Matt Smith’s time-released allergy pill didn’t work, but his timed kick did.
Loudoun Valley’s sole senior made a decisive move in the last half mile of the Oatlands course to break the tape in the 4A boys race April 24, running and sneezing his way to a 16:22 win over Grafton junior Ben Madrigal’s 16:27.
Mackenzie Keller knew the Oatlands course well enough to know the first mile was a trap.
“I knew a lot of people were going to go out fast,” she said. “That’s what they did last year (at the Oatlands Invitational in 2019) and I got sucked into it and it got me. I wasn’t going to do it again.”
When Colgan senior Bryce Lentz made his move to pull away from Arnav Tikhe in the third mile of the Virginia 6A championship, he had to do it fast.
Lentz’s gentle demeanor wouldn’t let him say in so many words that he was trying to extinguish any hope Tikhe would be able to hang with him after that on the hilly Oatlands course. He was more delicate, but the effect was the same.
Thais Rolly’s dad Philippe wanted her to grow up playing a lot of sports, so she did.
Soccer, tennis, swimming, rock climbing.
Spring is here along with signs of the season: blooming flowers, warmer temperatures and dwellings yearning to be cleaned.
Spring cleaning is an opportunity to purge and get organized, and runners may too find themselves trying to clear their homes of unneeded items such as old shoes, ill-fitting race shirts or shabby shorts. Some area organizations and business can help runners get rid of mementos gathering dust and help others in the process. (more…)