo 109; 3. Troy 133; 4. Plymouth 139 (20 teams)
1. Taye Levenson (Bloomfield H) 15:36
2. Vishvaa Ravishankar (Troy) 15:42
3. Vincent Guaresimo (Romeo) 15:44
4. Brandon Anderson (Dexter) 15:57
5. Luke Suliman (AA Skyline) 16:02
Boys D2—1. St Clair 129; 2. Midland 135; 3. South Lyon 157 (20 teams)
1. Evan Loughridge (Pinckney) 15:36
2. Logan Ruffner (Riverview) 16:12
3. Braxton Sipes (Royal Oak) 16:33
Boys D3—1. Marshall 49; 2. Flint Powers 78; 3. Freeland 84 (14 teams)
1. TJ Hansen (Freeland) 15:15
2. Jack Bidwell (Marshall) 15:58
3. Gabe Litzner (SSM) 16:05
Boys D4—1. Bath 70; 2. Leslie 104; 3. RO Shrine 109 (13 teams)
1. Abenezer Cerone (ROS) 16:29
2. Brody King (Harbor Beach) 17:10
3. Cade Truemner (EPBP Laker) 17:18
Boys D5—1. Hillsdale Academy 35; 2. Lutheran Westland 78; 3. Breckenridge 98 (11 teams)
1. Thomas Holm (HA) 16:52
2. Sawyer Stoneman (Breckenridge) 17:10
3. Grayson Rorick (HA) 17:14

Girls D1—1. Romeo 94; 2. Oxford 98; 3. Davison 123; 4. AA Skyline 141 (19 teams)
1. Natalia Guaresimo (R) 18:22
2. Emmerson Clor (R) 18:45
3. Katie Watkins (Midland Dow) 18:46
4. Grace Tykocki (Grand Blanc) 19:09
5. Addison Herr 9Bloomfield H) 19:12
Girls D2—1. Royal Oak 64; 2. Midland 93; 3. Sturgis 95 (16 teams)
1. Nina Frost (Fenton) 19:46
2. Berkley Holtz (S) 19:56
3. Sparrow Centeno (Southgate Anderson) 20:29
Girls D3—1. Freeland 64; 2. Pontiac ND 68; 3. Caro 94 (15 teams)
1. Clara Kaczor (Freeland) 19:20
2. Camille DeCola (Marshall) 19:45
3. Kylie Mausolf (Birch Run) 19:55
Girls D4—1. Leslie 29; 2. Saugatuck 80; 3. Bridgman 103 (9 teams)
1. Ashlynn Harris (Bronson) 20:36
2. Isabella Yeoman (Genessee) 20:59
3. Reagan Lees (Wixom St C) 21:05
Girls D5—1. Whitmore Lk 30; 2. Hillsdale Academy 52; 3. Breckenridge 64 (9 teams)
1. Kaylie Livingston (WL) 18:31
2. Carina Burchi (WL) 20:09
3. Taylor Wiegand (Livingston Christian) 20:36

Feedback needed here

Of course, there were more XC meets last week that deserve to be in this highlights reel. I just ran out of time and energy. I know that most of the coaches out there and a lot of fans are trawling all the results on A-net regularly anyway. My question to those of you who don’t: is it a good feature for me to be publishing XC highlights weekly? Are you getting something out of it? Please let me know.

About Last Week

A lot of response to my various rants about cross country lists, records and timing. Most of it was positive. I am very pleased to see how many programs already keep track of their XC records by course, as opposed to having just one school XC record for each sex.

Where I went astray was the cheap shot I took at timing companies for publishing results to the hundredth. I apologize for that. While I still wish there was some way to avoid it, I get it now. I was schooled in the background reasons for it, namely that some of the software out there can’t break ties otherwise.

Legend: Erin Finn - West Bloomfield & UM

From the start, it seemed, Erin Finn was always quite good at running. She started her ninth-grade year with some good performances, but then was hit by a stress fracture.

As a 10^th grader in cross country, she went undefeated until the 2010 state finals, where she was 4^th in 17:31. She placed 7^th at Foot Locker nationals. “Making it there and placing 7^th told me, ‘You can do this.’ That opened me up to being on a new level of running. Being there showed me that it was possible to run fast.”

Indoors that sophomore year, she placed 3^rd at the Brooks PR Invitational 2 mile in 10:19.28 (it was an indoor event then). Outdoors, she was D1 runner-up at 3200. At New Balance Outdoors, she placed 2^nd in the 5000 (16:41.33) and 6^th at 2 miles (10:22.76).

As a junior, she took going undefeated one step farther, winning the 2011 D1 cross country title in 17:23. Then she made runner-up at Foot Locker Nationals. An appearance on Team USA followed and she placed 7^th in an international XC race in Scotland. Transitioning to indoors, she won the New Balance 5000 in a national high school record 16:19.69, then outdoors she won the D1 3200 in 10:17.86.

Her senior year, she lost once during the regular cross country season, at the Spartan Invitational to Julia Bos. She bounced back to capture her second D1 title in 17:08. Indoors she won the Brooks PR 2M in 10:08.24, and then was 2^nd at New Balance Indoors in a state record 16:18.02. That same month she ran at the World U20 XC Championships in Poland, placing 34^th .

At the end of her senior track season in 2013, she placed 3^rd in the D1 1600 (4:45.37), won the 3200 (10:08.23), then took 2^nd in the New Balance 5000 (in a state record 16:17.89).

Finn transitioned quite smoothly to Mike McGuire’s program at Michigan, winning the Big 10 cross country title as a frosh, finishing 2^nd at the Great Lakes Regional and 30^th at Nationals. On the track, she ran 15:26.08 and then made All-American at NCAAs with her 6^th in the 10,000 (32:50.14).

The next year, injury kept her from finishing the cross season after a solid start, but on the track, she made All-American in the 5000, placing 5^th in the NCAA.

As a junior, she once again won the Big 10 before placing 19^th at Nationals. In indoor track, she won the Big 10 3000 and 5000. At NCAA Indoors, she placed 2^nd in both events, hitting 15:23.16 and 9:04.40. Outdoors, she redshirted to make an attempt to qualify for the Olympics. She ran a PR 31:51.84 at Stanford to qualify for the Trials. That remains the fastest-ever 10,000 by a Michigander. A metatarsal stress injury kept her from racing the Trials

Then fall of 2016 and her historic senior cross country campaign: Big 10 champ, Regional champ, and 2^nd at Nationals. No woman who has graduated from a Michigan high school has ever finished higher at the NCAA Div. I Cross Country Championships. Indoors, she placed 2nd at the NCAA Indoor 5000 again. Outdoors she placed 6th in the USATF 10,000 with her 32:00.46, after missing the early outdoor season with injury.

On the track in 2018, after missing indoors with a stress fracture in her heel, she won the Big 10 title for 25 laps in 32:45.51. Then in 2019, she was granted a sixth year of eligibility indoors because of her injury woes. Another season outdoors was granted because of her Olympic redshirt. She managed to finish 12th in the NCAA 10,000. She said, ““I’ve had my fair share of bad luck, but I’ve also had my fair share of mistakes that I’ve made, so I feel very fortunate to have one more chance.”

In all, she won 10 Big 10 titles, a record for a Wolverine woman.

Finished with her collegiate running in 2020, Finn faced a world that had been changed by the pandemic. Rather than pursue a professional running career, she concentrated even more on her studies.

Much like she did in her running career, she has worked hard and met with great success. A graduate of Michigan’s Medical School, she now describes herself as an “aspiring neurologist” and is doing her residency at the prestigious Mayo Clinic.

She has also done much awareness work on RED-S (relative energy deficiency in sport). In early 2023, she told track journalist Steve Underwood, “I think I left a lot on the table in terms of my athletic ability… I know that I missed out on some of my success because I was injured; looking back, I didn't progress over seasons like I should have. I would always come in guns a-blazing. I think a large part of that was during less intense summer training, when I would also have more time, my fueling was more adequate. I didn't match that as the season went on, and I paid for that with injury and not as robust a training response as I would have hoped.”

While she noted progress has been made in raising awareness of RED-S, she added, ““There is still a long way to go. There are still many athletes who are suffering from this. What about the sub-elite levels and the high school level, where athletes are trying to get to a state championship? I think that those people are just as important to reach. We need coaches aware of it then as well, not just at the collegiate levels. It’s important to disseminate knowledge to everyone.”

Check out her website for more information on RED-S.

The Michtrack Interview: Madison Osterberg of Lumen Christi - “Guts”

Madison Osterberg has been a steady improver in the sport since she started out at Lumen Christi High. As a 9^th-grader she broke into the 18s twice in cross country and placed 16^th in the D3 state finals. The next year, she moved to a new level, with 6 races in the 18s and a 12^th at MIS. Last year was tough—she came to MIS as one of the contenders with an 18:05 best but she ran into problems near the end of the race, collapsing on the final stretch. She finished 50^th in 20:27. We saw a much better indication of her fitness a week later at the Michigan Meet of Champions where she placed 9^th in 17:54. On the track, she’s a 10-time All-Stater. She capped her junior with a D3 runner-up finish in the 4x8, then a victory in the 1600 (4:55.02), 2^nd in the 800 (2:13.02) and 5^th in the 3200 (11:21.29). A week later at the Champion of Champions Festival, she ran second in the 800 to Rachel Forsyth’s state-leading 2:06.88 with a 2:08.87. That huge PR made her No. 14 in state history.

We talked a few days after a strong run for her in East Lansing, where she cut her best on the Spartan course by more than a minute, clocking 17:45 to take 2^nd in the Elite Race to D1 star Forsyth.

Michtrack: First of all, tell me about the Spartan Invitational. How did it go in your eyes?

Osterberg: I was really excited about the Spartan Invitational. Obviously, it's traditionally hot and the weather was really nice and I had the opportunity to compete in the elite division this year, which was different than last year. So I was just really excited and the results were definitely better than I expected. I think the time was just a little bit off my PR and that's a pretty difficult course.

Michtrack: Rachel Forsyth is another kind of beast out there. How long were you able to stay with her?

Osterberg: She actually took off right from the get-go, I'd be lying if I said I hung with her. She always sets that pace really strong and you can always just keep her in your sights and yeah, she definitely always makes the races faster. It's so much fun racing with her.

Michtrack: I was lucky enough to be announcing at the Champion of Champions Festival in June and called that 800 you ran there, where you stuck with her so long. That 2:08 as just an amazing performance on your part.

Osterberg: Thank you so much. That race was a lot of fun. I was really excited. I hadn't run an 800 PR since indoor track, so I was really hoping to end my season strong and she just really made that time so fast.

Michtrack: You need to also take credit yourself because it seemed like at the line you just said, “I'm going stick with her as long as I can.”

Osterberg: I just kept repeating the word “guts” in my head before the race because I was like, “I just want to leave everything on the track and just stay with her for as long as I possibly can and just see what happens.”

Michtrack: I’m sure that opened up eyes for a lot of college recruiters. How has the college search been going?

Osterberg: I'm still taking all of my visits, but it's been going pretty well. I'm definitely excited about this part of the college process.

Michtrack: You've gone to a smaller high school than some. Are you looking at a smaller college or are you looking at D1?

Osterberg: I am looking at D1. I definitely love my high school, but I'm looking to go somewhere with just a bigger campus and more people.

Michtrack: I wanted to ask you the question that I'm really curious about for this season. As a freshman you were 16th at the MIS, then you were 12th the next year. Last year you fell and ran into a bit of a disaster out there. How has that colored your training and preparation for this fall?

Osterberg: That race, the one from last year, it was quite unfortunate for both myself and my team when it happened, but it really has turned my mindset and my training around. It has really strongly contributed to a lot of growth for me and I've really just gotten a lot stronger, I think, both on the track and the cross country course because of that. Mostly just being able to calm myself more before races and just needing to eat before races because it's just so important when you're going to ask your body to do something really hard. So that's been the most important thing for me and I really believe I have seen results doing that.

Michtrack: That greater strength this year, you're not talking just physical, it sounds like it's mental strength as well.

Osterberg: I would definitely say it's predominantly mental. It's been really hard. I know there are a lot of people who struggle with anxiety around races and it's not fun and it's really hard to just change your mindset, but it's definitely something worth putting effort into trying to fix or even just make better a little bit.

Michtrack: I’ve known your coach, Mike Woolsey, for years. He has got so, so much experience coaching good runners. Has that experience helped you?

Osterberg: Yeah, he's such an incredible coach and just a great person. I've been so blessed to have him for track and cross country all four years and even a little bit in middle school because even in the off-season if the team is done or it's just me, he'll come in whenever. He will drop everything to do a practice or write a workout. He's just such a great coach.

Michtrack: I'm assuming that you had a very good summer of training.

Osterberg: This has definitely been my most consistent summer and I've been having a lot of fun.

Michtrack: There's a lot more to training than mileage, but what kind of numbers were you hitting?

Osterberg: I've never been super high mileage. I think I got up to 57. It was more just gradually building week after week, but it's looking good. I've been about a minute faster or more each race this season, so I'm really excited to see what's going to happen.

Michtrack: Obviously everyone's got the same goal of doing great at the state meet but beyond that, are you thinking of going after the Foot Locker regional or Nike XC?

Osterberg: It's always been my dream to qualify for one of those national meets. I feel like a lot of people say that, but I'll definitely be competing at the Foot Locker regional meet. I'm not sure about the Nike one yet, but it's still early, so we'll see. But I'm definitely excited.

Little Things At The End

Kessler in Riga: USATF has finally announced its team for the World Road Racing Championships in Riga, Latvia. Skyline alum Hobbs Kessler will be racing the mile against some of the world’s best on October 1.

The Internet is Written In Pencil: Good, deep article on how so much stuff preserved “forever” via the Internet has become impossible to find, and it explores the challenge of preserving all this culture. While the article itself focuses on music/TV/books, it touches the nerve that worries me, the fact that so many of our results (pre-Anet) have disappeared. Food for thought as I continue to build the Michtrack Results Archive. Here’s the article by Jesse Walker.

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