It's kind of the mutt of the track world. Four different distances, strategies and styles of runners thrown together to form one race-the distance medley relay (DMR). The mutt is shunned in many track circles, not run in the NCAA championships, the Olympics or in many high schools.
But recently for the Duke men's track team, this mutt has transformed into a greyhound, flying by nearly all possible competition.
At the ACC championships in Wallace Wade Stadium this weekend, the DMR team will have its last chance to perform at its best, and probably take the ACC crown.
"In a way, it's sort of like an all-star relay," said associate coach Norm Ogilvie. "And now we can run with anybody."
The relay has four legs, beginning with 1,200 meters, then 400, 800 and 1,600. Handling those distances for Duke this year have been Brendan Fitzgibbon, Lamar Grant, Kyle Leonard and Mike McKeever.
Together, the group ran a time of 9:42 at the Duke Invitational. On a warm night with thousands of athletes looking
Fitzgibbon, who has come on this season as the Blue Devils' top 800 runner, ran his 1,200 leg in 2:53, on pace for a four-minute mile. His performance enabled him to pass the baton to Grant slightly ahead of the Reebok runner.
Pressured by Reebok, Grant ran his lap in 46.5, a full second and a half quicker than his personal best. Ogilvie said that Grant, the football cornerback who signed a free agent contract with the San Francisco 49ers Tuesday, has made the difference in the team's success this year.
"We haven't had anybody in the past who could really run the 400 for us," Ogilvie said. "Since Lamar's a senior, we need to take advantage of that."
Grant's success has come largely because this is the first season that he did not have spring football practice interfering with the track season. But next weekend, when the rest of the team runs at the Penn Relays, where the DMR is a featured event, Grant will be in San Francisco for football.
But while Grant is away, middle distance runners Kyle Leonard and Mike McKeever will attempt to make up for his absence with their legs, as they did at the Duke Invitational.
Leonard, the Blue Devils' top 1,500 runner, managed at the Duke Invitational to keep the lead over the Reebok Enclave and Georgetown-the next-best college team. He handed off to McKeever still in the lead, and McKeever warded off Reebok until the very end, fading with just 200 meters to go.
That race placed this year's team as the fourth-fastest Blue Devils relay squad, and the fastest since 1972 Olympian Bob Wheeler graduated.
For Grant, and many others who have witnessed the race in the past, it holds a special place in the world of track and field.
"As a sprinter, I don't have that much appreciation for the distance races," he said. "But with all the changes of pace going from the 1,200 to the 400 to the 800 to the mile, it makes for a great race."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.