‘Twas only 5:40am when the Panthers XC teams loaded the bus at Fairbanks High School for a long ride up to Tiffin, Ohio for the Tiffin Cross Country Carnival Race. Eyes were bleary and hair was tousled, but after a quick infusion of some leftover chocolate milk from Tuesday, the Panthers were ready to endure the hour and half bus ride of cornfields and railroad tracks. Once the teams arrived, they methodically unloaded the bus and then walked to where our new tents were set up on the West side of Hedges Boyer Park. Soon however, drama unfolded, as some of the girls were wearing different uniforms than the others. Panic ensued, but the calm demeanor of Coach Van Winkle soon prevailed over everyone’s nerves, and a solution was discovered. “It was crazy,” said Coach Kathryn Rohrer. “The girls were about to start breaking down completely, but then Coach Van Winkle just raised his hand in the air, and the place grew silent. He spoke some gentle words in a soft whisper, and soon, the runners were calm and re-focused. Then Coach Van Winkle magically pulled a uniform out of his hat, and it was the perfect size for our runner who was missing hers. I mean, there’s something otherworldly about this guy.“
The girls would take the course first, running in the Division 1 race, which is a first for the program. Asked about the reason why the girls are racing D1, Coach Van Winkle said, “If the multiverse really exists, then we need to make our own reality. If we are who we think we are, then we need to be all that we can be.” Van Winkle then waved his hand in front of his face, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. He would reappear moments later at the start of the girls’ race. The judges went over the rules, the girls lined up in their boxes, and POW! The gun sounded and a mass of D1 (and Fairbanks) girls sprinted down the opening stretch. 19:20 seconds later, Rachael Hoover would cross the finish line in 6th place, just nine seconds off of her school record PR. “Tiffin’s my favorite course; normally, this is the course that gives me confidence for the rest of the year,” said Hoover. Freshman Ava Lahmers PR’d and finished in 23rd. “It wasn’t that different than running against D3. It was a great experience because I’ll never go to a Division 1 school. There are a bunch of egos in the race, but you just have to tune those egos out and do your own thing.” Full results for the girls are below:
Rachael Hoover—6th place—19:20
Ava Lahmers—23rd place—20:25
Sadie Miller—74th—21:39
Mara Vicari—79th—21:53
Mollie Thrush—142nd—23:31
Hannah Niehaus—151st—23:49
Elizabeth Phillipo—154th—24:01
Meredith Reinhard—156th—24:06
Izzy Miller—176th—27:06
Next up, the boys took to the line against their Division 1 opponents. The competition was fierce, as the winner crossed in just 15:33. But the Panther boys represented well, led by juniors Zeke Gingerich and Nicholas Johnson. “The boys moved the needle some today; they got a little faster, and we can work with that,” said Coach Van Winkle. “And we beat somebody!” Van Winkle continued, “I especially want to point out Nicholas Johnson, who ran a big PR today. I’ve been waiting for that kid to arrive and today was the day!” Full results are below:
Zeke Gingerich—108th—17:51
Nicholas Johnson—164th—19:36
Bryce Nisly—165th—19:39
JJ Miehls—181st—20:04
Elton Bailey—185th—20:24
Daniel Thomas—201st—21:01
After the boys and girls ran, Coach Van Winkle gathered them at the team tent and lit a small bonfire, over which he roasted a squirrel. “You ran well today,” he said. “But there is more ahead of you. . . far more than you could ever fathom.” “States?” asked a wide-eyed Elizabeth Phillipo. “Perhaps, young Panther, perhaps,” Van Winkle responded. Then Assistant Coach Emily Van Winkle broke out in song. In a lovely soprano that carried over the fields of Hedges Boyer Park, she crooned and the Panther athletes joined in the sweet refrain. The lyrics were hard to discern, and they seemed to be Celtic in origin, but the message was clear: these Panther teams are just getting started.
On the middle school side, Wes Goellner led the way for the boys by running a 12:32 and finishing in 57th place out of 241 athletes, while 7th grader Audrey Lahmers continued to impress in finishing 10th in a time of 12:47. With these middle schoolers getting hungrier and hungrier as the season moves on, the future is bright for the Fairbanks Cross Country program.
