Interview: Jeff See

By Ricky Quintana

Jeff See's name may not come to mind when people talk about high school miling or even running in general, but mention Alan Webb in any sentence and people will take notice. See began to turn heads when he set the national freshman indoor mile record of 4:22.62 at the 2002 Nike Indoor Championships. Then, after breaking Alan Webb's sophomore record at the 2003 adidas Outdoor Championships with a 4:06.07, See was tagged the next great high school miler.

But things haven't gone as smoothly for Jeff See as they did for Alan Webb in high school. Enduring some of the same pressures Webb has received since breaking Jim Ryun's Beamonesque high school mile record, See has struggled to regain the form he had when he broke Webb's mark. His progress has been stymied by two maladies which have limited his racing schedule and come at inopportune times.

Heading into his senior year at Middletown (Ohio) High School, See hopes to improve and achieve some of the goals he has set for himself. Though his specialty is the mile, See is also an accomplished cross country runner and he will compete at the Great American Cross Country Festival on October 2nd, where he will be one of the favorites.

RQ: What do you remember about the race where you set the national freshman indoor mile record in 2002?
JS: The first thing I remember was that we were meeting in this little room in the back. I didn't know what to expect. I didn't know what other people had run. Andy [Biladeau] was one of the guys that I talked to. He had heard of me during cross country. He'd heard of Derrick Robbins, who ended up finishing third. I [knew of] him as a freshman who had done well in cross country in Florida. [Neither of us] knew we would be battling it out in the end. We just talked like anybody else would.

It came race time and we ran our own races. I really didn't know what to do. Once I took the lead, we had two laps left. I think I went a little bit early. I kept checking back — a freshman mistake — and Andy just kept coming on me. With 75 meters left, he was right on my tail. Around the curve, the last thing I remember was ducking my head at the finish. It took about 20 minutes to decide who had won the race. That was a really good memory. From that, we got a better understanding of each other. We talked to each other that day, kind of admiring the races that we both had run. It was a good way to start a friendship.

RQ: Andy has a big picture on his wall. Do you have one?
JS: Yes, we have a framed picture of the finish. You can just tell how hard we were working.

RQ: Was breaking the freshman mile record a big deal?
JS: Going into the race, I thought maybe I had an outside chance of breaking the mile record. I didn't think that all three of us would break it. I really didn't even know at the time what the record was. I knew it was in the low 4:20s. A guy handed me a sheet of paper saying that I broke it.

RQ: Your sophomore year, you were sick during the cross country season.
JS: No one knew what was wrong at the time. It turned out that I had mono all year. It explained everything. As far as we knew, I was fine. I just wasn't running very well. I had mono throughout my sophomore cross country season and that was it.

RQ: Your mile at the Adidas Outdoor Championships in 2003 broke Alan Webb's sophomore record. Can you talk about the impact that had on you?
JS: Well, one name that everybody hears when it comes to running is Alan Webb. People who don't run, they know of Alan Webb. That was a really great honor to break his record and be able to say that I broke it. It was really great that I broke it, but it didn't mean that I was going to run 3:53 the following year. It's nice to know that I have the ability to run like that. It kind of put pressure on me to be where he was his junior and, now, senior years. [While it was] a great honor, it kind of scared me a little bit, honestly. Did it mean that I had to live up to the hype? It was really surprising. It was really great to run that time.

RQ: It didn't seem that you had planned to run that fast that day. Is that correct?
JS: Yeah. Even going in to that meet, I wasn't even in the fast heat until the week before. At state, I was going to try and get under 4:10, but the race happened to go out too fast, and the last lap was so tough because the race was so fast. I ran 4:06 for the 1,600m so that converted to like a 4:08 mile. I barely got into the fast heat at AOC. Going into AOC, I thought I could maybe run 4:08 again, but the record was two seconds faster. It was a surprise. I had no idea where I was.

RQ: In recent interviews, Alan Webb has mentioned that he has always been referred to as the guy who broke Jim Ryun's high school record. Can you identify with him as being referred to as the guy who broke Alan Webb's sophomore record?
JS: Actually, I was just thinking about that. One thing is that this year I really want to do something new. I really want to do well in cross country and I want to make it to Foot Locker and other things. Coming into my senior year, I'm still known as the sophomore mile record holder. I'd like to set some new marks for myself. I kind of feel like Alan Webb has been given that title since he broke that mile record, but he ran 3:32 in the 1,500 this year. He's always known as the high school record holder, not the Olympian. Hopefully, he will be now...

RQ: Last year, you had that mark out there — 4:06. How have you dealt with the of pressure trying to break that record? How does it feel to plateau somewhat and possibly face more scrutiny?
JS: It's fine. I didn't go to AOC this year because I had thyroiditis. That was a whole big issue at the end of the track season. [Everyone around me] understood that I've been getting stronger and improving. Things just didn't work out this year. [Others] might think that I'm starting to plateau. I am, but I don't see it as that big of a problem. I still feel like I can improve a lot. This past track season was a big setback. That kind of stinks, but being in high school, [I still] have plenty of time.

RQ: Tell us about the thyroiditis.
JS: I had a really good conference meet, probably one of the best meets of my life. I had a big triple, and then I got sick the very next day. The next week, I had the state tournament, starting with our districts. I was sick throughout that whole thing. It took until state to figure out that I had that. At first they thought it was hyperthyroidism, but it turned out to be thyroiditis, which was just from me getting sick. It just went away on its own. Now, it's back to normal and my thyroid is fine.

RQ: What were the symptoms?
JS: [Slow] recovery. I had to double at districts and I couldn't. On the last lap in the mile, I was always empty. We had the 4 x 800m the day before the mile. In the mile, I was just empty. That was a really big struggle because I was sick. It was actually good news, because we were wondering why I wasn't running the way I should be. It was a big relief.

RQ: After the mile record, I remember your coach being with you and I couldn't even interview you because you were completely spent. He had to hold you up and walk you around because you had run so hard.
JS: Yeah, that just happens to me. My body is just gone and my brain is going crazy.

RQ: Why do you think that happens?
JS: I think there are a lot of people who don't really know that they can go harder than they do. I think I've found out that I can push myself harder than I thought I could. Especially, at a meet like AOC where they were saying my name on the last lap. The announcer said that I could possibly get the record. I didn't let up at all. It was just the motivation that [allowed me to] run so hard and run my body into the ground. I saw Chris Solinsky 10 meters ahead and I couldn't believe I was actually running with those guys. That was a lot of motivation for me. That allowed me to run harder than normal.

RQ: Do you feel weak or lightheaded before you finish?
JS: I try to look back on the races, but the last lap is always a blur. Thoughts just cross my mind. Things that I have said to myself to get me motivated. I know that that is what goes through my mind the last lap, but once I'm done, it's always a blur as to what actually happened. I always like to watch the tape because I forgot or didn't realize how bad it was, and things like that.

RQ: Right after you finish, you just collapsed.
JS: Yeah. That's really all I remember. I remember throwing up in the trash can. I remember being in the warm-up area for an hour and half before I realized it. It felt like it had been 20 minutes, but my coach told me I was out there for an hour and a half after I finished the race. I was just shocked. I was just out of it. I love that stuff. I don't at the time, but that's what it is all about — pushing your body to the limit.

RQ: Last year, you were in the Race of Champions at the Great American Cross Country Festival. Do you recall the race at all?
JS: All I know was that I didn't know who my competition was. I thought that maybe I had a shot at winning it. On the last uphill, I just hit the wall. I just remember going down the hill and into the stadium. That was a good race. Great American is mid-season, so it's kind of hard to get really ready for it.

RQ: You're a senior now. You're a favorite at Great American because of how you finished last year [seventh in 16:00.85]. How does that figure into things?
JS: It will be interesting. It will probably be my first race of the year, I think. I got off to a late start with really weird injuries this summer. I have a lot of time to think about it, obviously, because I'll be training through all the meets this year. It's going to be interesting. I'm excited to see where everybody is. I'm hoping that I can run with those guys and be in the mix in the end. I'd love to win it or be close. It should be fun.

RQ: You've been through a lot — injuries, sickness, good and bad races. How does that affect your perspective going into your final year of high school?
JS: It makes you really appreciate the season. Going through all that stuff makes you stronger. It makes you hungrier to win a race. I haven't raced since early June, so I know I'm really ready to race. I'm hoping that will carry me into my senior year of cross country and take off a little bit. Hopefully, for track, I'll be really strong. I'm really excited about my senior year of cross country and track.

RQ: Have you grown since ninth grade?
JS: No, not really. My power to weight ratio has gotten a lot better. I didn't have a whole lot of power with my height. I think that's the only thing that has changed. I've been around six feet tall since my freshman year.

RQ: How much did you weigh then and how much do you weigh now?
JS: On my license, it says I weigh 143 pounds, and that was when I was a sophomore and six feet tall. I was pretty skinny. Now, I'm at 158. That's a pretty good improvement now that it's all been turned into power. It's all muscle. Through track, if that really has helped me, I have a lot more speed than I used to. I can also hang in the race a lot longer.

(Interview conducted August 26, 2004, and posted September 28, 2004.)