Interview with Mike Fout (August 7, 2008)

Two different race strategies brought the pre-race favorites to the front of the 3200 at the 2008 state finals. Lafayette Jefferson’s Tito Medrano started out more conservatively, letting Shakamak’s Anthony Witt and Hamilton Southeastern’s Zach Gates burn themselves out with a quick opening pace. Andy Bayer of Leo, a relative newcomer to the elite scene who had gained statewide fame after blitzing the last lap of the Flashes Indy Showcase Mile to win the showdown regular season race six weeks earlier, had methodically dropped his two previous challengers.

With 400 meters to go, the two seniors were going mano a mano for the state title. The crowd roared as the pair made their way around the curve onto the last straightaway. From the press area, my friend and I yelled for nearly thirty straight seconds over the last 200 meters (a definite no-no for the media).

Bayer pulled slightly ahead, found himself reeled back in, then took the slightest of advantages before the line. The spectators bellowed in excitement at the best race of the night followed by the eerie anticlimactic stillness.

“Oh my God!” I screamed involuntarily, piercing the silence. The last few rows of people turned around to look at me. Somewhat embarrassed I rhetorically asked “Did you see that!?”

My first reaction was certainly the same as everyone else in the stadium. My second thought was also probably shared by many of those watching. How much would that race have changed had a certain somebody been able to run? It’s a question that will linger.

LaPorte senior Mike Fout, the state champion over 3200 meters his junior year, watched that race from the stands, unable to run the second half of his track season due to injury. Fout had captivated Indiana the season before after winning the state title while (as an untrue rumor would have it) running on a broken foot.

An electrifying end to his senior season of cross country saw Fout obliterate the field at the state finals before downing Chris Derrick of Nequa Valley (Illinois) at the Midwest Regional then ultimately winning the Foot Locker National Championship race. Barely over a month into his training, Fout ran 4:14 for a full mile at a prominent indoor meet. The ceiling had been officially removed. We were ready for anything.

Two lost seasons leave us, and him, wondering the infinite question: What if? While the hypothetical scenarios will be (and are currently being) discussed on Internet forums for years to come, no one will ever forget the magic carpet ride we were taken on this fall.

I had a chance to ask some questions and get insight straight from the man himself. Below are the thoughts of national champion Mike Fout on his frustrating, thrilling, legendary high school career as well as his future.


Colin Altevogt: Mike, you chose Florida State during your senior year. Was there anything in particular that sold you on the Seminoles and what were some of the schools you were really considering?

Mike Fout: I think that the reason I chose FSU was the same reason any athlete would choose a school. It was a combination of feeling really comfortable with the coaching, having great teammates, and the campus itself. Coach Braman is a great coach and is very well respected. The guys on the team are really awesome and focused. And the campus at FSU is great. Some other schools I was considering were Oklahoma State and the University of Tennessee. It was particularly hard to turn down Oklahoma State for me because I felt really comfortable there too. But, something in the end just led me to FSU and I know I made the right decision.

Colin Altevogt: You started your career as an above average runner, finishing All-Sectional as a freshman in cross country. Certainly, though, nothing hinted to what would lie ahead of you as your high school career developed. Looking back, what do you remember most about your first few seasons of running before you became an All-Stater?

Mike Fout: I most remember the importance of working as a team. I was a little freshman coming into a whole new world and I had to play a part in the successes of our team. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced as a freshman. In middle school it seemed much more individualized. I also found out the importance of having a great coach to help you get up your spirits in times of need.

Colin Altevogt: Your sophomore track season was a breakthrough. What was the difference, in training and attitude, from then as opposed to earlier?

Mike Fout: My sophomore year was definitely a disappointment in the cross country season. I had to sit out basically the whole year due to a stress fracture in my left leg. That was due to ramping up my mileage too quickly in the summer and constantly training at sub 6 minute pace. I did not give my body a rest at all and that led to injury. I really felt like I could have done some pretty good things that cross season and since that was no longer an option, I decided that I wanted to do great things in track that year. During track season, I ran fewer miles and definitely let my body recover. I just wanted to make sure I was healthy during the postseason and hopefully make the state finals. Smarter training led me there.

Colin Altevogt: You shocked the entire state your junior year with your upset of cross country favorite and eventual state champion De'Sean Turner at New Prairie. You gutted out part of the postseason to help your team but you weren't able to run at the state finals. This is a topic of big discussion among all the fans around the state, so let's hear it straight from you. How do you see your season going if you weren't hurt that junior year of cross country?

Mike Fout: The race at New Prairie that year was definitely a confidence booster for me. I had run well that spring in track in the 3200 and that cross season I knew I was expected to do some good things. Not only did I have those goals for myself, but I knew my coach and teammates expected that out of me as well. That was fine with me and when I won the NP Invite that season, I really felt that I had at least somewhat taken the doubt out of people’s minds that I was just some northern Indiana boy who had a couple good races. I was actually hurting at the NP invite and since that race I had increasingly painful knee pain. So yeah, I tried to tough it out for the guys, but in the end things didn't end up so well for neither my team or myself. I really feel that had I been healthy, I would have been running to be the state champion. New Prairie gave me a bunch of confidence and I felt that if I beat the best guy in the state earlier in the season I should have been able to do it again. Congrats to De'Sean though on a remarkable high school career.

Colin Altevogt: Your senior year, LaPorte went from seventh best in the semistate the season before to finishing second in the state (and nearly winning the thing). What were some of the keys for your team to making that jump?

Mike Fout: Our 2006 team was absolutely devastated after not making the state finals. We truly felt that we should have made it to that meet. I think that terrible feeling motivated us in 2007 because we knew that we did not want to feel that way again. I think we all felt like even though we worked our butts off that season, it didn't matter because we failed to reach our ultimate goal of making the state meet. To us, reaching anything less than that goal was failure. It is not a good feeling to fail. So, in 2007 we worked harder than I think we ever have and everything came together for us. Our coach, Tim Beres, did a great job in getting us into the shape we needed to be in in order to have an actual chance to win the state meet. A combination of motivation and great coaching helped us last season.

Colin Altevogt: Obviously the accomplishment you'll always be remembered for is winning the national championship in the fall of your senior year. Was there ever a point where you realized "Hey, I really could win Foot Locker" and what was the experience of that whole trip like?

Mike Fout: I think that after the N.O.N. meet my junior year, I really felt like I could run and be known on the national scene. I ran an 8:55 split for 3200 and gained a lot of confidence from that meet. So, I wanted to back that season up with a good cross season. I learned a lot from my loss to Chris Derrick of Nequa Valley at the Culver Invite and after that meet my training kicked into a new gear. I didn't like that an Illinois boy won a meet in Indiana...one that a lot of Hoosiers were pulling for me to win. So, I used that as motivation and I knew that when I raced him at the Midwest Regional meet, I wanted to win. After winning that meet, I felt that I had a strong chance to win the national meet in San Diego. In San Diego, I knew Chris was one of the favorites even though I had beaten him at the regional meet. I wasn't really mentioned as a top guy, so I also used that as motivation. It was also disappointing to learn that a lot of people that are part of the Indiana running community were not on my side. So, I decided to prove that I could win. The trip was amazing and it was awesome to meet some of the great American runners past and present. It was also nice that all of the runners I was competing against were cool to hang out with. And, the race was in San Diego, so to me, you couldn't beat that.

Colin Altevogt: You were recently named one of the top ten runners in Indiana history by the staff of Indiana Runner. I'm not sure how into history you are (and there's a lot of discussion now on the message board), but where do you see your place among some of the state's greatest?

Mike Fout: It is great to be mentioned in the top 10 distance runners to ever run in Indiana, but it is frustrating to me that because of the injuries I had in the past, I cannot be mentioned as the greatest or at least be higher on the list. I am not going to tell you that I think I should be one number on the list, or another, but I just wish that after it was all said and done, I could have had a couple more state titles and some state records.

Colin Altevogt: You've grown up in the Region near Chicago, but you've also lived in Indiana. The real question is: Bears or Colts?

Mike Fout: I am 100% a Chicago Bears fan. It bothered me that when the Bears played the Colts in the Super Bowl, people didn't care who won because they liked both teams. I thought that was against the law or something. Da Bears!!