Bids for Meet Records Melt Away With the Heat

The weather, not the athletes, dominated proceedings at Saturday’s all-comers track and field championships at Birmingham High.

With air temperatures reaching 100 degrees at the start of the meet, and temperatures on the track five to 10 degrees hotter, the performances of the athletes suffered.

Even big-name competitors such as Regina Jacobs, the 1987 The Athletics Congress 1,500-meter champion, and Kim Gallagher, the 1984 Olympic silver medalist in the 800, wilted under the blazing afternoon sun.

Jacobs, who had run a personal best of 2:00.8 for 800 meters at Birmingham on Wednesday night, won the women’s 1,500 meters in 4:20.75, more than 18 seconds slower than her personal best.

Gallagher, who had run 2:01 for 800 meters at an all-comers meet at Santa Monica City College on Friday night, won the women’s 800 in 2:04.44.

“It was just too hot,” a weary Jacobs told Los Angeles Track Club Coach Chuck DeBus afterward.

Although the middle-distance runners were troubled by the heat, it didn’t slow hurdler James McCraney.

Of course, McCraney only had to run 110 meters.

Competing unattached, McCraney won the 110-meter high hurdles in 13.76 seconds. McCraney, a veteran of many European track seasons, was challenged early by David Ashford of the Stars and Stripes Track Club before pulling away. Ashford placed second in 13.93.

Another international veteran, Joe Radan of the Asics Tiger Track Club, won the high jump at 7 feet, 2 inches. Radan tied for 10th at the TAC championships in June.

In other events, Jim Stanich, a recent graduate of UCLA, won the men’s 800 meters in 1:51.30.

Although it wasn’t particularly fast, the men’s 1,500 meters was the most exciting race of the meet. Former Cal Poly San Luis Obispo standout Joe Fabris nipped Chris Thomas of Granada Hills in a photo finish, 4:02.3 to 4:02.4.

After letting Peter Mogg lead for the first three laps, Fabris and Thomas began a head-to-head duel with 200 meters remaining. Fabris had a slight lead entering the homestretch, but Thomas pulled even with 40 meters remaining and they were inseparable at the finish.

The men’s 3,000 meters also featured a fast finish.

Brian Russell of the Basin Blues Track Club trailed Rich Brown of the Manhattan Beach Track Club for the first 2,800 meters before swooping past his rival with 200 meters to go.

Russell, a former standout at Notre Dame High and UCLA, ran 8:34.97. Brown clocked 8:39.91.