Jon Naito of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer has written this nice little story on masters mile star Tony Young and his family, especially budding high school mile prodigy Mack Young. I also have it on good authority that Tony, who runs in the masters 3000 exhibition at the Olympic Trials tonight, will soon be the subject of a story in the competing Seattle Times (along with M65 sprinter Steve Robbins). Be sure to check my Trials blog for live details of the masters 3K in Eugene, which starts at 7:05 Pacific time — the first event on the track at the Trials. And if you have a moment, send a thank-you note to reporter Naito and P-I sports editor Nick Rousso for covering masters track.

Here’s the story, in case the link goes dead:

Mack Young follows dad Tony’s faster footsteps
Last updated July 2, 2008 11:41 p.m. PT
By JON NAITO
P-I REPORTER
REDMOND — Tony Young is, by trade, a loan officer. His office at a Venture Bank branch is located in downtown Redmond, and there is a certain neat triangulation to his life — work and home and the schools his children attend are within a short drive of each other. It is an idyllic suburban life.
Young turned 46 in April and has the lean build of the collegiate runner he was. He is, by all accounts, a doting husband and father with a gregarious Southern charm, the product of his upbringing in rural Kentucky.
On May 31, at a suburban Portland community college track, Young ran an outdoor mile in 4 minutes, 16.09 seconds. The time was a world record in the 45-49 age group, and also established a new mark within the Young household.
Tony’s son Mack, who just completed his sophomore year at Redmond High, had run 4:19.20 in the 1,600 meters as a 15-year-old, and now Tony, one of the world’s most accomplished masters distance runners, had regained household bragging rights.
For the time being.
‘I think sometime soon Mack is going to pass his dad,’ said Tony’s wife and Mack’s mother, Heather.
‘But Tony is happy for him. He’s excited to see Mack following in his footsteps. They each take pride in the other’s accomplishments.’
Father and son are separated by three decades, but there are many similarities, both in temperament and running style.
Both are tall and lanky — Tony is 6 feet 1 and 170 pounds; Mack is 6 feet and 150 pounds — and both have an aggressive approach during races, going out hard from the outset, pushing the pace to see which of their competitors will dare expend the energy to chase them.
‘I like being in front,’ said Mack, who recently turned 16. ‘I don’t want to sound cocky or anything, but I like the attention of being at the lead and having people focusing on you and trying to chase you down. It’s exciting.’
Adds Tony: ‘I would rather be dictating the race than having it dictated for me.’
They also share the same laconic, easygoing manner. They both love to eat and cite the ability to consume prodigious amounts of food as a benefit of running. Mack also uploads music to his dad’s iPod, and Tony jokes how this makes him a cool dad. Mack is the quieter of the pair, but both handle themselves well in social situations, and they have a comfortable rapport, ribbing each other constantly.
And a review of their achievements confirms that they share the same gene pool.
Mack is one of the state’s top high school runners in his class, and finished seventh in the 1,600 at the 4A state meet in May, where he ran his personal-record time.
Denis Villeneuve, the cross country and distance coach at Redmond, said recently that Mack has the potential to be a top-flight runner.
‘The next two years you should see him make an impact,’ Villeneuve said.
Mack has finally dedicated himself to training, doing light running most days to keep in shape, and his dad gently chides him about becoming more dedicated. And like many teenagers, he is in the market for a summer job.
Tony’s résumé is far more expansive.
He was a state champion miler in high school and a seven-time All-American at Cal State Los Angeles, and has set numerous marks in masters competition since re-entering competitive racing at age 40. Days after his world-record performance in Portland, he set an American age group record in the 3,000, running a time of 8:36.0 at a meet in Shoreline. He holds the fastest American times in his age group this year in the 800, mile and 3,000.
‘He just has an extra gear no one else has,’ said David Cannon, a fellow masters runner and member of Club Northwest, for which Young also runs. ‘It’s inspiring to see, and it certainly pushes you to strive for your best.’
Tony and Mack are not the only runners at home.
Heather, 41, was a two-time All-American at Cal State Northridge, where she specialized in cross country and the 10,000.
In the fall, Mack’s little sister, 13-year-old Andie, will enter the ninth grade, where she will run cross country and try her hand at sprinting.
Next for the family is a trip to the Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore. Tony will run a masters 3,000 exhibition race on Thursday and is one of the favorites. At the 2004 trials, he won a similar exhibition in the 800.
‘(Running) was just normal for them growing up,’ Tony said. ‘They grew up around it. Both Heather and I ran, and the kids, with just a little push, gravitated towards it. It just seemed like a natural thing to do.’
P-I reporter Jon Naito can be reached at 206-448-8209 or jonnaito@seattlepi.com.