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Athlete: Brock Baker
Year: Senior
School: Oakland High School
Location: Murfreesboro, TN
Mile PR: 4:06.77
3200m PR: 8:51.75

With his 4:06.67 on April 27 in Louisville, Brock Baker of Oakland High in Murfreesboro, Tenn., became the nation’s third-fastest miler of the season. While the recent Penn Relays, Drake Relays and Payton Jordan Invitational commanded national attention, Baker was winning the Eastern Relays mile with a big PR in Kentucky. Baker is also class valedictorian and prom king. He quotes scripture verbatim, speaks in complete paragraphs, calls adults “sir” and has a sharp sense of humor. With the purity of a young Jim Ryun together with the cunning of a Marty Liquori, Baker is poised to try for a 4-minute mile later this season.

Peak performance: Baker called his 4:06.77 victory against several national stalwarts his best run ever. He ran his last quarter in 59.36 to edge Jacob Thomson, the hometown favorite from Holy Cross of Louisville, who ran 4:06.98. Jacob Burcham of West Virginia, the national sophomore record holder for 1500m (3:46.55 in 2011) was third in 4:08.85 with Ohio’s Jacob Dunford fourth in 4:10.45.

Racing mindset: Baker, 18, who will do his college running at Oklahoma, said that, ironically, he may have gotten a mental boost from competing on only four hours sleep after the previous night’s prom. “I was so tired, I was not thinking about the race and over-analyzing it,” Baker said. However, still dizzy from the evening’s revelry, he almost false started.

Extra gear: With each lap of the University of Louisville track, Baker felt stronger —“and with a quarter to go I just felt glorious,” he said. “It was the first time I was able to find an extra gear. I flew through the tape.”  

Strength work: Baker trains every day with an occasional day off. He does one long run of 10–14 miles and two up-tempo workouts per week. His mileage is 55 to 60 a week.  

Training sizzle: The workout that put Baker over the top was 5 x 600m at mile race pace. Taking a longish recovery of 600 to 800 meters to be able to hit his times, Baker did the repeats in about 1:32. “Getting my biological clock in sync with the stopwatch,” was how Baker put it.

Rare double: With his senior class honor and big race the next morning, Baker noted with glee, “I wonder if any runner has gotten a Prom King and 4:06 mile in the same 24-hour period.”

Coaching trio: Baker benefits from a triumvirate of Oakland head coach Al Evans; the team’s distance coach, Jason Wooten; and outside coach Guy Avery, who works with a number of local runners, providing advice. “It’s a great situation,” said Baker, who sometimes drives an hour to meet with Avery and other athletes.   

Sub-4:00 hopes: After contesting the 800m, 1600m and 3200m on May 24 in his state meet at Middle Tennessee State near his home in Murfreesboro, Baker hopes to run the open/professional mile on June 1 at the Music City Distance Festival at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Last year, Baker won the Music City high school mile by 30 meters in 4:10.39. (The pro mile was captured by a 40-year-old Englishman, Anthony Whiteman, whose time of 3:58.79 set a world masters outdoor record.)

Elite attitude: “I know I can run faster than 4:06,” said Baker. “Sub-4:00 has been on my mind. Who knows what can happen if I get into the right race. If I come through the three-quarter in 3 minutes or 3:01, I’m going for it.” 

Hot streak: Baker, 6 feet and 160 pounds, began a five-race tear during the indoor season with an 8:59.39 2-mile in Kentucky, a third-place 4:09.93 mile at the Brooks meet in Seattle and another third-place mile in 4:09.43 at the indoor nationals at the New York Armory. He continued outdoors with an eighth-place 8:51.75 3200m PR at the Arcadia Invitational in California before going on to run the 4:06 mile. (Baker’s teammate, Connor Thompson, was also in the Arcadia 3200m, running 9:11.45.)   

Full health: After two difficult cross-country seasons — a state meet collapse in 2011 attributed to a reaction to medication, and a lethargic state third-place last fall while being diagnosed with mono — Baker rebounded in track with renewed vigor. He learned to be patient and not hammer every workout. And he started on a gluten-free diet.       

Culture shock: In Middle Tennessee, Baker’s menu is hard to swallow for most town folk. The area, something of a state unto itself, is known for the elegant trotting style of its “walking horses,” the legendary Barkley 100-mile endurance run, and a breakfast consisting of a Moon Pie confection washed down with RC Cola.

Headshot of Marc Bloom
Marc Bloom

Marc Bloom’s high school cross-country rankings have played an influential role in the sport for more than 20 years and led to the creation of many major events, including Nike Cross Nationals and the Great American Cross Country Festival. He published his cross-country journal, Harrier, for more than two decades.