Running Into History

by DIANE GASPER-O’BRIEN & SCOTT CASON photography by UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS ARCHIVES & FHSU ATHLETICS

The clay and dirt indoor track in the old Allen Fieldhouse needed careful watering every day to control the dust that tended to drift into every part of the building. But to a lanky teenager from Wichita, it was the ideal surface for setting world records.

It was March of 1967, a month before his 20th birthday. He leaned into the last few strides and crossed the chalked finish line, securing another first-place finish. His time of 3 minutes, 58.8 seconds set a new indoor record for the mile run in Kansas.

Breaking the 4-minute-mile standard was nothing new for University of Kansas sophomore Jim Ryun, who three years earlier (June 4, 1964) became the first high school runner to run the mile in under 4 minutes (3:58.3). Ryun would go on to break several U.S. and world records during an illustrious running career that included a silver medal in the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.

Fast-forward 54 years and this spring’s Ichabod Invitational track meet at Washburn University in Topeka. Brett Meyer, a graduate student at Fort Hays State University, bettered Ryun’s 54-year-old indoor mile record with a time of 3:58.39.

Meyer has never met Ryun, although he heard a lot about the middle-distance running legend while growing up and even read a book about Ryun’s life, “In Quest of Gold: The Jim Ryun Story.”

Now, Meyer’s name keeps coming up in the same conversation as one of the world’s best milers.

“Jim Ryun is one of the greatest milers ever,” said Meyer, an assistant coach for the Tiger cross country and track and field teams. “To think that my name is in front of Jim Ryun’s on a records list just doesn’t seem possible.”

Meyer is chasing a dream of qualifying for this summer’s U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, OR. His record-breaking race in Topeka was one of several he has scheduled in an attempt to meet the qualifying time of 3:37.5 in the 1,500 (3:54.9 mile equivalent).

Ryun, now 74, said he is pleased for Meyer and hopes he can reach his goal of making the Trials. Although he has never spoken to Meyer in person, Ryun said he read a story about the recordbreaking feat and looked up Meyer’s profile and resume.

The path to record-breaking collegiate careers for both Meyer and Ryun started on dusty Kansas prairie trails. Both got their start as cross country runners. Ryun signed up for cross country in high school because he just wanted to be part of a team after his earlier attempts to join athletic teams fell short. He was cut from his church baseball team and the basketball and track teams in junior high.

“When I signed up to try out for the cross country team in high school, I had no idea it was a 2-mile race. I simply wanted to make a team. After the first day of tryouts, I was sore and tired and wanted to quit. But I made it to day 2 and never looked back,” Ryun said.

Meyer was a four-sport standout in high school and had aspirations of playing college basketball. However, after a successful season in track his senior year, he followed his high school sweetheart, Kelly Wycoff — a standout sprinter — to Fort Hays State to run track.

When Meyer accepted a scholarship to compete for the Tiger track and field team in 2015, he had no idea what awaited him. Arriving on campus, he learned that those who competed in races of at least 800 meters trained in the fall with the cross country team. Like Ryun, FHSU cross country and track coach Jason McCullough believes that running cross country is an invaluable training experience for those who race 800 meters and above.

“Cross country really humbled me,” Meyer said. “Distance running was not a fit for me back then.”

However, like Ryun, the support of a dedicated coach and mentor also played a significant role in Meyer’s development as an athlete — and as a person. For Ryun, that mentor was the legendary KU track and field coach Bob Timmons. Timmons first met Ryun when he coached him at Wichita East High School, then recruited him to run for the Jayhawks.

“Timmons taught all of us the value of hard work and setting goals,” Ryun said. “We spent a lot of time breaking things down and finding ways to learn and grow.”

Under Timmons’ mentorship, Ryun — a five-time NCAA champion – set world records in the 880 yards, 1,500 meters, and mile run and broke four American records. He competed in three Olympic Games, highlighted by a silver-medal finish in the 1,500-meter event at the 1968 Mexico City Games. The confidence he gained in racing — and winning — at such a high level of competition inspired him to seek new challenges, including running for Congress, where he represented Kansas’ Second Congressional District from 1996-2007.

“All these experiences helped me get out of my comfort zone,” Ryun said. “I probably wouldn’t have even thought of running for Congress were it not for “Timmie, my wife Anne, my family, and my Christian faith.”

For Meyer, that mentor is McCullough.

“Coach McCullough has taught me so much in the last six years, mentoring me about coaching and life in general,” Meyer said. “He taught me everything about running, and I owe a lot of my success to his guidance. He’s been a huge influence in my life.”

Meyer said it took him about a year and a half to move up to the 1,500-meter distance. He earned All-America honors twice in the 800 meters but wanted to compete at the next level. After a workout during Meyer’s sophomore year, McCullough told Meyer he thought his best race would be the 1,500 or the mile.

“Coach told me I could break 4 minutes in the mile my sophomore year. I thought that was kind of a crazy thought,” Meyer said. “My PR then was 4:17.”

McCullough, a former AllAmerican cross country runner himself, knew what he was talking about.

Meyer went on to win the national championship in the 1,500 meters at the 2019 NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships his senior year. He continued a rigorous training regimen fueled by something he didn’t accomplish at Fort Hays State, even while earning All-America status six times.

“I just missed the great John Mason’s records in a couple of races,” Meyer said of the FHSU legend. “That kind of still haunts me. I don’t hold very many records, so to break Jim Ryun’s indoor one is very special.”

Decades after Ryun dominated middle distance races all over the world, much has changed in the sport. Modern runners like Meyer enjoy access to performance and physiological data, advanced running shoes, high-performance track surfaces, and access to advanced nutritional resources.

“We were trying to find our way in the ‘60s and ‘70s,” Ryun said. “Runners today have more info available, maybe too much.”

For Ryun, the key to success in middle-distance running is to avoid getting buried in data.

“I encourage runners who attend the Jim Ryun Running Camp (www. ryunrunning.com) to get off the watch. I encourage them to run the way they feel right then – just run their best race for that day,” Ryun said.

For Meyer, the key ingredient to success is consistent growth.

“You have to be consistent over time,” said Meyer, who has worked up to 80 to 90 miles a week while training for the Trials. “That’s what I enjoy about Coach McCullough’s training. You aren’t going to be a national champion your freshman or sophomore year. Our program here at Fort Hays State gets you ready for your junior and senior years when you’re the fittest. That’s how he coordinates his training program.”

As Meyer prepares for the Olympic Trials, he might heed the advice of Ryun, who experienced both success and failure at the Trials.

“Remember the top three make the team,” Ryun said. “You don’t have to win every heat. During the 800 meters qualifier in 1972, I pushed too hard too early and finished fourth.”

Meyer now has an agent who schedules races with some of the top pro runners in the country as he tries to hit the Trials qualifying time of 3:37.5 in the 1,500 (3:54.9 mile equivalent). Should he not reach that goal this year, he will continue training for the next Olympic Trials in 2024.

“I definitely think I have a lot more left,” the 24-year-old Meyer said. “I think my best years of running are two to four years down the road because the best pro runners usually peak between 26 and 29.”

He won’t be alone in his quest. Meyer and Wycoff married in 2019, and his wife also serves as an assistant coach with the Tiger track and field teams. They completed their master’s degrees in May and are searching for coaching positions at the college level.

Meyer plans to continue running professionally while coaching, and whether or not he ever reaches the Olympics, he said he will be forever grateful for the impact that running has made on his life.

“Running has helped me find who I am as an athlete,” Meyer said, “and as a person.”