By Kelly Gerlach

Junior High track season began with the district who usually hosts all of our meets announcing that they were not able to compete with out of area athletes. With no meets on the horizon, Glennallen's Junior High track team showed flexibility, perseverance and skill in this strange season.

Grace Rogers, the only junior high athlete at the beginning of the season, decided to stay on the team and hope for the best. Her positive attitude and hard work paid off as she was able to run unofficially with Palmer Junior High and win the 1600m on a dirt track with a time of 7:08. She also ran a time trial in the 400m at Homer and was the mandated “team official” required by all teams to help with meet logistics as fans and volunteers were strictly limited due to COVID restrictions.

When Valdez’s track became free of snow and they invited us to run with them, more junior high kids came out to compete, as well as to take the special opportunity to run with prominent Native American runner and activist, Rosalie Fish. Ms. Fish practiced with us and shared stories with the team, as well as providing valuable running advice.  She commented on how tough the kids were to brave a muddy trail run on their second practice without a word of complaint. We are grateful for this opportunity and still talking about the esteemed guidance we learned from this remarkable athlete!

At Valdez, the team enjoyed many personal records, wins and camaraderie. Grace Rogers finished her season with a personal record in the 400m with a time of 1:14 and a long jump distance of 10’8”. Zane Gerlach also ran 40 seconds faster than his last time, with a personal record mile time of 5:30. His long jump distance was 12'6". 6th grader Caleb Grandlinard took 4th in the 100m with an impressive time of 14.3 against a field of 8th graders. His 200m time was 30.6. Kayla Abbott ran an impressive mile in 7:04 and Chisana Korth ran a 7:30 mile. 

Another fun experience at Valdez was the opportunity to learn the high jump. While Zane was the only one who competed (with several successful jumps!), most of the kids (and a of couple adults) gave it a try after the competition and enjoyed the chance to learn something fun and slightly scary. We appreciate Valdez giving us the chance to try this and to Sarah Abbott for lending us her competitive advice!

Another new experience for some of the kids was the opportunity to compete on a relay team.  Grace Rogers, Kayla Abbott, Zane Gerlach and anchor Caleb Grandlinard ran a relay medley in the 4x100m with a time of 1.00.

The final highlight of the Valdez meet was a group of Copper River kids from ages 2 to 8 who came to run on the track and time themselves just for fun. One girl, 2nd grader Lacey Grandlinard, ran a mile in 7:16!  Their love of running shows promise for future Glennallen track athletes. Great work Glennallen Junior High track team!