Best First Efforts...?

[jhc68]

On another thread a media source was cited purporting that a famous actor/singer (Michael Crawford) ran a 4:23 mile after three weeks training in preparation for a film role. I dismiss the claim as patently absurd and impossible.
But it got me to wondering what IS possible on first efforts and what notable first efforts folks might have seen. For example, years ago when I was coaching cross country, a 10th grader showed up saying he was bored with the marching band and he thought he could run distances because he had his friend time him run a mile. I was sucker enough to ask him all about it and he told me he had run 4:42 all by himself in his first ever mile in tennis shoes on the lumpy old dirt track at our high school. I knew the kid well enough to think he wasn't lying, so I assumed his friend had mistimed or maybe he had only run three laps by mistake. But he eventually made me a believer... by the time he graduated he won the California State Meet 1600m in 4:08 and ran a 14:38 5k on on the track.
So, anyone else have similar stories about extraordinary first efforts on the track or in the field?

Re: Best First Efforts...?

Hey Joe--who was the runner? I'm curious.

Re: Best First Efforts...?

Statistically, best "first efforts" are marathon debuts. But I hope some stat freaks out there can come up with 'best debuts' at other events - might be interesting. (What's more interesting than someone 'coming outta nowhere' with a mega-performance?) (though, sadly, such is met with cynicism these days. If it happens at all..)

[6 5.5hjsteve]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

"first efforts" just do not fit in our sport, so this thread is not of any real use.

[jhc68]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

I disagree on both your points, Steve. Extraordinary debuts seem intrinsically interesting to me... what's not to like about someone coming out of no where to post an impressive performance? As for the usefulness of the posts? Which posts on this message board are the really important ones that serve some urgent public need? We are all just a bunch of track nerds wasting time staring at little computer screens and throwing stats and bs opinions around :-) Really, you can find links out of here to websites with world records for running events by lane number. Interesting, yeah, for doofuses like us... useful or important? If you think so you have been spending way too much time here !

[RussJD]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

How about Edwin Moses running 50.2 in his first 400H? I actually remember seeing that time in Track Newsletter and thinking "Wow, who is that?"

[dj]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

Moses, 50.2? The problem with defining a "first effort." The race you're talking about was in 1976. In '75, Moses had a season's best of 52.0 for the 440H.

[6 5.5hjsteve]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

jhc68, ease up, no offense intended. I think I was perhaps incorrectly interpreting "first efforts" to be a true novice competing for the very first time, such as a large strong NFL football player who has never thrown the shot put, practicing for a week then showing up at a meet, or a very fleet soccer player that never ran in high school showing up at a college track meet. These things do not happen very much. That's all I meant.

A quick story from my Alma Mater that has been told before:

Dave Sime went to Duke on a baseball scholarship. He never ran track in high school.

He wandered down to the track one day in 1955 while a freshman on the baseball team, told coach Bob Chambers " I think I can run some." He then is reputed to have run 100 yards in a sweatsuit, with Chambers timing him, by his account, in "under 10 seconds."

A great story, must have some degree of truth, and then of course, the rest is history....

[dj]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

Another Dave Sime story. Sime was given a tryout by the Philadelphia Phillies. The scouting report indicated he had a decent glove, could hit but not for power (not good for a first baseman), as well as "can't run."

[6 5.5hjsteve]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

sorry to beat my Sime story to death, but the part of the story I left out was that it was supposedly a soft muddy track and he was wearing flats.

Saw Dave up close three years ago at a Duke party at the 2000 NCAA meet held at Duke.. Looked like he could still do it... a very healthy age 64.

Re: Best First Efforts...?

Bforsyth wrote, "Statistically, best "first efforts" are marathon debuts."
-----
Emil Zatopek's Olympic record victory in the marathon at Helsinki on 27 July 1952 comes to mind. He was reported as telling his fellow runners during the race that he was unsure of the pace because he had not previously run a marathon.

In the 1952 Games, Zatopek had already set Olympic records for the 5000m on July 24 and the 10km on July 20. Triple Olympic victories, with Olympic records in each, in eight days!

[jhc68]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

No worries, Steve, no offense to you, either. We are all doofuses here and, especially, old hi-jumpers need to stick together. Sime stories are great. Seems like he was one of the most overlooked and unlucky athletes in our sport. From the sounds of it, though, he has done very well in the rest of his life.

[6 5.5hjsteve]

Re: Best First Efforts...?

He is a very successful Ophthamologist in Miami, lives on Key Biscane, has a daughter that was an outstanding collegiate soccer player who is now married to Broncos WR Ed McCaffrey. I do not know him personally, he graduated 7 years ahead of me. But he was still around town in the early 60's after graduating from Duke Medical School doing his internship. Every now and then he would drop by the track, not to run but just to kick a football around. And he sure could punt !

Best First Efforts...? Jim Brwon

I recall Jimmy Brown posting an impressive score in his first decathlon. I have long thought that, had he solely focused on the decathlon, he would have been a very good sprinter (in Browns' camps he ran dead heats w/ former Illini hurdler Bobby Mitchell),talented long jumper, a very good weight man, and maybe a superior scorer to Milt Campbell and Rafer Johnson (Jim was faster and stronger than both men)

Bijan

Jim Brown? What if Decathlete?

In all, he won 13 varsity letters at Manhasset. He averaged 14.9 yard per carry as a running back in leading the Indians to their first undefeated season in 29 years, and averaged 38 points per game in basketball. Almost as a lark, at the suggestion of friend and advisor Ken Molloy, he entered the 1956 national decathlon championship in Atlantic City.

With a limited amount of practice using a discus and a heavier shot put borrowed from the Merchant Marine Academy, wearing a pair of track shoes donated by Hofstra coach Howdy Myers after his own had been stolen, competing in a few events for the first time, the high school graduate finished 10th. In a subsequent trip while in college, he earned All-American status by claiming fifth place.