They’re really hard and often don’t work for various reasons, but they DO sometimes work. Ordinarily, I’d give it a shot, at least keep up communication and see where it goes. However, seeing your age bracket, I have to be honest and say that there’s probably less of a chance that it would really work.
For one, the lack of transportation (car or funds to buy a plane ticket) will make getting into a relationship with someone that far away really difficult. They probably won’t be able to see each other more than a couple of times a year. I’m betting one or the other will probably find this a problem eventually.
Secondly, nothing against young people, it’s just that at your age, social relationships tend to be viewed a lot more fluidly than the way adults view them. You go through many different friendships when you’re young, and even though some stick and stay around forever, people come in and out of your life. In terms of romantic relationships, lots of people are together through high school, they part to go off to college, and they grow apart. If I had to guess, either your friend or the guy will probably lose interest eventually, especially if they meet someone else cool who actually lives near them.