It was the simplest of questions, one in which there could be but a single answer, yet Remontay McClain hesitated.
Remontay McClain is looking to becomethe second California sprinter to win the 100 and 200 in consecutive years.
Photo by Kirby Lee
First one, then the other and in more time than it takes him to run 200 meters, the
Covina (Calif.) senior finally thought that maybe, just maybe, he preferred the 200-meter dash over the 100. And then McClain proceeded to talk mostly about the 100.
Tough call for the nation's fastest high school sprinter.
"The only reason I'd say the 200 is because there's more time to make up ground in the 200 than the 100 if you get a bad start," said the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder who knows a little something about getting left in the blocks and what it takes to come from behind.
"But I really don't know if I favor one (event) over the other, I just know it's no fun when you come out of the blocks last."
McClain will get a chance to show close to 10,000 fans what he can do with a good start this Friday and Saturday at the California State Interscholastic Federation Track and Field Championships in Clovis, just north of Fresno.
It was in this same meet last year that McClain, who leads the nation in the 200 at 20.68 seconds and is No. 2 in the 100 with his wind-legal 10.31, swept both sprint events despite a near-disaster in the shorter event, leading to his main focus this year.
"I was the last one out of the blocks," recalled the 18-year-old who is headed to Azusa-Pacific University in the fall. "I really thought George Farmer (Serra High, Gardena, Calif.) had won and I knew right then what I would be working on for this season."
McClain was given the victory by the slimmest of margins. He was clocked in 10.448 to Farmer's 10.449.
"That was a first. I'd never won by a thousandth of a second before," said the speedster.
It was a lot easier later in the meet when he won the 200 in 20.85 seconds after getting out of the blocks considerably quicker. He hasn't been left in the blocks since, either, as Coach Kevin Glaspy worked with him to get his start down.
As a result, he has his sights set on challenging two of the toughest records in the books in the hot, dry air of the San Joaquin Valley while running against some of the nation's best. He wants to challenge the top wind-legal time ever recorded in California, a 10.25 by Henry Thomas of Hawthorne, Calif., nearly a quarter-century ago.
"I want to run faster than 10.25," said McClain. "It's a goal, but like defending my two championships, it won't be easy. I'll need a good start, have high knee drive in the middle of the race and finish strong."
One way to make sure that would happen would be for one of the other runners to somehow have a lead on McClain, because one thing he hates worse than a bad start is losing.
"I never want to lose and if I do find myself behind (like in the state meet 100 a year ago), I chase that opponent like a rabbit," said McClain, who puts up with all of the media attention but in no way plays to it. "I'd take anything under 20.6 in the 200 although it would be nice to get the record."
It isn't an easy one, as four years ago Bryshon Nellum of Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) roared to a time of 20.43.
He also could become just the second sprinter in the 93-year history of the state meet to win both sprints in back-to-back years, joining Randall Carroll of Cathedral (Los Angeles) in 2008-2009.
But McClain is no newcomer to challenges.
He first realized he was pretty fast when as a third grader in elementary school meets he was forced to run against the sixth graders. That is also when he learned losing is no fun, even though he still managed to give them all a race, most of the time. He also finished last, too.
Undaunted, he was well on his way to being a three-year sensation in the California State Championships as a sophomore when he decided to play a little flag football at lunch right in the middle of track season.
"One of the football team's big, big linemen smashed my foot," he recalls. "It didn't hurt to walk but I couldn't run without a limp. Coach was upset."
Imagine how he felt when McClain decided to try playing real football in the fall and although he didn't exactly have college coaches drooling as a part-time wide receiver and defensive back, he had fun and avoided injury.
He credits Glaspy for his improvement and his mother, Roberta, for giving him an advantage none of his competitors enjoys.
"The night before every meet, I have lasagna for dinner," says McClain, revealing the real secret of his success. "I'll eat lasagna at a restaurant or out of a box if I have to, but hers is the best."
McClain is totally focused on the upcoming weekend but will run some summer meets before starting at Azusa-Pacific, where he is thinking of majoring in English or history. His goal is to make the 2016 U.S. Olympic team that will compete in Rio de Janeiro.
"Who knows, maybe I'll make the 2012 Trials," he adds, with a chuckle.
Then he might really have to decide which event he likes better, the 100 or 200.
