On Saturday morning, the Fairbanks Panthers XC teams met in the school parking lot in preparation for one of the highlights of the season: The Nike XC Town Twilight Meet in Terre Haute, Indiana. This meet, one of the largest in the state this year, sees teams from all over the Midwest come to the LaVern Gibson Championship Course. “This is the real deal,” said Head Coach Michael Van Winkle. “I mean, the competition is going to be unlike anything we’ve faced so far this season. It could be the most competitive field that any of these athletes will ever see. That’s why I’m already drinking my second gallon of milk this morning. I need the energy to deal with all the nerves that our athletes are sure to exhibit today. We just need to stay calm and run our races, and we’ll be fine. A 5K is still a 5K, at the end of the day.” The athletes themselves were feeling no such pressure however. “I don’t care if we are running against a bunch of Hoosiers,” said junior Zeke Gingerich. “I’m going to show them how we do things in Ohio. I mean if you think about it, Ohio is like the king of the Midwest and Indiana is just a lowly court jester. But I’m psyched about traveling so far for a meet. It’s special, and not something that many schools our size ever get to do. Coach Van Winkle is the man.”
And travel the Panthers would, on a four hour trip to the west side of Indiana. “It was a nice drive,” said Assistant Coach Jeff Powell, “but Van Winkle wouldn’t stop talking about Ohio State football. I was trying to take a nap, but he just kept going on and on about Ryan Day and Kyle McCord. I get it, man. You like the Buckeyes. But come on!” In the backseat Vivienne Van Winkle was also a basket of jibberish, speaking in a language only intelligible to her mother. Here’s a transcript of a typical conversation:
“Ma oh knee!”
“Oh, you want fruit snacks!”
“Brapp fee row”
“Okay, you can have one more cookie…”
“Plow gee fin!”
“I agree, Ryan Day is under a lot of pressure each week, and, you’re right, he needs to start enjoying the game again, like he did back in 2017, when he was just a coordinator.”
Eventually, the Panthers arrived at the Comfort Suites University Hotel, and they unloaded their gear and settled into their rooms. A few of the lady Panther athletes took advantage of the pool, while JJ Miehls and Brady Adams chose to immediately turn on the TV to watch some college football, as Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders’ Colorado team nearly pulled the upset over USC. Miehls said, “I like Coach Prime because he’s always bringing the flash and the heat. He sort of reminds me of Van Winkle. The sunglasses, the gold chains, the flair for the dramatic.” Brady Adams agreed. “It goes beyond the flash, though. I mean, there’s just a primal desire to win in the man. He won’t stop until he gets everything out of us. And that’s what Prime Time demands of his athletes, too.”
Soon, it was time for the Panthers to head to the course. The coaches and a few parents took off early, and they’re lucky they did, as the team camp area was filling up quickly. “It was so crowded. I couldn’t believe it. I’ve never seen anything like this,” said a wide-eyed Coach Emily Van Winkle. “I mean, I’m just a country girl from Michigan. I’m used to cornfields and endless acres of soybeans. All these people, I feel claustrophobic. I think I need to sit down.” With the team camp set up, the athletes began arriving and they were equally astonished at the size of the meet. “There’s a lot of people here, it’s hot, and I’m tired,” said freshman Sadie Miller. “But I know when that gun goes POW, it’s on. I’m going to come alive and show these people what a true athlete is.” Rachael Hoover was all business, as well, as she sat with a focused expression in the shade of the team tent. “I think a lot about Herman Melville in times like this,” said Hoover. “He waited patiently his whole life, producing cheap novels with minimal appeal, but the whole time, he was waiting for his Moby Dick moment to arrive. And when it did, it took the literary world by storm. I don’t know if I feel like Melville, or Captain Ahab, or Moby Dick, but there’s a metaphor in there somewhere.” One major complaint came from sophomore Elizabeth Phillipo who criticized the septic facilities of the LaVern-Gibson Course. “Half of the toilets don’t have paper and the smell is atrocious.” Van Winkle was quick to come to the course’s defense. “What do you expect when you pile this many athletes together. It’s just a fact of nature. Phillipo needs to buckle down and just deal with it. There’s no time for petty complaints.”
8:00 approached and the boys started to prepare, by donning glow stick headbands and necklaces, and by dancing to Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the U.S.A.” Freshman Daniel Thomas said, “There’s nothing like Miley to get you pumped up for a race. Sometimes I like Radiohead, when the night comes and there’s nothing to do but sit and think about your place in the universe, but on race day, it’s got to be Cyrus. She really gets what competition is all about.”
The boys lined up in Box 19, and listened to the officials last instructions. Then, POW! The gun sounded and they were off. The course is relatively flat with one significant hill towards the end of the race. A mass of hundreds of runners took off down the opening stretch. A couple freak athletes raced to the front, but the Fairbanks Panthers didn’t take the bait and just began to do what they do so well: run steady. The miles went on, and then, as the finish line approached, there was Gingerich, flying right along, near the head of the pack. Not far behind was Nisly, followed by Miehls, Bailey, Thorley, Johnson, Thomas, and Brady Adams, who PR’d by 10 seconds. Full results are below:
Zeke Gingerich—25th—17:07
Bryce Nisly—219th—19:12
JJ Miehls—249th—19:30
Elton Bailey—274th—19:43
Noah Thorley—278th—19:47
Nicholas Johnson—324th: 20:20
Daniel Thomas—358th—20:43
Brady Adams—452nd—23:17
In the meantime, the girls decided to turn the night into summer camp, by decorating their faces and legs with glow in the dark paint. Hannah Niehaus wrote “Fear Me” on her back. “It’s just kind of my philosophy in life,” said Niehaus. “Whether you’re on the course or off it, it’s just the type of personality that you want to exude.” She then lunged, as if to tear off the face of this reporter. “Made you flinch,” said Niehaus, and then she hissed at me.
Next up were the girls. They lined up and POW, the gun sounded. A literal swarm of speedy girls took off down the long opening stretch, seemingly sprinting. Things were crowded for a long time, and the racers didn’t really get sorted out until after the third K. In the end, it was Hoover, once again leading the Panthers, followed by teammates Ava Lahmers, Sadie Miller, Mara Vicari, and others. The girls stayed in the great mood that they had exhibited before the race, with all of them having different feelings about what they had just done. Meredith Reinhard PR’d on the night by two seconds, and her joy was immediately followed by despair, as a friendly fire incident involving her hand and Hannah Niehaus’s cleat took place. After the race, Reinhard was a good sport. “I mean, Hannah had ‘Fear Me’ written on her back, so I suppose I should’ve heeded the warning.”
Full results are below:
Rachael Hoover—87th—19:21
Ava Lahmers—158th—20:00
Sadie Miller—288th: 21:22
Mara Vicari—336th—21:51
Hannah Niehaus—406th-23:20
Molly Thrush—409th—23:25
Meredith Reinhard—411th—23:26
Elizabeth Phillipo—424th—23:48
After the racing was over, the Panthers gathered back at the team tent and started tearing it down. Then POW! Fireworks! A lengthy fireworks display signaled the end of the meet and everyone loaded into the cars and they were off to Steak and Shake for a much deserved respite. By the time everyone was back in the hotel it was well past midnight, and the Panthers were tired.
But it would be an early morning for them. At 7:30, the teams and parents met in the lobby before taking a short drive over to FAIRBANKS PARK! Yes, try as they might to get away from their home school for a weekend, the banks just wouldn’t let them go. The teams lined up for a picture and then POW! Van Winkle sounded the beginning of a 45 minute light run. The Panthers were less than enthused, but they were good sports and all the athletes took off at a leisurely pace.
From there, it was back to the hotel for some breakfast, and then loading up the cars for the long jaunt home. JJ Miehls was desperate to get back for his NFL football, but it’s safe to say that this was a great weekend and one that these athletes and their parents won’t soon forget.