Simeon Birnbaum hates running the 2 mile.
The senior from Rapid City, South Dakota, has been one of the most dominant high schoolers in the country this year, going undefeated in the 1600 meters and mile during the outdoor season. On June 1, he won the mile at Hoka Festival of Miles in 3:56.14, making him the fourth-fastest high school miler of all time and taking down fellow elite high schoolers Connor Burns and Rocky Hansen.
But despite Birnbaum’s pedigree, he felt like he was at a disadvantage heading into the Brooks PR Invitational on Wednesday, where he—along with Burns and Hansen—were entered in the 2 mile.
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“I hate the 2 mile,” Birnbaum told Runner’s World. “It’s longer than I like to run, it’s really painful, and a lot of the aerobically strong guys can just blow me away sometimes.”
Birnbaum, however, pulled off the win in Seattle, thanks to a 55.95-second last 400 meters to run the second-fastest two mile time in high school history, 8:34.10. He now trails only Lukas Verzbicas, who ran 8:29.46 at the 2011 Prefontaine Classic in a professional field; Birnbaum’s time is the fastest ever in a high school-only race.
While Birnbaum knew that some of his competitors were eyeing Verzbicas’s 12-year-old record, his goal going into the meet was simply to have fun—even though he usually doesn’t like running the event.
Birnbaum said he enjoyed himself Wednesday afternoon after his race strategy materialized how he wanted. His plan was to stay relaxed for the first mile and bring the race down to a kick—something he has extreme confidence in. “I have the best speed out of this field,” he said after the meet. “No one can kick with me. And it worked out that way.”
Connor Burns, who broke the high school 5,000-meter record in May before Lex Young bested it three weeks later, finished second in the race, just behind Birnbaum in 8:34.33—the third fastest time in high school history. Burns and Birnbaum will team up together next year at the University of Oregon and both were excited for each other after the race. “Us getting the 1-2 was incredible for Oregon,” Birnbaum said.
Finishing third in the race was Rocky Hansen of North Carolina in 8:35.22, making him the fifth-fastest high schooler ever. Hansen, who will stay in-state and attend Wake Forest University in the fall, says he’s absorbed a lot from racing the two throughout the season.
“We see each other very often,” he said after the meet. “We learn from each other, we learn our tendencies in the race and learn what we like to do. And that ultimately results in new experiences for us because we respond to each other, we respond to how we race.”
The trio will battle each other again this week, this time in the mile at Nike Outdoor Nationals in Eugene, Oregon on Friday.
If this season is any indication, high school records could be on the line again.
Theo Kahler is the news editor for Runner’s World. He is a former all-conference collegiate runner who’s based in Easton, PA. Previously, he worked as the newsletters editor at Runner’s World, Bicycling, and Popular Mechanics.
