Alsen Distancing Himself From Introverted Start

Bob Augello, the Granada Hills High cross-country coach, met Ian Alsen two years ago and made several observations about the 5-11, 140-pound runner.

“He was loaded with talent and very aggressive and competitive,” Augello said. “But he was also incredibly shy. He impressed me as an insecure, troubled young man who seemed angry much of the time.”

Gail Alsen agreed with Augello’s assessment of her son.

“Ian was very quiet and soft-spoken,” she said. “He was a very shy and withdrawn type of kid. He rarely made eye contact with people, even when he spoke to them.”

In the past year, however, Alsen has asserted himself as one of the top high school distance runners in the nation. And the dynamic touch he has added to his personality has been as refreshing to teammates as a spray of cold water at the two-mile mark.

“The change has been incredible,” his mother said. “It’s really opened up a whole new world for him.”

Whereas Alsen use to avoid involvement in a group, he now is the captain and acknowledged leader of a closely knit Granada Hills cross-country team.

When the Highlanders were upset by Belmont in the City Section cross-country championships last fall, it was Alsen who consoled his teammates individually.

“He felt as bad as anyone,” Gail Alsen said. “Yet he went around to all his teammates and tried to cheer them up.”

Alsen’s shyness initially caused friction between himself and Augello.

“He was a loner and was very hesitant to discuss his problems with anyone,” Augello said. “Ian was having academic problems and I never knew about it until I saw his report card.”

Alsen’s poor grades forced him to miss half of the 1986 track season, yet he still placed fourth in the 1,600 meters at the City Section championships.

“Physically, he was very gifted,” Augello said. “But I felt his withdrawn nature was holding him back.”

Experience and a growing sense of self-esteem are responsible for Alsen’s increased openness.

“I’m still a little shy, but I’m used to people wanting to come up and talk with me,” Alsen said. “I’ve just gained confidence in myself.”

That confidence is the biggest factor in Alsen’s development as a runner.

He enters tonight’s two-mile run in the Sunkist Invitational at the Sports Arena as the co-favorite with Robert Kennedy of Westerville, Ohio, the 1987 Kinney national cross-country champion.

Alsen was capable of being one of the best distance runners in the country last year, according to Augello, but he never put it together. He had the physical tools, but he wasn’t mentally ready for the big time.

“Everything happened so quickly that I didn’t always know how to handle the pressure,” said Alsen, who began running in February, 1986, after a physical education teacher encouraged him to join the track team. “I didn’t always have time to analyze what was happening, I just had to react. Because of my inexperience, certain situations seemed harsher than they were.”

Alsen showed flashes of brilliance in last year’s City semifinals in track, clocking 9 minutes, 17.89 seconds in the 3,200 meters and winning in the final. But he ran poorly at the state championships in Sacramento a week later.

“I choked,” Alsen said. “As soon as I finished, I wanted to forget about that race. I still don’t know what place I was.”

Alsen left the track in tears after placing 16th in 9:27.

Augello, however, did not panic. He knew that the experience would serve as a valuable lesson.

“We talked about his mental attitude . . . and how he needed to improve upon it,” Augello said. “He was too uptight. I could see it in his face at the starting line.”

Alsen turned his disappointment into motivation for training last summer. He intensified his regimen, running 45 miles a week, lifting weights twice a week, swimming once a week and cycling 50 miles every Saturday.

The work paid off in cross-country with runaway victories at the Bell-Jeff invitational, the L. A. County championships and the City championships. His only loss of the season occurred at the Mt. San Antonio College Invitational in October when he placed fourth.

Alsen also lowered the record for Pierce College’s 3.1-mile course to 14:23, breaking the previous best of 14:29 set by Belmont’s Roman Gomez in 1984.

Despite his accomplishments, Alsen entered the Kinney West regional as an underdog. There were whispers that he could not win the big one, but Alsen was not the same runner he had been six months earlier.

“I was very sure of myself before and during the race,” Alsen said. “Everything went exactly as we planned. I never really thought about finishing second or third. There was no doubt in my mind where I would finish.”

He shared the lead with Chip Smith of Albuquerque, N. M., and Christopher Schurz of Scottsdale, Ariz., for most of the race, then exploded into the lead with 400 meters left.

While Alsen’s time of 15:02 was far short of the 5,000-meter course record, the manner in which he won was impressive.

“It was something to see,” Augello said with a smile. “When he took off nobody could respond to his move.”

Alsen’s next race should have been against Kennedy in the Kinney national championships. But because of the City schedule, which starts a month later than the nine other CIF sections, Alsen was forced to choose between running for personal glory at the national championships in San Diego, or running for his team in the City championships in Woodland Hills.

He chose the City meet and won, but the decision was more difficult than the race.

“It was pretty miserable,” Alsen said with a grimace. “I remember lying awake at night wondering what I was going to do. Wondering who was going to support my decision and who was going to be mad at me.”

Since the Kinney regional, Alsen’s stock has risen considerably. He said Arizona, Arizona State and UCLA have contacted him.

And as his confidence has increased, so have his objectives. Alsen said he would like to run 4:05 in the mile, under nine minutes in the two-mile this season and possibly double at the state championship meet in June.

“I don’t think those are unrealistic goals considering what I did in cross-country,” said Alsen, who ran a 4:16 mile shortly before the West regional.

Agoura Coach Bill Duley, who guided sophomore Bryan Dameworth and freshman Deena Drossin to Division I titles at the state cross-country championships, also thinks Alsen is capable of big things.

“He’s always been a kid with an incredible amount of speed,” Duley said. “But he never had that much endurance. Now, however, his endurance and stamina have really improved and he seems capable of winning a race from the front or from the back.”

Alsen is looking forward to the season, which culminates in late May and early June with the City and state championships.

“We’re training real hard right now,” Augello said. “We won’t ease up until at least April.”

Until then, Alsen intends to race in several invitationals.

“I still have a lot to learn,” he said. “And I still need to improve my confidence. But I’m getting better all the time.”