Runner rebounds from injury, sprints to top

Laura Clark / Nelson County Times
Published: February 6, 2008

The junior had plenty of time, three hours at least, to prepare for her event, the 500-meter dash. Plenty of time to stretch and warm up. Plenty of time to get nervous, as she does when she's ranked in the top five going into a race.

A thumbprint size abrasion above her right knee reminds her not to put too much pressure on herself. At the same track two weeks ago she pushed herself too hard. This combined with a training schedule interrupted by cold weather and snow days caused Stowe to fall just a few feet from the finish line.

"I think my legs just got really tired," she said. "My form just... stopped."

Stowe shrugs off the memory. The burn was minor, really, as are the nagging shin splints being soothed by two ice packs on her legs.

Stowe planned to run cross country for the first time this year. She'd already established herself at the 400-500 range, placing second in the 400 at the 2007 state outdoor meet.

She figured cross country would help her endurance. She also wanted to make some new friends, since the girls closest to her had recently graduated.

During practice the first day of school, Stowe severely sprained her ankle.

"She definitely got down there," Nelson coach Lindsey Nash Hill said. "She felt a little disconnected because at practices she'd be in the training room. Hard or fun practices, she couldn't be there with the team."

Through the fall, Stowe worked with athletic trainer John Coots at the high school and also with a physical therapist. She was ready to run when cross country season ended, and spent the two weeks between seasons getting back in shape with track teammate Kate Collins.

"I think I'm good at pushing myself," Stowe said. "Sometimes I just want to quit, but I keep working."

Though her ankle still needs to be tapped and will pop on occasion, Stowe said she's close to 100 percent.

Among all schools in the Lynchburg area, Stowe is ranked second in the 500 to Heritage phenom Laura Rapp. Stowe rebounded from her fall to run a 1:20.79 at the Virginia Tech Invitational on Jan. 26, placing 15th out of 49. She has already qualified for the National Scholastic Indoor Championships in March.

It was about this time last indoor season when coaches prompted Stowe to shift her concentration from the 800 and 1,000 events to the 500.

"We can use her in the 4 by 400 or the 4 by 800," Nash Hill said. "She's very versatile. She'll do whatever we ask of her."

The 500, like the 400 during outdoor season, is the perhaps the most grueling race. It is just long enough to require endurance, just short enough to be a sprint.

Nash Hill said the race is a good fit because Stowe has the right combination of speed and stamina. Plus she runs on her toes, not the heel-toe footwork of a distance runner.

Stowe says she uses very little strategy for the 500, though she'd rather start out fast and have to slow up than try and gain speed during the short race.

At the Classic, she gets out from the start, not leading but keeping pace with long even strides. The leader burns out, and Stowe hangs in second place for another lap but cannot pass Patrick Henry's Natalie Woodford.

"The last half I try and do faster, just give it my all," Stowe said. "It helps if someone's in front of me, because I know I'm not going ridiculously fast."

She said it was good race, maybe a bit conservative, but her legs are tired enough to tell her she ran hard.

And then Stowe gets a burst of adrenaline when she sees her time, 1:19.64, a personal record, and she and Collins grin, jump up and down, whooping, and the trepidation that simmered in the hours before the race was gone.

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