By Lana Douglas
Staff Writer
As Bryan students are starting to study for finals and dreaming of sleeping in their own beds, the track & field team is preparing for the upcoming National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Men’s National Track & Field meet in May and for competition next year.
Head Crosscountry and Track & Field Coach Rodney Stoker. Photo courtesy of Lana Douglas.
Preparing for Nationals
This Friday night at McCallie High School in Chattanooga, and next weekend at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Bryan’s track & field team will have its last chance to qualify for nationals.
Right now, Bryan has qualified for the 4×800 meter team relay and three men have qualified for individual races at nationals: senior Josh Bradley qualified for the 800 meter, junior Hunter Hall qualified for the outdoor marathon (26.2 miles) and junior Zach Buffington qualified for the 10k.
Hall says he is preparing for nationals through high mileage training, which includes running at the “race pace” of just under six minutes per mile.
“I don’t really know what to expect,” said Hall. “I’m hoping to finish around 2:30:00 and place in the top six to win All-American.”
Looking to progress next year
The team’s goal for next year is to progress, according to Rodney Stoker, head coach of cross-country and track & field.
The track & field team will be gaining four women and three men athletes, but Stoker expects more athletes to join as the school year approaches. With additional athletes, Stoker hopes to create a more competitive team.
Stoker said he has never been a big believer in talent; rather he believes in working hard and being consistent in training and races.
“We like to tell the athletes that there is no one day that will make you great,” said Stoker.
Need for a track at Bryan
Forty-five minutes. That is the length of the athletes’ trip to the nearest track in Cleveland. Athletes train wherever they can around Dayton and at Pocket Wilderness west of Dayton. If the athletes want to use a real track, they must use either the track at Walker Valley or Cleveland high schools.
“We really need a track if we are going to be competitive,” said Hall.
A track closer to Bryan would enable athletes to train more efficiently. Due to the long travel time and inefficient facilities, Bryan’s track & field team is unable to accommodate athletes who wish to train for sprinting, jumping and throwing.
Tracks are usually about the size of a football field, which makes it almost impossible to build on the Bryan campus.
According to Vance Berger, vice president for finance at Bryan College and temporary president and CEO of Fort Bluff Camp on Dayton Mountain, the only possible location to build a track would be at Fort Bluff.
“The funds [to build the track] would all have to come from donations, said Berger, “Then Dr. Livesay and the board of trustees would have to approve the track.”
The cost of a track is about $500,000, according to Berger. There are no funds currently available to finance such a project.
Stoker has already begun to strategize about how to make this dream come to life.
“We are in the planning stages to raise the money,” said Stoker, “but I hope it will be something that becomes reality for our program in the near future.”
Tags: Fort Bluff, Hunter Hall, Josh Bradley, NCCAA, Rodney Stoker, Vance Berger, Zach Buffington
