Lakewood – There have been moments when Littleton’s J.T. Scheuerman has questioned his sanity.
The state’s fastest prep sprinter competed in the maximum four events at the state track and field championships this weekend, and at times he wonders why he does it to himself.
“There are times when it’s hard to step into the blocks, and it’s times like those when you go: ‘What am I doing here? Why am I even standing out here?”‘ Scheuerman said.
The grueling day was worth it for Scheuerman, who won Class 5A state titles in all four of his events Saturday, the second and final day of the two-day meet. But a packed schedule like his looks a lot better from the finish line than it does from the starting blocks.
The gun sounded for Scheuerman’s first race, the 100-meter dash, at 11:30 a.m. The next three hours of basically moving from one race to the next, Scheuerman anchored Littleton’s state champion 800 relay team, set a state record in the 400 – one of the most brutal races in track – then beat a fast field in the 200 for a sweep.
That’s enough to make even the young dream of a rocking chair.
“It’s bam, bam, bam, one after the other,” Scheuerman said. “I just try to keep my mind off my legs. I try to forget how tired I am. It’s all mental.”
Widefield’s Nyeisha Wright had the luxury of splitting her four events over two days, but that is not all it’s cracked up to be, either. While Wright was busy setting a state record in the triple jump Friday, she had to break away between jumps to qualify for Saturday’s finals in the 100 and 400, and then she had to qualify for the long jump. She ended up with three state titles and a close, second-place finish in the 100.
That is a lot for a body to take, even one that’s finely tuned.
“I just keep drinking my water,” Wright said. “I’ve seen a lot of athletes pull up in this heat. This sun is a killer, and just because it is hot outside doesn’t mean that your body is warm inside. It is a long day, especially with the 400.
“I don’t care what anybody says, the 400 is the hardest race there is. It’s more of a mental race, one where your mind will quit before your body does.”
Four-event athletes have their personal quirks when it comes to training and maintaining. Water is necessary, food is optional, and staying out of the sun is crucial.
“I can’t touch food on race day,” Scheuerman said. “I just can’t eat, but I drink a lot of water.”
It is fairly common for elite sprinters and jumpers to compete in four events, but three can make for a full day, especially for distance runners.
Rocky Mountain’s Danielle Parry won the 3,200 on Friday – a two-mile race – and then ran a leg of the 3,200 relay early Saturday before finishing with the 1,600.
Three long races, three state titles, one tired teenager.
“That is a difficult triple,” Rocky Mountain distance coach Mike Maher said. “The more experienced girls know what to do. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate, and then a quick jog to get that lactic acid out of your legs. … And once they relax, it’s time to get fired up again.”
Niwot’s Griffin Matthew competed in only three events at this state meet, but she won four state titles as a junior – the 100, 200, 400 relay and long jump. Like all multi-event athletes, Matthew has had her moments of feeling almost too tired to run.
But she puts it all on the line at state.
“You pace yourself in quads and you pace yourself in dual meets,” she said. “But at a state meet, or at a national level meet or an international meet, you risk it all every time.”
Matthew, who held off Wright to win a state title in the 100, also won the 200 and finished second in the long jump.
