Reid Carlen: 2/08/24
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10m Fly - 1.00 (Indoors)
Max MPH - 22.37
Countermovement Jump - 57.4cm
Bounce - 2.82 Flight/Contact
Notes
I’ve stated on several occasions that Reid has consistently timed on the deck as well as any athlete I’ve gotten to work with. It’s important to remember that the Fly 10 is a predictor and not a guarantee, but based on commonly accepted projections from the fly 10 to the 100m, as well as some comparisons to athletes I have previously worked with, I think we should see Reid more consistently hit times this year that last year he only hit on his very best days. In other words, he had a few times in the low 11s, with one 10.89, and the majority of the rest of his races averaged somewhere in the 11.3-11.7 range. I try to be very careful about making predictions, but I see Reid being capable this year of consistently hitting low 11s and getting into the high 10s on his better days. And when you are consistently hitting those low 11/high 10 times, that increases the likelihood of him hitting even faster times on days when he is running well and conditions are good.
Reid has demonstrated fantastic “bounce”… in other words, reactive strength in his ankles. This is extremely important, and part of the reason he is fast. It means his feet aren’t on the ground for very long, and they propel him forward faster and more explosively. We have tested “bounce” on one occasion and he did very well for his first attempt (he scored a 2.82, which means he was in the air just under 3x longer than he was on the ground), but I believe that once he figures the drill out he’ll be one of the best I’ve ever tested on it - I can see in our workouts that he is elite in this area.
One of the things we have worked on is his range of motion… a better swing with his arms leads to a better swing with his legs, more force into the ground, and making more use of the bounce that he has. The stills show that he has definitely gotten better in this area - the Toe Off and MVP pictures show it pretty plainly.
One thing that I have started to pick up on in recent weeks is a bit of a “hunch”. It’s been apparent that he reaches a little bit since day one, and I’ve had some fast kids do that. I’m unsure if that reaching has become more prominent as of late, but it’s definitely noticeable in the stills. Touch-down and full support show it most clearly. His bounce and that “hunching” can create almost a “high-stepping” effect. I mentioned this to Reid in a previous workout - it’s something I’ve seen with an athlete before (a very fast one). It would come and go, but this athlete never ran as fast when he was high-stepping. Effectively what it does is shorten his stride length.
When I compare Reid’s video stats to another athlete of comparable speed (Ian Pianfetti) my suspicions about this high-stepping effect were confirmed. Reid’s average stride length came in at just under 2 meters. Ian’s were at almost a 2.20m. That’s over 3 quarters of a foot in difference… some of that might be due to anatomical differences (I haven’t measured their leg lengths), but I am pretty certain Reid’s posture is accounting for some of it, and over a race that difference can really add up. Bottom line, we want to see Reid keep that range of motion and get taller when he’s at full speed.
Lastly, block starts. We had our first session in the blocks this past week (video at the bottom of the screen). His set position is a little “flat” (his tail is on the lower side). Typically I would like to see his tail a little higher, but I think that’s something we can keep an eye on. The set position varies for athletes (sort of like a stance for hitters). What is a bit more concerning for me in this area is his posture out of the blocks and his “flight time”. As the notes in the video mention, Reid has tremendous reactive strength (the bounce I mentioned previously). But driving out off the blocks and accelerating is very different from running at top speed. Those first few steps we want to stay lower to the ground, keep a more forward posture (without hunching over), and our feet should stay lower to the ground so we can churn faster. His posture in those first few steps also make it more difficult to create the kind of power that we want at the beginning of a race.
I believe the blocks are the area we can make the most improvement in the shortest amount of time on, but all of the things mentioned are correctable areas. Reid is coachable and a fantastic kid, so that will make a huge difference. But sprinting habits can be stubborn (sprinting is like breathing… we shouldn’t be thinking while we do it). So he’ll probably have to continue to battle those habits and be intentional when we are working - and when he’s putting in work outside our sessions.
Recent Videos & Stills
2.03.24 Kinogram
20m / Full
20m / Cropped
Block Start