"Marred by dust, sweat and blood", TDHS x-runners strive valiantly in Stumptown
Story by Jill Pearson
Photos by Kristi Timmons and Jeff Hodges
There’s something poetic and pretty about an easy stride and races that look effortless; Sydney McGloughlin’s graceful long hurdles this summer in Eugene, the men’s 4x400 relay in Tokyo, Kipchoge’s motionless head pacing a marathon in 2 hours.
But there’s also a beauty to the grit and toughness of a race where the labor is obvious, where the steps are a struggle. As Theodore Roosevelt commented, they’re the runners whose faces are “marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strive valiantly.”
The Riverhawks’ races at Nike Portland on Saturday were the kind of racing that Roosevelt must have been talking about. While only eleven of the Riverhawk squad saw all-season personal records or PRs, most demonstrated a mental toughness that only comes from labored races, and will be all the stronger for Champoeg next weekend, and ultimately at districts at the end of the month.
The race was the largest the teams will see all season, with more than 115 teams and thousands of runners in 16 different races at Blue Lake Park in Fairview last Saturday, Sept. 24.
One of those rare PRs came for senior runner Madison Goldbacher, who saw a minute improvement over her time from Oregon City at 27:27. Alone in her junior/senior JV Division 3 race, she pushed hard, and let her nerves settle into adrenaline to jostle her way through the crowd of runners.
“I’ve grown a lot since last year,” she commented. “Panic isn’t always a bad thing- I just get to be in control of it. It still wasn’t as good as where I’d like to be- so that’s what Champoeg is for.”
The rest of the girls’ teams also saw some strong racing, with senior Fiona Dunlop coming in at 23:29 behind teammates Alaina Casady (23rd place, at a season PR of 21:29) and Ruby Jaimes (22:56). Newcomers Abby Pope and Nayeli Vega continued to press strong, consistent practice and effort. And it facilitated their strong times in the 25-26 range.
The largest race of the day yet again was the boys’ JV. It was reduced only slightly by having the 8th and 9th Riverhawk runners run with the varsity squad. Sophomore Caleb Caldwell led the sophomore and freshman race, finishing 31st out of 286 at 19:30. The younger runners continue to be some of the most ambitious on the team- with freshmen Burdock Gerlick and Noah Preston in the mid-20:40s, and sophomore Andrew Wring getting that PR he’d looked forward to. It was just under 23 minutes.
With the top two varsity runners- Juan Diego Contreras and Leo Lemann- running in the earlier Danner Invitational race, it was up to the mid team to take charge and lead the way in the Division 3 race.
No one exemplified that more than senior Kayden McCavic, whose time of 19:05 reflected a race of hustle, moving up from pack to pack of the runners in front of him. With 200 to go, freshman Tyson Long took the 2nd (4th) place of the team, at 18:52. Sophomore Vince Ziegenhagen was hot on his heels at 19:02. Pushing through pain, the varsity boys were led by Egan Ziegenhagen, at 18:23.
In that Danner Championship race, Contreras and Lemann both raced consistent times, coming in 18th at 15:43 and 70th at 16:34, respectively. “They look a little labored,” commented coach Mandi Williams. “That’s a good thing- it helps them develop the mental toughness that’ll help them peak later in the season.”
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Or, as Roosevelt would say of those who race tough and try in the struggle, “at the best they know in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if they fail, at least fail while daring greatly, so that their place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
The Riverhawks will race at their last Saturday meet at Champoeg on Oct. 1. You can find the rest of their schedule and times on athletic.net
