Runners like Connor Adams need their personal space.
And when it comes down to the last quarter mile, the final stretch of a race, that’s when the “separation anxiety” starts to kick in.
A star senior at Flower Mound (Texas) High School in Lewisville, Adams has demonstrated that numerous times throughout his career.
Last spring, he recorded his personal best of 4:14 for the 1,600-meter run at the Southlake Carroll H.S. Dragon Relays by unleashing a ferocious kick. With 400 remaining, Adams broke away from eventual state 5A champion and hometown boy C.J. Brown of Carroll by nearly 40 meters, covering the last lap in just over 60 seconds.
Earlier this cross-country season, Adams (Photo by Alex Aldaco) cracked the 15-minute five-kilometer barrier for the first time. In the last stages of the McNeil Invitational on Oct. 3, Adams got rid of his final pursuer -Lubbock Coronado junior Donovan Torres - to win the individual title by two seconds with his time of 14:53.10.
“I never led in the race,” Adams recalled. “Me and Donovan broke away (from Southlake Carroll senior) Neil Smith with about 400 to go. I had the speed and I knew he didn’t have that extra gear.”
Unfortunately on Nov. 14, Adams didn’t quite have that extra gear in the 5A race of the UIL Texas Cross-Country Championship, falling short of his intended goal of a top-three finish and settling for seventh overall with a time 15:27.2, a placement that was still 13 spots better than his 2008 race.
In what been an otherwise successful season on the trails, Adams has posted some performances that deserve notice. It began right from the beginning when he won by a minute at the Plano Invitational on Sept. 5, touring the three-mile course in 14:44. Among other top-level races, he was victorious over 5K at the Southlake Carroll Invitational on Sept. 12 with a 15:05.8 effort and claimed the hardware at the Rick Neil Memorial Oct. 17 with his time of 15:22.1.
A few weeks prior to the state competition he was sixth in the District 6-5A meet on Oct. 30 with a time of 15:32.69 and second at the Region I Championship on Nov. 6 with his three-mile time of 15:16.4.
“I think that my summer training was a big factor this year and staying healthy and consistent with my mileage,” Adams said.
The cross-country season will still continue for Adams, who has his eyes set on running either the Nike Nationals (Dec. 5) or the Foot Locker Nationals (Dec. 12) in the coming weeks. The Lone Star state presently has three runners among the top-seven nationwide with Adams at No. 6 with his effort at McNeil. (Edit: Connor finished 22nd at the Nike South Regional Meet with a time of 16:46)
Coached by Andrew Cook, a former All American 10K runner for Texas A & M and a U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier, Adams’ training includes some heavy mileage of about 90-95 per week. A typical week consists of a Fartlek workout, a long, 16-mile run, a “recovery” 10-miler, some speed work and an “easy” eight miles before races.
Adams, who will be attending the University of Miami on a track scholarship this fall, has his share of suitable training partners at Flower Mound as two other teammates have dipped under 16 minutes for 5K and seven more have run 16:40 or better.
“Basically, I got a coach that is distance-oriented and a team that’s distance-oriented,” Adams said (Photo by Alex Aldaco). “I give a lot of credit to my team and my coach.
“And I just got a great group of guys to train with and run,” he continued. “We have great chemistry. The guys are awesome, great athletes. It’s good to be here.”
In the offseason, Adams can be found racing against his peers on the roads. He’s run 18 half-marathons from Florida to California. He ran his fastest of 1:13.52 for the 13.1-mile distance at the Disneyland Half-Marathon in Calif., on Aug. 8, 2008, where he placed fifth overall among the 14,000 competitors.
“My coach supports me, but he makes sure I don’t do them during race week,” said Adams, about his road race schedule. “I take it as a workout. It’s not that bad.
“It’s been good bonding with my parents. It’s just for fun. Instead of doing long runs, I do races.”
While he enjoys the competition and the challenge of cross country, it’s on the track where Adams has excelled the most, particularly the mile. It’s an event that he first took notice of as a fourth-grader when he ran the distance somewhere in the 6:20-range.
Last year, he recorded his PB in competition at the Southlake meet, but has run as fast as 4:10 - a clocking he achieved in a time trial. For the 3,200-meter distance, Adams owns a best of 9:17. In the competitive District 5A of the UIL Track Championships last spring he was third in the 1,600 and sixth in the 3,200.