Wetmore-Wednesday Top Races: Barringer Breaks Six Collegiate Records In Final Track Season

BOULDER – The Colorado track and field and cross country program has a special history, one that began to hit full-stride under head coach Mark Wetmore.

CU track and field and cross country will take a look back at every year under Wetmore and recap the best races and teams of every calendar year.

Since her first track and field season as a Buffalo in 2006, Jenny (Barringer) Simpson was adding every year to the legacy of CU's distance program. But during the 2009 indoor and outdoor seasons, she rewrote the NCAA and CU record books, cementing her status as one of the greatest collegiate distance runners of all-time.

"The CU program was a legacy before I ever got there," Simpson said. "The expectation and the idea that the best come out of this program was in my heart and my mind long before I ever wore a Colorado uniform. So for me, a lot of 2009 was really just cementing my chapter in that Colorado legacy. So the fact that I was able to surpass that was icing on top of that."

HERE A RECORD, THERE A RECORD
Jenny Barringer

It seemed like every time Jenny Simpson hit the track in 2009, whether during the indoor or outdoor track and field season, she was breaking a record. Simpson, who was coming off a ninth-place finish as the top American at the Olympics where she reset her American record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, set seven CU records as well as six NCAA records in 2009, resetting a few of those during the season.

"Going into 2009 I had the confidence of having an Olympics under my belt, having several championships under my belt and I had this sense of presence that this was my last season and I wanted it to stand out, for me personally," she said. "I never could have predicted it would have turned out as successful as it did."

INDOOR
Simpson only raced indoor track two seasons while at CU and 2009 was one of those seasons.

Her first two races of the season were at Dempsey Indoor in Seattle, Washington. It was usually where the best competition during the indoor season would congregate, especially on the west coast. Her first race was the 3,000-meter run at the UW Invitational on January 31. She made easy work of it, finishing 17 seconds in front of the field (8:53.88) for her first CU record of the year, but her second overall.

Two weeks later, she was back to race the 5k at the Husky Classic. It would be the one and only time she would race the indoor 5k as a Buff and she definitely made it count, finishing with an NCAA record of 15:01.70. That time also put her as the second fastest American at the time of the race. Simpson finished the race over a minute before the runner-up, who would cross the finish in 16:03.40.

Jenny Barringer

Simpson remembers the goal was to run 15:20 pace. After a mile, she wasn't getting splits anymore, but she took something that could have been a distraction and turned it into a gift because she realized she had to run by feel and ran hard the whole way.

"When I crossed the finish, I remember looking up at the clock and thinking the clock was broken or that something had gone wrong," she said. "I had no concept or idea that I was running 15 minute pace the whole way."

That race became a launching pad for the rest of the season through outdoors, because in her words, "Running 15:01 was just a level beyond what I had even dreamed."

Racing every other week was working well for Simpson and next up was the Big 12 Championship in College Station, Texas, on February 28. For the last three-plus years, Simpson had squared off against Texas Tech's Sally Kipyego in just about every event, except the 3,000-meter steeplechase. And every time the two raced, Simpson was always coming in second. But every race brings a new opportunity and Simpson was ready for another chance in what would end up being the final meeting between the two storied collegiate runners.

"Going into that race, there are a couple of things that are really important to me, when I talk about that race," Simpson said. "The first one is that people do not remember how good Sally was. She was incredible. She was a talent of her time in the NCAA and it's my opinion that no one has come close to her ability, talent and consistency since she has been in the NCAA in women's running.

"I credit her for one of the major reasons I was as good as I was in college. Because if I had had three or four years of just winning everything, I don't know how far I would have stretched beyond just getting a win. Because Sally was there, I had to run my guts out and get second over and over and over again. So I think that really stretched me to try to be at another level."

It was a friendly rivalry, but a rivalry nonetheless. And this time, it was Simpson who would be victorious, but just barely. She got out to the lead and the two pulled away from the pack. With 100 meters left, Simpson found another gear and finished a little over a second in front of Kipyego. Both finished recorded times better than the previous NCAA record, but it was Simpson who would be standing on top of the podium after running a time of 4:25.91 which still stands as the NCAA and meet record. Kipyego's time was 4:27.19.

"The last time we ever raced each other was that indoor race and to her credit, I had to go out and set the pace hard, lead and run a collegiate record to barely pull off the win against her," Simpson said. "It was a three-year long battle to finally beat her in anything. It was in an event that neither she nor I were specialists in at the time, and so it was a really big moment for my coaches and me because we took down someone who was great and who we had an enormous amount of respect for."

Since Simpson had not raced much during the indoor season in the past, this would be her first NCAA Indoor Championship and she had her pick of the three events she had previously races. She would end up finishing the season just as she had started it, racing the 3,000 back in College Station, Texas on March 14. Her confidence was growing every week and she went into nationals knowing she was ready and had one of the best races of her career.

She finished in 8:42.03, recording her third NCAA record in six weeks. Her time was 14 second faster than the runner-up, Florida State's Susan Kuijken (8:56.27), who had won the title in 2008. With the win, she earned her first NCAA indoor title to wrap up her final indoor season for the Buffs.

To Simpson, two things really stand out from that race.

"First of all, I think that is one of my more underrated races," she said. "It's easy to forget because it's buried underneath all of these other great races that season. But it was a hell of a run, running that fast at a national championship and lapping the majority of the field.

"And the other thing that stands out to me is that I had already run against such incredible odds and competition and excelled at a certain level, but that race was the race I was the least nervous about. I remember going to the Texas A&M indoor facility to warm-up and get ready. I'm always nervous about the competitive aspect of the race, but I just felt really ready. I wasn't nervous about running well. I knew I was going to go out and run really well. I was totally prepared. The competition was tough. I was just ready for it. That was one of the best races of my career."

OUTDOOR
Jenny Barringer

By 2009, everyone knew Simpson was one of the best American 3,000-meter steeplechasers, and not just the NCAA. But just like she had done during the indoor season, Simpson was going to leave her mark in a variety of events ranging from the 800 to the 5,000.

After some well-deserved rest from the indoor season, Simpson's first race wasn't until the end of April at the Oregon Relays. There she would race the 1,500 on April 25 and the 800 on April 26, setting a CU record (4:08.38) in the first, and running the second fastest time in Buffalo history in the latter (2:05.43).

The next test was the 5k at the Stanford Invitational on May 1. It would be her chance to run the event she had dreamed of racing when she got to CU before fate took over and pulled her to the steeplechase. After running 15:01 indoors in the 5k, Simpson was thinking she could break 15 minutes and was convinced heading into Stanford that she would do just that.

Many of her races in 2009 were run like time trials since no one could keep up with her and there were no pacers at some of these events like they have now. In order for her to do what she was trying to do, she needed to run her splits with no help, which can be a tough task. Stanford would be no different.

"I was fitter than when I ran 15:01 indoors," she explained. "I had continued to race really well and train really well. So we head out to Stanford and I'm running 72s and I'm trying to stay on pace. The race wasn't very fast up front and I had to do all of the running and the splits by myself. Slowly the 72.0s turned into 72.5s and it really slipped away when I thought I was going to run several seconds under 15."

With four laps left to run in the 5k, she had over 200 meters on the field and but more impressively, she started lapping her competitors when she still had three laps remaining. When she crossed the finish in 15:07.64, yet another NCAA record, she was over 44 seconds ahead of her closest competitor. It was an impressive run and gave her the U.S. and IAAF 'A' standard in the event. At the time, Simpson had been so focused on finishing under 15, but looking back, she realizes she should have been more excited about her accomplishment.

"I remember finishing and feeling ho-hum about it," she said. "I wasn't disappointed in it, but I wasn't ecstatic about it. And now I look back at it and I think any collegiate who runs 15:07 should be ecstatic, including me. In the moment I did not appreciate it."

Not one to dwell on the past, Simpson kept moving forward. Her next race would be her season debut in the steeplechase at the Big 12 Championship in Lubbock, Texas on May 17. There she would win her second Big 12 title in the event, finishing in 9:58.14, setting the Big 12 meet record. The runner-up, Baylor's Danielle Bradley, was 30 seconds behind her (9:29.37).

"The race went well," she said following the race. "I kept looking back and didn't think I sprinted out too hard, but I expected people to go with me a little more so I'd have some company. It was a good, comfortable, clean race and that's what I really wanted. I wanted to stay safe over all the barriers and be fast between them. It was a good day."

She became CU's first four-time NCAA Midwest Region Champion two weeks later in Norman, Okla., on May 30, winning the steeplechase in 9:26.90 to qualify for NCAAs. But before she would have a chance to go for one more NCAA title, Simpson would have the opportunity to race the 1,500 in an elite field at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore.

After the Oregon Relays at the end of April, Wetmore and Simpson felt she could run two seconds faster than her 4:08 if she was in a really strong field, which would bring her time down to 4:06 where the collegiate record stood. They were running out of big race opportunities to do that, but Wetmore was able to get Simpson into the Prefontaine Classic on June 7, just three days before her preliminary round at NCAAs.

Traveling with associate head coach Heather Burroughs, Simpson said they stayed at a tiny hotel across from the track and that she benefitted from not knowing what she didn't know.

"I had never been to the Pre Classic before," Simpson explained. "I had been to NCAA Championships and I imagined it was a lot like that with smaller fields at a high level. So, I just warmed up like a college kid. I ran 20 minutes, I did four strides and I showed up to the call room. I remember watching all of these pro athletes doing these long involved drills and types of things and I was thinking, I don't totally know what I'm doing. I just tried to hold my own."

Although Wetmore wasn't there, he knew enough about what Simpson was about to experience and gave her two pieces of advice ahead of time that she would use. The first was, "These women are competitive at a level you haven't experienced before." The second was, "defend your space and not let yourself get pushed around. Follow the pace and not worry about whether you can handle it or what the clock says. Just try to keep up."

With those two pieces of advice, as well remembering she had run 4:25 in the mile earlier that season and had to be fitter, she knew she would be able to run a good race.

The race got out to a quick pace and Simpson was holding her own. It was the first race of the season where she wasn't leading; she was chasing. With one lap to go, she was feeling really good and even wondered when everyone was going to take off and leave her in their dust. But the opposite was happening.

"I was catching more and more people," she said. "As we rounded that last curve I looked up and saw first and I thought go for it."

And she did. Entering the home stretch she passed two more runners and had one left to pass with 80 meters. Just as she had closed the gap between Gelete Burka and herself, they ran out of track. Burka finished in 3:59.89, while Simpson raced a time of 3:59.90. It was a CU and NCAA record and was the best time by an American woman that season. She became the third woman to run a sub-four minute 1,500 in U.S. history and was the youngest to do so at 22.

Jenny Barringer

"I think even that day I couldn't believe I was confident enough and brave enough and fearless enough to believe I could win that race," Simpson said. "It's so funny because I can close my eyes and put myself in that moment. I really believed I could do it. It was a totally jaw-dropping time for a collegiate and I really surprised myself."

There was not time to waste as Simpson switched gears back to the steeplechase. Burroughs and Simpson flew to Fayetteville, Ark., for her final national championship. She remembers Wetmore and Burroughs talking to her about how she could set the collegiate record and possibly the American record in her final race, as well as other time scenarios. But that year the championship was complicated by rain delays. There were multiple delays in the preliminary round on June 10, which pushed the races to late in the evening. Simpson made it through the prelims easily, finishing in 9:57.75.

As mentioned earlier, Simpson had been running most of her races as time trials. It's a tough thing to do, especially when it's just about every race.

"When I got to the end of the season in 2009, not only had I been running from indoors to outdoors at a really high level and broken a lot of records, but I had done so without a lot of help. So many of those efforts were time trials. It not only takes a lot of physically ability, but mental toughness to go out over and over and execute those time trials by yourself. It was an unusually long season of doing a lot of the work by myself."

With one race left, she had a choice. She could run and leave everyone in the dust and see what records she could break, or she could play it safer and get a good lead on the field to ensure one more title.

"The championship ended up being complicated by these rain delays and I just remember thinking every race for months for me has been so hard," she said. "I just want to win. I don't care what the time was, I just want to win."

And win she did. She went out strong, separated herself from the pact and then ran a solid race, finishing in 9:25.54. That time was a meet record as well as the NCAA record and secured her a third title in the event. She may not have run her guts out, but that's okay.

"I look back and know I gave what I had to give and of course I wonder how fast I could have run if I had put all of my guts out on the track," Simpson said. "But you just can't do that every single time. And that was one of those races that I just said I have to dial it back and take the win and end on a happy note."

After NCAAs, Simpson would go on to win her second USA title in the steeplechase and would race at the world championship. Along the way she would reset her CU 5k record, lowering it to 15:05.25 at the DN Galan Super Grand Prix (July 31), as well as breaking the CU record in the 800, finishing the race in Cottbus, Germany in 2:02.54 on August 8. Then in the IAAF World Championship finals, Simpson would record a fifth-place finish in the steeplechase while again breaking her CU record, this time finishing in 9:12.50.

A LOOK AT THE RECORDS
(Before 2009)

INDOOR EVENT	CU RECORD	NCAA RECORD	JENNY'S BEST TIME IN 2009
3,000	9:07.16 (Sara Slattery)	8:48.77 (Sally Kipyego, TTU)	8:42.03#
5,000	15:39.25 (Sara Slattery)	15:14.18 (Kim Smith, Providence)	15:01.70#^*
Mile	4:40.02 (Sara Vaughn)	4:28.31 (Vicki Huber, Villanova)	4:25.91*#

OUTDOOR EVENT	CU RECORD	NCAA RECORD	JENNY'S BEST TIME IN 2009
800	2:03.7 (Lee Ballenger)	1:59.11 (Suzy Favor, Wisconsin)	2:02.54
1,500	4:10.81 (Shayne Wille)	4:06.19 (Hannah England, Florida State)	3:59.98*#
5,000	15:24.97 (Sara Slattery)	15:09.75 (Kim Smith, Providence)	15:07.64*
Steeplechase	9:22.26! (Jenny Barringer)	9:29.20 (Jenny Barringer)	9:25.54

* Still Stands as an NCAA Record
# Still Stands as a CU Record
^ Run on an oversized track
! Record set in 2008 at the Olympics

OTHER ACCOLADES

Did not lose a collegiate race all of the 2009 season
- The only time she did not win a race was at Prefontaine where she was the runner-up as the only collegiate runner in a field of professionals.
First Buff to win three NCAA titles in the same event
First female Buff to win four NCAA titles in any sport
Named the 2009 Honda Sports Award winner for track and field
2009 Indoor USTFCCCA Women's Track Athlete of the Year
2009 Outdoor USTFCCCA Women's Track Athlete of the Year
Winner of the Inaugural The Bowerman - an award given to the top male and female track and field athlete each year by the USTFCCCA. To date she is the only female distance runner to win the prestigious award.

PAST TOP RACES:
2009: BARRINGER AND NELSON TAKE BEIJING OLYMPICS
2008: MEN WIN BIG 12 OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIP
2007: VAUGHN WINS 3 BIG 12 TITLES; BARRINGER TURNS DISAPPOINTMENT INTO FIRST U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP
2006: BARRINGER'S STEEPLECHASE LEGACY BEGINS; MEN'S XC WINS SECOND NCAA TITLE IN THREE YEARS
2005: METIVIER WINS INDOOR 3K; SLATTERY TAKES 10K TITLE
2004: BUFFS WIN MEN'S AND WOMEN'S NCAA CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
2003: RITZENHEIN RACES TO THE TITLE (FINISH VIDEO)
2002: TORRES CEMENTS LEGACY (VIDEO)
2001: CU MEN CAPTURE FIRST TITLE (VIDEO)
2000: KARA GRGAS-WHEELER NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
1999: JAMES DAVIS 1999 4x400-METER RELAY ALL-AMERICAN
1998: ADAM GOUCHER 1998 CROSS COUNTRY NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP (VIDEO) (5,000) (3,000)
1997: ADAM GOUCHER INDOOR 3,000 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
1996: ALAN CULPEPPER NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 5,000/ WOMEN'S BIG EIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
(VIDEO)

Colorado University Athletics

Wetmore-Wednesday Top Races: Barringer Breaks Six Collegiate Records In Final Track Season

Related News

Related Videos