craigdailypress.com

There aren't many people who can run a mile in six minutes, let alone under four.

Clint Wells can and did July 5 during the inaugural Superior Downhill Mile Race in Superior.

Wells blazed across the finish line in 3:57 and was surprised to hear his time.

"I didn't think I'd break the four-minute mark," Wells said. "Things just came together for me that day.

"I didn't really train, and the race itself wasn't too hard; (it was) a downhill mile."

Along with Wells, there were four others who broke the four-minute mark. The runners share the distinction of having achieved the first sub-four-minute mile in Colorado state history.

Wells has spent the summer training, putting in 90 to 100 miles a week, and has been optimistic about his progress.

"Things have been going good," Wells said. "I am coaching myself, and it's nice to have the freedom to make the decisions. It's made things much easier for me."

Not only is Wells making his own decisions, but he also is making waves in the running world in and around Colorado.

"I'm ahead of where I was two or three years ago," Wells said, referring to his times. "I've never lost the desire and passion for what I'm doing."

That passion carried Wells through the second event of the Boulder racing series, the West End 3K on Thursday. Wells finished first with a time of 8:30.

He has steadily improved from last season and is continuing to build on his progress this racing season.

"I'm running in a 5K on Aug. 2 and training for the Falmouth Road Race in Cape Cod, Mass., on Aug 13," Wells said.

Wells is ranked No. 25 in the open men's division for the Falmouth race. His placement comes after finishing 14th at the 2005 Celestial Seasonings Bolder Boulder 10K.

The Falmouth Road Race was recently named, "Best of New England" by Boston Magazine's New England Travel and Life for 2006 in the category "Best Road Race."

The 7-mile course stretches through Falmouth, Mass., and takes runners along the Atlantic coastline.

Wells finished last year's Falmouth Road Race 13th overall, 12 seconds behind Linus Malyo of Kenya, and just 2:31 behind first-place finisher Gilbert Okari, also of Kenya.

With quick times this summer, Wells is content with his training regimen and is looking forward to finishing the 2006 racing season on top.

"It's great to be back and to be where I want to be," Wells said.