and I don't think that's likely. The distance mono-culture you're describing is real, and the only alternative that our school seems to cultivate is for kids who are good at track (distance events included) and more or less indifferent to the sport as a whole. My actual #1 miler right now (4:35ish) could make the jump to garnering some college interest, but he'd rather spend the summer swimming and playing pickup basketball.

We've had some really self-assured kids who are into the sport without feeling the need to fully buy into the distance identity, but that's a personality thing that I don't have the ability to grow. So, his options are buy into the comically white distance sub-culture, pursue it aggressively but passionlessly (which is extremely difficult for anybody, let alone a kid at an age where carving out a distinctive identity is a full-time project) or the third way:

>I think walleye is doing well with finding compromise. The 8,
>is becoming a bit more cooler than it used to be. The dude out
>of Texas A&M really opened some eyes. And as long as the 400
>keeps becoming the elite of the elite, you'll get more
>diversity in the 800.

So, I'm not sure he'll have the speed for even an elite 800m, though if he grows up a bit physically that may change my outlook. But I think he can get into the 1:53-1:54 range and that since pursuing that would get him some substantial 400m duty as well (particularly on our really shallow team) and let him look at the much more diverse field of 400/800m talent (2/3 of the United States' 800m team being sent to WC's this year are black and are more the 400/800 mold than the 800/1500m) as a workable niche.