Confident Reid Is in Full Stride

Phillip Reid of Oxnard Rio Mesa began competing in track and field at age 6, has been a distance runner since he was 10 and placed second in the boys’ 1,600 meters in the state championships last June.

But he’s continually learning how to improve his performances.

Take the Southern Section Division II cross-country final last November at the 2.91-mile course at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.

Reid and Michael Haddan of Irvine Woodbridge were co-favorites, but Reid figured he needed to break away from Haddan before they reached the final quarter-mile to have a chance to survive Haddan’s superior finishing kick.

So Reid, who has committed to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, did something new. He pushed the pace shortly after two miles to put some distance between himself and Haddan and then withstood a furious kick by the defending state 800-meter champion to win his first section cross-country title.

A week later, Reid used a similar late-race surge to beat Haddan and a superb Division II field in the state championships at Woodward Park in Fresno.

“When I was a freshman, my attitude would have been, ‘Oh God. I can’t go any more. It’s just too hard,’ ” Reid said. “But my attitude now is, ‘You might as well try. It couldn’t hurt to try.’ ”

Reid, who will run the mile and the 1,600-meter leg on Rio Mesa’s distance medley relay team in the Arcadia Invitational on Saturday night at Arcadia High, used withering kicks over the final 300 meters to win Southern Section Division I titles in the 1,600 and 3,200 as a junior last year.

But he hasn’t relied solely on that tactic to win all his races this season.

He ran a yearly state-leading time of 4 minutes 13.65 seconds in the 1,600 at the Meet of Champions Distance Classic at Azusa Pacific on March 22 after leading for the final 1,400 meters and running a sizzling 2:01.9 for the last 800.

The next week, he ran 8:58.45 in the 3,200 -- the fastest outdoor time in the nation this year -- in the Pasadena Games after surging past leader Manuel Ruiz of North Hills Monroe with 700 meters remaining.

Although Reid took off when he did because he didn’t want to waste an opportunity to break the nine-minute barrier for the first time, Rio Mesa distance coach Jeff Wrout said the move was evidence of Reid’s increased confidence.

“Coming off cross-country, he just has a lot more confidence than he did a year ago,” Wrout said. “I think winning [the Southern Section] and state [titles] has done wonders for him.”

That can be seen in Reid’s approach to Arcadia, where he figures he has a shot at winning the mile against an excellent field that includes Lauren Jespersen of Klamath Falls (Ore.) Klamath, the No. 3 returning miler in the nation.

“This is the first time I think he really feels like he belongs [at Arcadia],” Wrout said of Reid.

Reid, who ran a career best of 4:12.25 to finish fourth in the 1,600 at Arcadia last year, figures he can run 4:07 or 4:08 at the slightly longer mile distance Saturday if the early pace is relatively fast.

Reid has high expectations, but the smooth-striding, 6-foot-1, 140-pounder is not obsessed with running.

He has a 3.7 grade-point average and is a member of the Key, California Scholastic Federation and Fishing clubs at Rio Mesa.

“Running is a big part of my life, but it’s not all of my life,” said Reid, whose Key Club duties involve serving food at the homeless shelter in Oxnard. “I love running. I love the competition aspect of it, but I don’t want it to be the only thing going on in my life.”

Says Michael FitzGerald, a friend and former teammate of Reid’s:

“He’s a very down-to-earth guy who is very approachable. He really doesn’t like to brag about what he’s accomplished in running. He doesn’t really talk about it.”

Unless he’s asked.

Then he’ll speak at length about running-related topics such as how important mental attitude is in developing a punishing finishing kick.

“It’s more mental than physical,” Reid said. “Because you know there’s going to be a lot of pain involved. You’re going to hurt a lot, but you have to accept that and get on with running your race.”