re: Could an athletic kid run a 10k with zero training?

I said that because I reasearched the times.

He’s never been interested in distance running, but he’s definitely going to be on the track team.

Yeah what Brusly said. Pacing yourself off of a winner's time when you've never run before isn't something you should do. Advise him to start slow , tell him he can stop and walk when he needs to. He's almost for sure going to start too fast and then hate the last 4 miles.

Run, or jog?

If he is just doing it for fun sure. If he wants to be competitive probably not. Distance running is a mental game. You need to pace yourself so you don't fall apart after the first half. Since it's his first 10k make sure he knows that he shouldn't try to keep pace with anyone going faster than a mild jog. It's also ok to walk if he feels the needs and as has been said in this thread absolutely use the water stations.

Also, you should probably get him an armband for an iPod or whatever he plays music off of. Having music can really help with the monotony of it all.

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I’d think so, but I’ve never run one. For those who run is this a terrible idea? It’s a Disney 10k, so I’m not sure how competitive they are.

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The Disney 10k sucks major arse. Most of the run takes place in the parking lots. My wife and sister ran it last year.

It depends on his mental strength, honestly. Running is one of those activities that is extremely mental. I once ran a 5k after not working out at all the previous 5 or 6 months. It wasnt easy, but I got through without ever stopping

But during high school, while I was in great shape from football. I used to detest when I ran track and our coach had us running 2 or 3 miles. I would frequently walk because I mainly wanted to sprint, not distance run.

thats only 5 miles so yes of course unless they are a fatty

just need to set a steady pace rather then try to run flat out the whole time

Should finish easily if he doesn't try to kill it. Come out too strong and even someone in shape from competitive sports will taper off pretty severely after the first 3 miles. Knowing what pace you can sustain past about 20 minutes doesn't come intuitively because there is no stoppage of play in running, even for 5-10 seconds like they are used to. You can't recover in running once you're burned out, and its impossible to know your race pace without practice.

So if the winner runs it in 48 minutes, how fast is their first mile? 48/6.2, or slower? Do runners pace to get faster, or do they try to keep that same exact time per mile?

First couple miles will almost certainly be faster due to race day nerves/excitement in kids. 10k is still a relatively short race, so as long as you can keep the splits within about 15 seconds you are probably good.