The Week of December 4th, 2023

Photo taken by Marnie Kinnaird from the 2023 California International Marathon on December 3rd

From the place Sports Illustrated hired to do their AI stuff

Written by Intern @jeffmerrill0000017

It was a boom or bust kind of day.

They launched off the line in Folsom at 7:10am hell bent on ripping off 5:15’s and 5:59’s all the way to the capitol or until the wheels came off. The anticipation had been building for years, ever since 2:18 and 2:37 were announced and the window opened to chase for them on January 1, 2022. The previous window in the 2020 cycle had been longer, including 3 CIM races. This time, only 2 were available to hit the slashed marks for Olympic Trials hopefuls. 41 men and 43 women hit it last year, but nobody plans from the beginning to have their primary attempt be on the final day of the qualifying window. A multitude of roads brought the hundreds of athletes pursuing an OTQ to the line in Sacramento. Some had tried in Berlin, Chicago and New York, and turned around for a final go with their comrades in Sacramento. So many others had found gold on those roads before, why shouldn’t their days end fortuitously, with crispy hot greasy bacon in hand in a high-backed chair at the Sutter Club?

At halfway, 43 women and nearly 150 men were on pace for the standards. The thundering herds were enormous. Shortly after 13.1, things started to tilt sideways for many of the hopefuls. Mile splits went from 5:15 to 5:20 and then 5:29… 5:59 to 6:15. Dark thoughts emerged. It was 5 degrees warmer than in years past, there was a bit more moisture in the air. Internal struggles around what the attempt actually meant in the grand scheme of things ensued. What does an arbitrary time like 2:37 even mean to human history and one’s place in it? Is time a construct of our own making? And if so can I simply bend it to whatever number I desire? When the singularity actualizes in 5 to 10 years, what status will 2:18 garner with our robot overlords? In these futuristic days, gratification may only come from a laser printed grilled cheese sandwich gifted by a benevolent dictatorial web of wires and signals. Things get bleak when the dark clouds start creeping in…

In the end, 27 American men and 14 American women hit the mark, the last being Tammy Hsieh from Boston who hit 2:37:00 on the nose. The day was marked by successful newcomers to the distance. After leading at 4:55 pace through 23 miles, 26 year old trail running champ Christian Allen crossed the line in 8th in 2:15:01. Ava Nuttall from Miami of Ohio took third in 2:35:09. Charlie Sweeney, wearing a Lost Boys singlet debuted in 2:13:41, also in 3rd and Jerod Broadbooks came in 7th in 2:14:58.

When 2:37 was announced 2 years ago, women who had just hit the previous mark of 2:45 or had come close were faced with what appeared to be an almost insurmountable task. Today, as it stands, 158 women have achieved that standard compared to the 513 that hit 2:45 four years ago. What happened to all those 45ers though? Alyssa Barrette of the Jacuzzi Boys in Portland ran 2:43:59 to qualify in 2020. Last Sunday at CIM, she ran a best of 2:38:02. In 2018, Margaret Vido qualified for the 2020 Trials with a 2:42:50. On Sunday, she ran 2:38:06. Katie Layman ran 2:44:11 the last go around and Sunday, she took her best down to 2:39:53 at 40. And Chris Maxwell, running for the Bowerman Track Club Elite was a 2:24 man in 2020. Now he has run 2:18:16.

Maybe it wasn’t so boom or bust after all.

The Sacramento 18ers and 37ers came west for a shot, and for many it was a long shot. Sitting where we are now, a lot of them got a lot closer than even they would have anticipated… and the story isn’t over yet. They’ll keep coming and improving with every attempt. They’ll keep finding each other and doing what it takes to make themselves better. Because that’s what it’s all about. Because going to Sacramento was about seeking a starting line anyway. There are still more of those in the future.

In 15 years, when we’re all sitting in the utopia created by our robot overlords being gifted any flavor of alternative coconut soft serve we like, what we will have lost is a purpose to grind. The closing of this Olympic Trials window does not mark the dawn of that era. There is more grinding and chasing to be done. Send it while you can.