Author: mixcspeedratings

On March 13th, Martina Reyes, a junior from Livonia Churchill who ran cross country this past fall was involved in a car accident. She had to be pulled from the vehicle using the Jaws of Life and was transported to Mott Children’s Hospital. Thankfully, she is still here with us, but has sustained multiple injuries and will require multiple surgeries, along with around the clock care. A GoFundMe has been started to help her family with medical costs. Please donate if you can.

Indoor Championship Season – High School

This past weekend, many Michigan athletes and schools traveled cross the country for their various national championships. Division 1 to Birmingham, Division 2 to Pittsburg (no not that Pittsburgh), Division 3 to the Fast Tracks of South Carolina, and our high school kids took in the Big Apple. Among them, you had team champions in Grand Valley State’s men, new national records from Purple Track Club and Grace Stark, numerous individual champions, and countless opportunities for our athletes to show themselves out on the national stage.

Browsing the coaching forums on the internet, you’ll always find a few complaints with the amount of national championship races at the high school level. Not here. Without a powerful overhead body, it’ll be tough to have one consistent national championship, whether that be for track or cross country. With shoe companies looking to spend for influence, they will try to get their name on national events as well. As a result, this past weekend, you had two “national championships” in the same city, a 100 minute subway ride away from one another. You know what that created? MORE OPPORTUNITIES for our athletes to compete. I’m all for it.

It would be impossible to digest all the performances from NYC, but if you’re looking for a quick summary and where each effort stood in the history books, check out Jeff Hollobaugh’s twitter threads: NBIN Sunday, Nike Sunday, NBIN Saturday, Nike Saturday, and check out the rest of his feed for Friday highlights.

A few highlights that stood out to me were:

Hunter Jones solo’ing a 14:20, winning the 5k title at Nike. We had a conversation earlier this winter where he admitted to struggling in the middle of races and that being a point he was working on during training. We saw evidence of that in Ypsilanti a few weeks ago and further evidence here, where he won by 35 seconds. His paces slightly slowed in the later miles, his splits being 4:30, 4:41, 4:38, but a year ago, that 4:38 would’ve been 4:58.

Our hurdlers, Benny Diaz, Nonah Waldron, and Tamaal Myers II. Each laid their stamp on the 60h at the Armory, with Waldron winning, Diaz and Myers both placing in the top 8.

The Alma contingent at Ocean Breeze. Come Fall 2023, watch out for this distance squad. The Lebron Distance Project is in full effect over there, Gene heading up at the high school level, Allie at the middle school level, and that combo led to four of their middle school kids running 5:10 or better, headed by Thomas Larson’s 4:44.

The Purple Track Club. We’re well familiar with the Pioneer girls at this point, but we hadn’t seen them lose. They did Saturday night, to a worthy Flower Mound squad. In case anyone was curious how they’d respond, another National Record, 8:51 in the 4×800 was the answer.

Of course, there are many more. I could just list results, but that wouldn’t tell everyone’s story. I did reach out to a girl whose story I adore. Talent, injuries, victories, failure, this girl has had it all in her career and she just keeps on rolling with the punches. Those familiar with me know that I’ll always root for the underdogs, antiheroes, those that aren’t perfect and haven’t had every break go in their favor. Thank you to Lani Bloom for letting me toss a few questions her way.

You’ve always been a bit of a star in Ithaca, running with the HS team as a middle schooler and on relays at Indoor State. With that early success, many kids might have a big ego, but you don’t. How have you, along with Coach Lebron managed expectations and continued to stay motivated?

I think what’s kept me motivated throughout my career is how (Gene) Lebron creates such great competitive mindsets in everyone on the team. For me personally, he taught me that there’s always something I can do that will make me faster, whether it’s sleeping an extra hour at night, running slower on an easy run, or pushing the 3rd lap of a mile. It’s helped me stay focused on improving myself as an athlete rather than just improving my times. It also helped to keep our expectations and egos in check because no matter how great everything is going, you can always improve something.

Between your sophomore year of cross country and indoor track, you underwent a huge improvement. To what do you attribute that leap?

My sophomore season ended fairly badly, which made me realize I was really neglecting the things I needed to run fast like food, sleep, and general confidence, and happiness. Between those seasons I made a ton of goals to make sure I would come out stronger. I ate probably 2 to 3 times as much, slept more, and started pushing myself more to make my efforts and recovery good quality. I also attribute a lot of my success to my team, we got insanely close that winter and when a whole group shares the same desire to get better is when things like my jump happen. *I love that last point. Much individual success is owed to the team environment*

You’ve really brought it in championship meets, both on the state and national stage. What allows you to get in the right mindset on race day and be able to compete to the best of your ability?

I really try to treat big races the same as small ones and just enjoy the opportunity to run. I get intensely nervous sometimes, but usually talking to my coach and reminding myself of the all the work I’ve done to that point is going to pay off helps me zone in and focus on going to the line ready to just run because I love running. I try to start every race thinking that I’m ready to show people how hard I’ve worked.

Every big race I’ve seen you run, you take it from the gun. But here, it was a bit more tactical and you came from behind. Can you let us know how the race unfolded and what was going through your head on that final lap?

(You can watch the last lap video here)

I really did not expect to be leading that race. I know that in elite races like that one it’s either a tactical sit and kick race or an intense fight from the beginning. When I took the lead, I was scared that Addison would do exactly what she did and make a hard move at the end. I spent the whole race preparing to respond to it and when she went for it, I knew I could either give it my best shot and either win or die trying. I’m glad my kick held up against hers.

What are you looking forward to in outdoor track? Any big goals or races you’re shooting for?

For my last track season, I’m really focused on enjoying my time and preparing myself to go to college. My main goal is to go to every meet and do something to make myself a better athlete or teammate. I’d really like to run at Brooks PR and Hayward this summer, but Lebron and I decided that one step at a time is the best approach to these things so I can be ready when nationals season does come around and still get the most out of my last high school season.

Indoor Championship Season – College

You know I love a good chart.

I was completely wrong when I tied Grand Valley State’s men’s chances to getting points from the 800. The Lakers did clean up in the distance events with Isaac Harding, Caleb Futter, and Tanner Chada racking up 29 points. But it was the other events that contributed to the trophy finding a home in Allendale. Brandon Miller’s 200m victory, Eli Kosiba in the high jump.

What about Cheyenne Williamson? Two consecutive pentathlon titles and she wasn’t finished there, notching All-American honors in the 60h and Long Jump. MLive had a good roundup detailing the Cardinal performances.

I spent much of Friday and Saturday watching Division 3, mainly because the D3 Glory Days folks did such a great job in their coverage. Division 1’s coverage had lapses, blank screens, and coverage breaks. Division 2, a robotic announcer who was shocked any time a top seed lost. The high school races were an impossible ask for anyone to cover with the sheer volume of competitors.

But Division 3 absolutely nailed it. Back stories, analysis, and intimate knowledge of the racers. We were treated to some thrillers, both Calvin’s women and Hope’s men in the DMR Friday night and Derek Plitt in the 60m/200m Saturday evening. Plitt particularly had me on the edge of my seat. In the 200m, with a 6-lane track requiring a 2-section final, his 21.62 in the first section looked to have a great shot at victory, but sadly he was outperformed in the second section. I love a good 200m track, but that’s a major drawback in a championship race. You can watch the DMRs here (starting at the 5:04:00 mark) and the 200m here (starting at the 2:14:00 mark).

Practice Has Begun!

Jacob Tanner provided a great preview of the distance events, two hundred seventy freaking three pages long. I thought I’d cover something a little different, the division switches this week and regional changes/state qualifiers next week. Some of those moving up in division (for instance, 4 to 3) may not appear as if they have times that compare, but as I always say, winners win. When the competition level rises, so do the competitors. Here’s a few people and teams that may shake up the pecking order in their current divisions this year.

Moving to Division One

Coldwater – From Division Two

Cameron Torres – 20’7 Long Jump, 18th Indoor State 60m

Flint Kearsley – From Division Two

Brendan Schanick – 48’7 Shot Put, 7th D2 State Shot Put

Tyler Csintyan – 6’0 High Jump

Sturgis – From Division Two

Rasean O’Tey – 11.30 100m

Brenden Myers – 11.31 100m

Jamiel Brown – 19’8 Long Jump, 2nd Indoor State Triple Jump

Korin Whitcomb – 5’6 High Jump, 2nd D2 State High Jump

Moving to Division Two

Detroit King – From Division One

East Grand Rapids – From Division One

Camryn Bodine – 59.3 400m, 2:14 800m, 5:03 1600m, All-State XC 2020, 15th D1 State 800m

Claire Weaver – 60.5 400m, 16th D1 State 400m

Drew Muller – 4:55 1600m, 10:46 3200m, 2x 5th Place XC State, 8th D1 1600m

Abigail Petr – 5:14 1600m, 11:14 3200m

Ainsley Workman – 5:02 1600m, 11:07 3200m, 4x XC All-State

Frances Hoffman – 48.3 300mH, 16’0 Long Jump, 17th D1 State Long Jump

Thea Newkirk – 11’0 Pole Vault, 7th D1 State Pole Vault

Pinckney – From Division One

Caleb Jarema – 1:59 800m, 4:12 1600m, 8:59 3200m, D2 State XC Champ, 6th D1 1600m, 5th D1 3200m

Lucas Pasternak – 15.8 110mH, 42.5 300mH

Andrew Otberg – 6’1 High Jump, 11th Indoor State High Jump

Cecelia Thorington – 2:29 800m, 5:24 1600m

Mallory Farmer – 27.1 200m, 59.6 400m

Richland Gull Lake – From Division One

Zeeland East – From Division One

Caden Meyer – 9:33 3200m, 11th D2 State XC, 6th Indoor State 3200m

Aidan Taylor – 54’5 Shot Put, 163’6 Discus, 4th Indoor State Discus, 6th Indoor State Shot Put

Ily Watson – 12.58 100m, 19th D1 State 100m

Paige Westra – 59.7 400m, 42’5 Shot Put, 5th D1 State Shot Put

Allison Kuzma – 5:17 1600m, 11:07 3200m, 11th D2 State XC

Carrollton – From Division Three

Derrick Voltz – 11.03 100m, 23’2 Long Jump, 8th D3 State 100m, 12th D3 State Long Jump

Ferndale University Prep – From Division Three

Kingsley – From Division Three

Gage Hessem – 51.9 400m

True Beeman – 16.3 110mH, 42.7 300mH

Riley Brock – 48’9 Shot Put, 141’4 Discus, 10th D3 State Shot Put

Lauren Wooer – 62.9 400m, 48.4 300mH, 9th D3 State 300mH

Parchment – From Division Three

Garrett Winter – 4:19 1600m, 9:19 3200m, 2nd D2 State XC, 7th Indoor State 1600m, 4th D3 State 3200m

William Winter – 2:00 800m, 4:27 1600m, 24th D2 State XC

Redford Westfield Prep – From Division Three

Saginaw – From Division Three

Karim McCune II – 11.39 100m, 10th D3 State 100m

Shepherd – From Division Three

Zach Buckley – 15.9 110mH, 12th D3 State 110mH

Ariel Warner – 61.2 400m, 8’6 Pole Vault, 16th D3 State Pole Vault

Ellie Sickles – 17.9 100mH, 12th D3 State 100mH

Kendell Wilcox – 5’3 High Jump, 5th D3 State High Jump

University Prep Science and Math – From Division Three

Moving to Division Three

Almont – From Division Two

Mason Smith – 11.08 100m

Thomas Dyer – 11.55 100m, 12’6 Pole Vault

Drew VanDyke – 123’10 Discus

Devin Johnston – 12.70 100m, 26.60 200m

Montserrat Coronel – 15’5 Long Jump

Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard – From Division Two

Sunisthh Singh – 10:22 3200m, 32nd D3 XC State

Gianna Hoving – 5:31 1600m, 13th D3 XC State

Detroit International Academy – From Division Two

Detroit Leadership Academy – Didn’t Have Track

Detroit Osborn – From Division Two

GR Covenant Christian – Didn’t Have Track

Meghan Beute – 5:16 1600m, 10:50 3200m, 17:43 5k, 2x All-State XC

GR West Catholic – From Division Two

Tim Kloska – 11.51 100m

Luke Bailey – 17.1 110mH, 44.3 300mH

Thomas Bearden – 49’10 Shot Put, 14th D2 State Shot Put

Kyle Kloska – 48’4 Shot Put, 148’4 Discus, 9th D2 State Shot Put

Andrew McAlary – 20’9 Long Jump

Maggie Duba – 2:25 800m, 5:19 1600m

Ali Junewick – 12:02 3200m

Ally Olszewski – 15’10 Long Jump, 9’7 Pole Vault, 15th D2 State Pole Vault, 18th D2 State Long Jump

Lansing Catholic – From Division Two

Sam Matias – 19’10 Long Jump

Josh Otten – 2:04 800m, 4:27 1600m, 4th D3 XC State, 10th D2 State 1600m

David Pruder – 1:59 800m, 25th D3 XC State

Brianna Tennes – 104’11 Discus, 22nd D2 State Discus

CC Jones – 5:12 1600m

Hannah Pricco – 27.2 200m, 61.7 400m, 2x All-State XC, 12th D2 State 400m

Newaygo – From Division Two

Standish Sterling – From Division Two

Brayden Sullivan – 11.65 100m

Adrian Zettle – 17.6 100mH, 51.1 300mH

Lillia Arbuckle – 36’8 Shot Put, 88’9 Discus

Burton Atherton – From Division Four

Detroit Southeastern Tech – From Division Four

Ottawa Lake-Whiteford – From Division Four

Madelyn Thomas – 2:31 800m, 15th D4 State 800m

Annabelle Gapp – 49.2 300mH, 5th D4 State 300mH

Saugatuck – From Division Four

Benny Diaz – 10.85 100m, 21.68 200m, 51.58 400m, 14.24 110mH, 39.59 300mH, 20’5 Long Jump, Indoor 60mH Champ, 3rd NBIN 60mH, D4 State 110mH & 300mH Champ, 2nd D4 State 200m, 3rd D4 State 100m (basically, everyone from Division 4 boys sprints is breathing a sigh of relief)

Luke Gorgas – 2:09 800m, 12’0 Pole Vault, 6th D4 State Pole Vault

Casey Matthieu – 6’0 High Jump, 20th D4 State High Jump

Tristan Ashley – 4:44 1600m, 10:19 3200m, 8th D4 State 3200m

Adam Martinson – 4:31 1600m, 9:58 3200m, 10th D4 State 3200m

Cat Pond – 13.53 100m, 9’0 Pole Vault, 4th D4 State Pole Vault

Aerin Baker – 16.69 100mH, 5’0 High Jump, 16’8 Long Jump, 3rd D4 State Long Jump & 100mH, 7th D4 State High Jump

Moving to Division Four

Capac – From Division Three

Annabelle Schneider – 13.32 100m, 28.67 200m, 15’9 Long Jump

Dansville – From Division Three

Melvindale Academy for Business and Tech – Didn’t Have Track

Michigan School for the Deaf – Didn’t Have Track

Muskegon Western Mich. Christian – From Division Three

Jarron Childers – 22.84 200m, 10th D3 State 200m

Grace VanderKooi – D4 All-State XC 2021

Abby VanderKooi – 4x XC State Champ, 2:18 800m, 4:48 1600m, 10:02 3200m, D3 State 3200m Champ

New Life Christian Academy – Didn’t Have Track

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (Girls) – From Division Two

Pontiac Academy for Excellence – Didn’t Have Track

Sigma Academy – Didn’t Have Track

Riverview Gabriel Richard – From Division Three

Andrew Cabalang – 11.92 100m, 24.14 200m

Alex Meszaros – 10:44 3200m, 14th D4 State XC

Rochester Hills Lutheran NW – From Division Three

Madeleine Barge – 5:33 1600m, 23rd D3 State 1600m

Mackenzie Lemke – 5:19 1600m, 11:40 3200m, 10th D4 State XC, 16th D3 State 3200m

Abby Rice – 62.1 400m, 2:29 800m, 30th D4 State XC, 18th D3 State 800m

Royal Oak Shrine – From Division Three

Wolverine – Didn’t Have Track

Any College Signings?

You bet.

Samantha Wells (Zeeland West > Dayton)
Brian Langlois (Grand Rapids Catholic Central > Aquinas)
Kyle Ackerson (Novi > Kalamazoo College)
Gavin VanSolkema (Hudsonville Unity Christian > Ferris State)
Kelly Fielder (Hanover-Horton > Adrian)
Whitney Farrell (Freeland > Ferris State)
Mara Longenecker (Freeland > Michigan)
Spencer Mistele (Plymouth Christian Academy > Wheaton College)
Mikenna Borie (St. Louis > Saginaw Valley State)
Kaitriss DeGroft (Chippewa Hills > Alma)
Alyssa Detweiler (Cedar Springs > Aquinas)
McKenna Buehler (Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills > Aquinas)
Shelby Brant (Saginaw Heritage > Lake Superior State)

Anything Else?

Shepherd’s Carly Judge received MITCA’s Overcoming Obstacles Award and was profiled by The Morning Sun newspaper.

The WeRun313 crew had a radio spot on 107.5 detailing their program and they’re hosting a Connect+Build event on Friday. In terms of urban running clubs in economically depressed areas, you’re not gonna find a larger and friendlier group of people.

This summer, Adrian College will be home to the 2022 Midwest Olympic Development Track and Field Champ. Click here for more info.

The Traverse City Record-Eagle ran a nice piece about Hunter Jones and Mylie Kelly’s races at NSAF Nationals.

The Corktown 5k, a Detroit tradition (it’s a shame it’s no longer a 4 mile race), was slowed by frigid temperatures and blustery conditions, but former and current Michigan students were not. Ryan Exell, who runs for U of M-Dearborn snatched the victory and former MRun studs Charlie Ro, Jacob Sjogren, and Andy Dingwall all were in the top-10. The best overall performance of the day likely belonged to Ferndale’s Amber Dermyre, finishing in 19:04 as the top overall female.

It’s finally nice outside. Get out there and run!

Welcome back for another week. You know, I didn’t write so much this week, mainly because I spent all weekend away, hiking and exploring in Ohio. I think this was my first two-day off stretch since October, you have to take advantage of any opportunity you get. Unless Michigan makes a run in the Big Ten Tourney, there will be some quality track viewin’ on Saturday. But anyhow, read on, this week containing more of my own thoughts than ever before.

THE TEN K

I tend to make some questionable decisions on whether to watch sporting events live. This has been a lifelong occurrence. My first Michigan football game was the ’94 Colorado game. Being up 2 scores late in the 4th quarter, game in hand, my dad and I left early. All the Hansons folks and friends done with the 10k, nothing left to watch, a day in a running store in the midst of March Madness ahead of me? Let’s turn off The TEN and rest up.

Wrong again, 27 minutes later, after realizing that Grant Fisher was in the 10k, I turned it back on again, missing everything. American record, annihilating Rupp’s previous mark. I saw a tweet that encapsulated Fisher pretty well, the gist of it being that he’s a NCAA Champ, sub-4 HS miler, Olympian in the 5k/10k, indoor 5k record holder, outdoor 10k record holder. And only 24 years old. We’ve seen him in our scene for many years and he races like a wily vet, it seems as if he’s been around for ages. But he’s so young with many miles left on his legs.

Grant was on pace through 6k to barely nip the previous record, his close showed tremendous strength and a bit of that miler speed. He ran his final 4k in 10:29, his final 1600m in 4:07, and closed in 58. To be able to close as he did off the pace that was there through 23, 24 laps sets him up well for the inevitable tactical race at Worlds.

Earlier in the week, Jeff Hollobaugh had posted an interview with Grant, taken after his 12:53 in Boston. He mentions his decision to race THE TEN instead of World Indoors, but also looks back at his college mindset, high school balancing act with soccer, and hopes for the future. It’s a great, multi-faceted interview that delves into tougher topics, definitely worth a read.

I did mention there were some Hansons people running, here’s how they performed:

Amy Davis – 32:05, 8 sec. PB
Olivia Pratt – 32:45
Natosha Rogers – 31:16, World Qualifier
Daniel Soto – 29:06
Alec Sandusky – 28:35, 5 sec. PB
JP Flavin – 28:36, 22 sec. PB

College Signings

I can’t explain the ebb and flow of these. Last week, at least 15 that came across my feed, this week, only six:

Juan David Hernandez (GR Ottawa Hills > Aquinas)
Taylor Moyer (Howell > Saginaw Valley)
Clayton Kuiper (Lake Orion > Central Michigan)
Elizabeth Sliman (Croswell-Lexington > SC4)
Kyler Dean (Vicksburg > Muskegon CC)
Carson Lafferty (Rockford > Aquinas)

GATE RIVER RUN

Distance running as a competitive sport gives us many disciplines and specialties. Mountain running, cross country, trails, track. Just this year, USATF has overseen cross country, 3k racewalk, 35k racewalk, 100 mile, and indoor track. In the road running realm, you’ll have the standard distances, but also the oddball ones. The Gate River Run would definitely qualify as oddball given our American measurements, but 15k is a nice, precise number in the metric world.

Anyhow, Gate River, with its odd distance and Floridian mountain (a bridge) was home to the 15k USATF National Championship. Zach Panning and Wilkerson Given were the lone Michiganders competing in the championship arena. Panning and a group of eight, including Hillary Bor and Galen Rupp, packed up through 8. Then at the aforementioned bridge, strategically placed in that last mile, Nico Montanez surged ahead and wasn’t matched by others. The camera crew covered his move, covered his dominating final mile, but we didn’t see the carnage in the chase pack. Panning came through the line in 43:31, finishing 8th, just seconds behind Rupp.

Some may convey disappointment finishing at the back end of the leaders, but I look to compare. Panning ran the same course two years ago and finished nearly 75 seconds slower. I don’t recall any adverse conditions on that date two years ago and the change from the OG Hyperion Elite to the HE2 is significant, but not 75 seconds so. Thus, it follows in theory that Zach should see significant improvements on his track times this spring and summer. And he’s shown that running ain’t theory, recently proven by finishing 11th at the Olympic Trials 10k when seeded dead last.

Beginning of Track Ramblings

The outdoor track season officially begins on Monday. What I plan to do is write about Qualifying Standards next week, Regional changes the following week, then after that, we should have some results to look at. And I plan on doing rankings for each crew, in the same vein that USTFCCCA has been doing with colleges: hurdles, jumps, distance, sprints, throws, vault.

For now, I want to speak from more of a store perspective. I assume that most reading this are set up in terms of regular shoes, gear, socks, etc. And I’ll also assume that most reading this are higher-end athletes looking for a competitive advantage. A quick search on Nike’s site shows no Air Zoom Victory below Men’s 11 and hardly any Dragonfly below size 9. My suggestion? Don’t worry about the brand! Brooks Wire 7 is sliiightly heavier, in my mind more responsive, cheaper, and there’s stock available. Another option would be a road racing shoe. Alphafly, Hyperion Elite, Endorphin Pro, Metaspeed, FuelCell RC Elite, amongst others. These might not be an advantage at an 800, but they’re gonna be an advantage at the 16/32 over a spike you can’t even order.

I really don’t want to promote, but I understand that track shoes are an added expense for many families, so I’ll just say this here once. We’re having our Track Day at Hansons on Sunday. Deeper discounts than you’ll receive all year (unless your coach has set up a Team Night). I know Playmakers and Ann Arbor Running Company have done similar events/deals. I can’t imagine why a store wouldn’t want to incentivize families to come, so call or roll up to your local shops and find out how they can help you.

Some Big ‘Ole Spreadsheets

Track is so damn expansive that it’s all but impossible for one man to give a preview or review of every division, athletes, teams, relays. So I did what I do best, create some spreadsheets. Hopefully these cover everyone running, I’m sure I missed a few names. If you an error or omission, you know how to find me.

New Balance/Nike/Division 1/Division 2/Division 3 Entries and Ranks (if listed)

New Balance Schedule

Nike Schedule

Division 1 Entries

Division 1 Live Results

Division 2 Entries

Division 2 Live Results

Division 3 Entries and Live Results

Michiganders at NAIA Nationals

MITS State Meet

There were plenty of results, stories, and successes from the past weekend.

To me, the biggest success was the LAB itself. In the week before, it appeared the meet would be a repeat of the Midwest Invite experience two weeks prior. Multiple event order changes within a day, entries open to the public, registration opened last minute. When the day came, the meet was efficient, events hummed one after another, and the performances flowed, matching the ease with which the meet ran.

I could write for days and there’s video of all the races, so I’ll speak off the cuff about efforts that I thought were meaningful.

The Track Life University and Motor City Track Club crews are mainstays. They’re always going to put up performances, and with the middle school portion included, you saw a bit of their development program. Hall, Jiles, Johnson, Lynch, they take these kids from their first 400m crying down the homestretch to high school, breaking 4:00 in the 4×4 and 1:40 in the 4×2, going to New York and Eugene and Texas to win countless national titles, then sending those kids off to the college and pro level.

But beyond those main two, other clubs shined. Blazers, Michigan Mustangs, Elite Performance, Michigan Accelerators. Detroit might be the capital of the Michigan sprint world, but there are other pockets of the state producing high-level runners.

One of those was Evan Knox. In his outdoor career, Evan has performed well, but is essentially an unknown. He did finish 2nd in the 100m at the Oakland County Championships, but was unable to crack the final at D1 State in that event. He didn’t even qualify for State in the 200m. This weekend, he won 4 of his 5 individual heats, claiming a 100m victory in the process.

Cementing her place as the 800 Queen of Michigan, Lani Bloom took home yet another title. She’s really rounded out her resume in the final seasons of her career. She captured her first outdoor titles in 2021’s D3 800 and 1600, broke 17:00 in a trip out to Oregon, doubled down on that 5k success in November, then moved back to the half in a victory here.

Second in that race was a girl I was elated to see finally win one. Early in both her junior cross and track seasons, it appeared Julia Flynn was on track to win a title. Sub-17 at Shepherd, 10:06 in the Elite 3200m? Those were some damn good times, but it didn’t pay off. It’s not my place to speculate why, but one must feel for the girl. Things have been looking up on the championship front for Julia. A 6th place finish at Kenosha led to a trip to EastBay Finals. Sunday, she took control of the race from the jump, coming through 800 in 2:18, opening up a considerable lead that was never closed to relinquished. A little jump for joy after crossing the line signified her excitement and relief.

And anyone that knows me, knows that I’m a sucker for improvement. As of this time last year, Shawn Juliette owned PB’s of 2:24/5:08. Through the middle of the outdoor season, he wasn’t even the best 800m runner in Livonia. At Larry Steeb, he had a breakthrough, breaking 2:00 for the first time. A base built through his first fall XC campaign paved the way for another breakthrough, this time during indoor. He was paced to a 1:56 a few weeks back with help from some friends from Johannesburg-Lewiston. Sunday, he took it from the jump, leading wire to wire enroute to another 1:56. As I said on Twitter, it’s The Skroll Effect. I’m not joking with the hashtags though, when you have a coach with championship experience of her own, there’s no way it won’t pay off to her athletes.

All of these were great individual efforts. The dominant club on the distance side was the Up North Elite Track Club. The results speak for themselves. Victories in both DMRs, the Boys 4×800. A sub-9 from Hunter Jones in the 3200m. A medal in the 1600m from Allison Chmielewski (who also had the kick of the weekend in the DMR).

I’m just a city boy. I can walk to the bank, post office, party store, coney island. Conveniences are just a step away, so were running partners. Meet up for a run? Yeah, I’ll just run to Dave’s house and we’ll go from there. I couldn’t imagine living in Roscommon, Buckley, or Manton. Weight room? Yeah, we had that in the school. Treadmills? Community center is four blocks away. Can’t find a clear path? Lower Huron, Stony, Kensington are all paved, plowed, and salted. Need to run inside? Ultimate Soccer can be rented out.

For us suburbanites, reality is set up well for distance running. In the upper reaches of the state, the reality is much different. Another runner of your stature might be an hour away. Your only stretch of clean pavement might be a busy highway. The resources might not be there, but the toughness is so very apparent. That toughness has showed in the past through legends of our sport, Ryan Shay, Jeff Drenth, Paul McMullen. It shows today through future legends. It shows in the coaches creating communities, Brendan Marcum, Asa Kelly, Doug Drenth, Lisa Taylor, Pete Moss, Matt Peterson.

Trevor Thiebaut and I have found a little friendship throughout the past few years. It started a bit rough; I probably ranked Cadillac too low in that 2020 season. The passion is apparent in everything he does. Whether that’s teaching, coaching, building a cross country course, geocaching in the woods, or managing a meet, the guy brings it every time. It’s no shocker that he is a driving force behind this Northern Michigan renaissance. Given the coming out party this weekend, it’s only natural that I lobbed a few questions his way:

Tell us about the formation of the Up North Elite Track Club. When did this become an idea and who were the brainchildren?

The Up North Elite track club started when Asa Kelly and I wanted to give kids a couple familiar faces when they go to indoor meets. The idea actually started two years ago, but it didn’t get off the ground much due to COVID and some other different factors. However, this year, we went full force with the club.

The kids had more than just a familiar face going to these indoor meets, they built great friendships and had training partners throughout the winter. The kids would meet all over northern Michigan to train together. They would meet in Cadillac, Beulah, Manton, Buckley, Roscommon, and all over just to run and train with each other. Often times on a weekly basis, we would carpool to Grand Valley and CMU to use their indoor track for workouts, each 3-4 hour roundtrips.

Being small school, northern Michigan kids, we don’t have a lot of the resources that these large schools down state have. The majority of these kids train by themselves on a yearly basis. We have to drive well over an hour for the nearest indoor track. None of our schools have pools or fitness rooms with 10 treadmills in them. We have to make it work.

This track club gave these kids, that are usually doing everything solo, a group to work with and enjoy. They would train, have breakfast after runs at the Kelly’s house, get Chinese buffet after workouts, and simply just hangout. It truly was life changing for a lot of these kids.

Paul McMullen was a major mentor to you during your formative years. How has his message influenced your coaching?

Paul meant the world to me and not a day goes by that I don’t think of him. He influenced my life a ton in countless different ways.

It’s hard to pick which message has influenced me the most because he had so many, but there is one that sticks out the most. Paul always said, “Today I gave all I had, what I kept is lost forever.” That quote goes very hand in hand with being an athlete. Giving all you had in races, giving all you had in training, and things along those lines. However, I also think it can apply to coaching. Asking specific questions like, “Did I give all I had to make sure my kid had the best race plan possible?” “Did I give all I had to make sure their training fit them the best on an individual basis?” “Did I give all I had to make sure everything was right for them on race day?” “Did I make sure the kids had fun today at practice?”

I often find myself making sure every single box is checked 10 times over for every individual kid on my teams; it gets extremely time consuming and stressful, but I want them to have the best experience possible. Paul always said that the training plans and workouts are nothing if the kid doesn’t trust you and think you care about them. The kids will run through a wall for you and go to war for you if you show them you care. That’s why I always come back to the question that links to Paul’s message: “Did I give everything I had today?”

What are your plans for the club in the future?

Coach Kelly and I are definitely going to keep it rolling! Future plans for the squad are to continue it for years to come and hopefully expand it. Not just in indoor season, but summer training as well. Give these kids a group of like-minded individuals so they can continue to push each other beyond their limits and build friendships.

Moving forward this season, we have a good chunk of kids going to NYC to compete at New Balance Nationals or Nike Nationals in a couple weeks.

Watch out for the kids come outdoor season, they’re hungry and are bound to run fast.

In the midst of your coaching and teaching, you also have some personal goals in the sport. What’s on the schedule in the near future and in years to come?

After Paul passed, I made a goal to get back into competitive running shape to race in his honor.

The next race is on March 20th in Bay City for their St Patrick’s 8k. I’ll have a couple outdoor track races at GVSU and MSU, I’ll do the Bayshore Half Marathon Memorial Day weekend, some road races over the summer like the Crim, then Detroit Marathon in October. Should be fun!

College Conference Championships

In last week’s writing, I looked to a few matchups and athletes to watch from each conference. Let’s see how they performed:

Miles Brown won his initial heat in the 600m prelims, then in the final, came back and laid down a nearly impossible mark to beat, a 1:15.87. Nearly impossible left room for a Hawkeye to sneak through, Jenoah McKiver besting Brown by 0.2 seconds. I believe Brown is training more with the 800m group at Michigan and this isn’t an exact comparison, but McKiver has run 45.4 indoors. I wish this was a single section final so we could have seen the two go head to head.

The Michigan mid-distance contingent as a whole performed well in their battle against Iowa. Dubem Amene set a Michigan record in the 400m prelims (46.34), then doubled down on that record in the final, scorching a 46.04 and 2nd place. Cole Johnson finished 3rd in the 800m, and while not a PB, it was his highest place in a Big Ten Championship. But the Iowa depth was too much, as the Hawkeyes captured their third straight indoor crown.

Jenna Magness did go head-to-head against Bethany Hasz. In Friday evening’s 3k, Hasz and Magness battled down the stretch, with Hasz leaning to an ever so slight victory, a victory nonetheless. Magness left no doubt in Saturday’s matchup, winning by 13 seconds.

Dennis Mbuta was able to join Jonathon Groendyk as a qualifier for D2 Nationals. They’ll need points here to complement the strength of Harding, Chada, and Futter. The GLIAC 800m race was a two team showdown between the Lakers and Northwood, with representatives from each school grabbing the first six spots.

Makayla Sumrall and Alona Olshevska sadly missed each other in competition, but that just left more titles for each. Olshevska took home the 200m and 400m titles, Sumrall the 60m.

With over 80% of the GLIAC schools based in Michigan, we’re a sure bet to take home many of their honors, but that doesn’t make the honors any less notable. Klaudia O’Malley and Isaac Harding were named Athletes of the Year. Reagan Justice and Brandon Miller were named Freshman Athletes of the Meet.

Spurred by their highest finish since 1985, the coaches over at Northwood was named GLIAC Staff of the Year. David Hodge, Collin Nurenburg, Heather Johnson, Marcus Myers, and Jeremy Wilk all combined for the honors and I’m glad it’s the staff being honored rather than one coach. As we know, running a track program is a master course in logistics and communication.

Baldvin Magnusson came away victorious in the 1500, 3k, and 5k. Quite a letdown that he only finished 3rd in the 800. Even with that tremendous letdown, the Eagles rode his contributions on way to a team title.

Central Michigan was able to pick up a victory, with Hayley Manners taking home the long jump with a leap of 20’5”, ranking her in the top-40 in all of Division 1.

Placing 3rd in the mile with a 4:46, Anna Petr helped the Colorado State girls bring home a Mountain West title.

Gabby Hentemann (Grand Haven) nabbed two podium finishes at the Big Twelve Championships, placing 2nd in the 5k and 3rd in the 3k.

Commitment Watch 2022

Justin Miller (Fenton > GVSU)
Jessica Jarski (Warren Regina > Cornerstone)
Donavan Mattson (Caledonia > Michigan Tech)
Evan Knox (Bloomfield Hills > Delaware State)
Sophie Bonnema (Holland West Ottawa > MSU
Ty Nagy (White Lake Lakeland > Wayne State)
Eliot Ross (Belding > Trine)
Easton Williams (Milford > GVSU)
Noah Reuter-Gushow (Midland Dow > GVSU)
Tristin Canales (Otsego > Colorado Mesa), joining his Otsego teammate, Chase Brown.
Jack Brass (Romeo > Lawrence Tech)
Will Houvener (Lake Orion > Adrian)
Brian Langlois (Ionia > Aquinas)
Nick Knust (Croswell-Lexington > SC4)

In the Media

Port Huron area athletes were featured in a Blue Water Healthy Living article about the MITS State Meet. I adored Reese Powers and Hannah Fisher’s attitude toward competing on a relay team at the state level. The two have been at the forefront for Marysville throughout the past four years, but haven’t necessarily been afforded the opportunity to compete against some of the bigger, more established schools. Each week, the girls have been making the hour+ trek to practice with the Breen squad, and this weekend, were both integral parts of teams that medaled.

BVM Sports talked with Comari Hawkins in a lengthy piece about her commitment to Houston, her father’s influence, and the help of the Track Life crew. I had no clue her father played in the NFL and I think that’s a positive in her development. Rather than push her into sports, buoyed by the thought of carrying on his legacy, she exerts positive pressure on herself.

Being a huge basketball fan myself, it’s a pleasure seeing some of our cross country stars take to the hardwood. MLive wrote about Whitney Farrell, an All-State runner for Freeland, but also the PG of a team that’s had success year after year. It’s no surprise that her endurance earned on the course has translated to the court, as she’s turned into a tireless leader for the Falcons.

The Purple Track Club/Ann Arbor Pioneer girls were interviewed by Dyestat’s Doug Binder. I enjoyed hearing more about Emily Cooper’s backstory, the influence of Zofia Dudek, and how the disappointment of missing 2020’s track season led to their emergence of the past few years. Maybe I shouldn’t be impressed by this anymore, but I’m in awe of the outgoingness of these girls. Here’s the video, it appears that it’ll need a RunnerSpace+ subscription in order to view.

Other Happenin’s

Donavan Brazier had a tumultuous weekend that thankfully, ended well. A DQ in his 400m prelim was reversed, allowing him to finish 2nd in the 400m (45.75) and earn a spot heading to Belgrade.

The USATF 50k Championships were held this past weekend on Long Island. Two Michiganders placed high: Sam Skeels (Siena Heights soccer & track) was the top master and finished 6th overall, Rich Power won his 55-59 age group and finished 16th.

NAIA Nationals are being held this weekend in Brookings, South Dakota (South Dakota State’s massive indoor track). You can find the men’s qualifiers here and women’s here. Conveniently broken down by school, too!

The Hansons crew is headed in two different directions this weekend. A majority of the team is headed to race in Sound Running’s The Ten, hoping to get a US 10k qualifier in anticipation of that race in May. Zach Panning and Wilkerson Given are racing in Jacksonville at the Gate River Run, the USATF 15k Championship. The Gate River field is loaded, some names you may recognize include Hillary Bor, Morgan Pearson, Jake Riley, and Galen Rupp.