Tonight will be only the second time ever for Jordyn Colter, Lauren Gregory, and Katie Rainsberger to share the same starting line. And, it's very likely the last time for them as high schoolers. Photos by Jeff McCoy.
Ladies and gentlemen, after a short bit of a hiatus, we are back into serious track and field again!
This weekend holds at least two meets of interest to the Colorado high school track and field community.
One most of us will have to pay attention to from afar is the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon. We observed in an earlier article that this would be a special meeting we don't see very often between Katie Rainsberger and Jordyn Colter, one of possibly three this spring. The possibilities are now apparently down to two as Colter looks to now be running only the 800 at the Brooks PR meet in a few weeks, leaving only the adidas Dream Mile in two weeks as the lone other possibility.
What we didn't note in that article is that Lauren Gregory is also part of the picture for the Pre Classic mile tonight. The only previous time these three have shared the same starting line was for the invitational mile at Arcadia this spring where the trio finished 1-3-4 (Colter-Rainsberger-Gregory) with times of 4:45.24, 4:47.85, and 4:48.85.
If there's a place with more energy to borrow from for a race than Arcadia, Hayward Field for the Pre Classic would definitely be that place.
Could an all-time Colorado high school girls mile record fall at this event? Certainly that is within the realm of possibility. The likelihood of it happening could, however, be the subject of some debate and speculation. You have all afternoon and evening to ponder that possibility and the likelihood thereof.
The record to break if you include indoor marks is Elise Cranny's 4:40.62. If you go by outdoor marks, it's Rainsberger's own 4:41.07 that is on the line. It would be nice to have a unified record...
Closer, as in much closer, to home is Saturday's Freddie Houston Meet of Champions at the Evie Dennis Complex in northeast Denver.
This meet has become the de facto kickoff of the summer club season here in Colorado and typically turns out a very nice collection of strong marks. I do not have a list of entries for this meet, but it would be very much a departure from the norm if this meet did not boast a daunting list of entries.
Results will be posted as they become available.