NTN Nationals
This was this reporters first time at the NTN Nationals. I came here fresh from the excitement and pageantry of the Nike Borderclash race fully expecting another well played event, thanks to the able Nike Event Machine and over 50 teams of the nations best athletes,
I was not disappointed.
First off , the weather was better suited for a football game, no a duck hunt. A hunter in full Gortek camo, sitting in a mud choked marsh and a golden retriever covered in mud icicles would have been right at home at the Portland Meadows.
A week of wet weather topped off with sub freezing temperatures and snow set the day.
No one seemed to notice.
This race is a big deal for everyone attending.
The repeat teams are fully invested in the honor and privilege of being here, the new teams are thrilled to death to have had the great seasons needed to be running here and thrilled to death to be in a group of equals who they have read about on the likes of Milesplit and High School Runners, etc
Two teams brought agendas.
Albuqerque and Los Alamos have been battling each other all season. Los Alomos sneaked a decisive win from Albeuqerque in the state finals. The challenge to repair the upset was topmost on the to do list of the Albuqerque squad.
This challenge was important enough for their #1 runner Ben Johnson to choose between his team and the FootLocker West Regionals.
Both races are held on Dec 1. Up until this year, the top runners of the NTN were given a place at the Footlocker Nationals in San Diego. This year, politics and agenda trumped the consideration of young athletes doing there best. Athletes needed to make a choice this year. If the Footlocker Regionals already have been run, then athletes could attend both. Since the West regionals are held the same day, runners on the west coast had to make a choice between their team or the Footlocker National.
To Ben Johnson the choice was easy. Although Ben is ranked with the top runners in the nation, he chose to run with his team at NTN and attempt to propel the team to the do the best they could do as a complete team.
We are the losers here. Chris Derrick, Napperville, IL 1st 15:39.8 and Colby Lowe, Carrol, TX 2nd 15:42.8, will be attending since there regionals have already been run. Ben Johnson is the heir apparent of this triad and the race will have to wait for another day.
Footlocker missed out on what could have been it’s most exciting showdown in seasons.
Ben Johnson took third in the race 16:20.7 He placed well ahead of Los Alomos’ top runner, Allan Pitman 11th at 16:33.1
Patrick Zacharius, Albuqerque’s second man, 12th at 16:33.2 was happy to have his team complete but was empathetic to the choice Ben had to make.
The team took third behind Los Alamos and Naperville.
I asked Patrick, given the close spread in times, 125-127-134, if he had wished he had run a different race to affect the results. In utmost confidence he proclaimed he had run the best race he had ever run, his plan was to stick with and challenge Allan Pitman, stick with the chase pack and stamp over as many guys as he could into the finish. He felt he could have done nothing different and was thrilled for the race, his performance in it and all his team mates.
In fact, he has had such a successful season, that this year instead of just running XC and playing varsity basketball, he is going to heed his coaches encouragement and jump into track.
This added dimension to Patrick’s running profile should push this team to the next level and overshadow the loss Of Ben Johnson who is graduating this year.
The Elmherst XC club from York High school ,Illinois was at this NTN showdown. They have attended every NTN national since its beginnings. This team is a High School legend, Holding more than 25 High School championships, Joe Newton has been molding great athletes for over 40 years.
Steve Sulkin a Junior at York , took 4th , 16:23.2.
Steven talked about his team and his place on it with the reverence and respect expected . He was fully aware of his teams place in the running world and was honored to be running for York. In his state meet performance last year, he was expected to take 30th place and surprised himself and his team placing 15th. This was a turning point in his running plan. At this point he understood what he could become, he understood the value and payoff of hard work and deliberate training, in a classic ‘AHA’ moment, he set out. to become the runner he can be.
The plan seems to be working, grabbing a 4th place finish, in spite of the cold, mud, ice and hay.
This year was Ohio’s’Medina High School’s first appearance at NTN. The team was thrilled. I sat with them in the team tent after the race. Everyone was relieved, exhausted, and proud. They were all had a slight glaze of shock, part awe, part camera shock, part numbness from the cold.
The team was trying to gather its stuff together and retreat to the grandstands to warm up.
While they were waiting for their top runner Donald Roys, Junior, 10th 16:30.7, I talked to Jeremy Arthur, Junior, Medina’s #2 runner, 36th 16:58.2.
Jeremy ran a 15:37 this year at the regional meet . As a freshman he ran 18:03. A mediocre runner a best, it took him placing 4th at the Ohio State meet with a 16:50, to realize he could commit to the task and work hard enough to reap the payoff of sub 16 min runner.
Donald Roys showed up after 30 minutes of cameras and lights in the press tent. He stood in the cold in his running garb, (did I mention it was 30 degrees?)
He sat next to me chivering uncontrollably but eager to talk.
Donald finished his 9th grade season running third at the Ohio State meet with 16:04
A true talent from the start.
I asked him what happened to get him serious about running good enough to do what he did today.
He told me he started taking his coach serious. Donald showed up for XC practice unprepared without the benefit of summer base running, intent on doing his own workouts which consisted of 200 meter sprints.
Milt Place, his coach was patient and generous to a point. He let Donald do his thing, but in the end , Donald came around, took up his coach’s plan, bought into the summer miles and longer fall workouts and found himself winning the ALL American Steeple chase as a sophomore.
Donald put allot of the reason for his outstanding performance today on his Steeplechase experience. The NTN course consists of hay bale hurdles, lots of mud, lake features and 12 foot drumlin rolls. . Just about a Steeple Chase.
Donald was very happy about his race and the teams performance. He had a plan to be 30th at the 1st mile and pick off as many guys as he could from the 2 mile on. This plan played out just about as intended. A well run race by an athlete in control, who worked hard and ran hard to get that control..
The North Central , Washington boys came to NTN on the crest of a wave of win after win. They placed first in the Washington State meet, 3A division , took first in the NTN west regionals and broke loose of the MEAD curse.
The team ran a fine race, held together as a tight group and placed 6th in the meet.
Steve Hicks one of the teams 2 Seniors, was a little low after the race. He felt he backed off a little bit and wished he had been closer to his teammates, Leon Dean, and Jeff Howard. In reality he was only 17 seconds behind them but 19 places.
He finished the race with a clear plan to adjust his training and nerve to backload his race and hang on at the last half.
With an attitude that keep surfacing from this team, he was most upset that he let his team down, but just a bit.
6th in this crowd is real good!
Andrew Kimpel placed 22, 16:42.1
Eastlake Girls team, running as the Wolfpack of Sammaish, WA. The girls from Easlake are a young team, they drove down to the mud and ice and snow to capture a 3rd place finish in the Girls Open Race, dominated once again by the Girls Kenyan Team.
The boys Kenyan team took first place in the open race
Thanks to everyone for making my first time such a great time.