Phoenix Flyers Track Club | Phoenix Flyers Track Club

Three Young Flyers Make Their Mark in Kansas

August 11, 2017 by dAllison

“Isa” Allison – National Champion in 8U Mini-Javelin

Weather was all-over the map in Lawrence Kansas, the site of the 2018 USATF Junior Olympics National Championship from July 24-30. There was lightning, thunder, flash flooding, wind and sunshine over the four days our three young Phoenix Flyers were competing. Our kids represented both the Flyers and the Arizona USATF Association quite admirably and should be proud of their amazing accomplishments.

8 & Under Division

Max Columbus flew in style to Kansas and made the most of his first trip to the USATF National Championship meet. He took 19th out of 42 athletes and threw a solid 16.35 meters. As stated previously, weather conditions were all over the place that Wednesday afternoon and so PRs were pretty hard to come by. Max seemed to enjoy the moment and being with his fellow teammates for this momentous achievement. Now that Max has this experience under his belt, we know he will be ready in the years to come for future JO Championship events, which he will be participating in most assuredly.

Isa Allison, the #1 ranked 8U thrower in the U.S. this year, wanted to first make All-American (top-8 athletes) status for the second year in a row (and more importantly get those “cool” All-American caps). Isa came out throwing fire and was leading after the first two rounds. She briefly lost the top spot in the third round when Meredith Banner threw 17.49 meters, but Isa being the competitor she is got up to the runway and immediately answered that assault with a 17.79-meter dart on her third throw, which would end up solidifying her top place for the remainder of the event. Isabella took 6th place in last year’s JO National Meet and this year joins her brother Charlie (National Champion in 11-12 Javelin in 2016) as our Flyers’ second National Champion – congrats Isa!

Isa did show us she was mortal by taking 29th in the long jump on Friday, which she shook off quickly knowing that the following day was an all-day adventure at Worlds of Fun and Oceans of Fun.

11-12 Division

Jake Blair has never missed qualifying for the JO Nationals since joining the Flyers in 2014 – that’s an amazing accomplishment in itself. Last year Jake was a bit disappointed in his 12th place finish and had his eyes at a top-8 (All-American) result in 2017. He was the number 3 ranked thrower at the meet and had been throwing quite well in practice over the past few weeks. Jake’s first throw was an absolute missile, but unlike anytime this year, the javelin drifted to the right and out of the sector making it a non-legal throw. Jake tried to dust off this rogue throw, but the torrential rains would be muddying up his plans and he was unable to crack the top-8 with his next two tosses. Jake ended up taking 12th overall and although he was broken up by this result, we know that next year will be his year and that walk up to the podium will be one that will have been extremely well-earned and oh-so-sweet.

Proud of All Our Flyers

Another year is in the books for the Phoenix Flyers and Coach Todd and I are so very proud of what our kids have been able to accomplish over these past 5 seasons. Every year we get a bit better as a team and we always seem to find new athletes who join us that are not only good competitors, but more importantly, amazing young people. We look forward to the 2018 season (registration is already open!) and wish you all a great fall and winter.

Pecheco & Allison Set 3 PRs Each at Phoenix Invitational

April 5, 2017 by dAllison

Henry Makes it to 100 meter Finals

Due to the NCAA Final Four being in town, other large track meets in the region and the Phoenix Invitational being a bit earlier this season, the number of athletes at “PIs” this weekend were lower than usual but the performances didn’t suffer one bit. Beautiful weather both Saturday and Sunday made for great times, throws and jumps across the board and the Flyers were definitely making their presence felt at Mesa Community College.

8 & Under Division

Max Columbus set a new club record in the 100 meters (besting his own time of a couple weeks ago) with a finish of 16.82 seconds. Max got very close to his personal best in the mini-javelin, where he took 3rd overall with a distance of 14.13 meters. Max also ran a strong 400 in 1:28.02 to round out his very impressive weekend. Isa Allison once again dominated the field in the mini-javelin and took 1st place with a toss of 16.51 meters. Isa had her best jump ever and made it to finals, where she took 8th overall (2.65 meters) and then ran a club record in the 100 meters (16.69), which was fast enough to get her invited to the ASU Sun Angel Invite this upcoming Saturday and compete against some of the fastest 8 and Under girls in that event. Emerson Rhodes was flying around the track this weekend. She crushed her previous best times in the 100 and 200, setting two new PRs for herself (18.01 and 40.52, respectively). Emerson just missed making it to finals in the long jump with a strong effort of 2.57 meters as well.

9-10 Division

Seth Henry had a very competitive weekend. He was able to make it to the finals in the 100 meters, which is no small feat. He took 7th overall and ran a new PR and club record in that distance (14.40 seconds). Seth also had a new best mark in the long jump, taking 6th overall (3.64 m). Seth ran a strong time in the 200 as well, where he clocked 30.68. Carter Bejar made his first meet and ran the 100 meters. He go out hard and crossed the line in a time of 17.34 seconds. Zachary Esparaza had those legs of his moving in Mesa. He was able to run a new personal best in the 200 (31.54) and then competed in his first 100 m of the year with a very strong time of 15.31 seconds. Robert Morris, like Carter, made it to his first meet of the year and ran the 200 in a solid 37.54 effort, but then felt a little under the weather and was not able to compete in the 100 meters later on in the day. Simon Reynolds loves that 100 meter race, and keeps knocking down his time with each attempt. He set a new PR for himself on Saturday with a 16.71 finish. On Sunday, Simon competed in the 1500, where he just missed a PR by a razor-thin margin with a very strong time for this part of the season (6:06.21). Auggie Grimm made it to Mesa Community College this weekend and we are glad he did. He was able to set a new personal record in the 100 meters, just missing the sub-16 second mark with an official time of 16.02.

11-12 Division

Gael Pacheco had a record breaking weekend with three new personal bests for himself. Gael started off his weekend by taking over 2 seconds off his 200 meter time (34.62). He then followed that up by taking .3 seconds off his 100 meter best (16.47) and then for a third encore came out on Sunday and nearly broke the 80-second mark in the 400 meter race, for a new PR (1:20.29). Khaleb Henry continues to improve in the throwing events. He bested his mark in the discus by .81 meters to take fourth place overall (17.77 m) and threw the shot over 7 meters again to take 7th in that event (7.08 m). Macy Baerman being away from practice all week due illness, was not going to let that deter her from competing at PIs this weekend. Macy managed to perform quite admirably with a 35.2 time in the 200, a 1:22.85 line crossing in the 400 and a leap of 3.36 m in the long jump. Braden Lolli took the lead in the 800 to push the pace in his heat and was able to muster a new PR of 2:37.09. Braden had a gutsy and strong finish in the 1500 meters to drop his time down to 5:14.86 and take 4th place overall. His legs were a bit heavy after two hard-fought races in two days, but Braden still was able to find a 1:08.95 time in the open 400 – less than two-tenths of a second off his best. Ben Geist seemed a bit out of sorts in the 800 meters on Saturday and finished in a time of 2:59.06; but on Sunday, Ben had a more confident vibe within and crushed his previous 1500 meter time by over 12 seconds to give him a new PR of 6:06.34.

Jake Blair competed in the discus for the first time and was able to manage a 6th place standing with a throw of 14.75 meters. Jake also threw the javelin, where he has much more experience and it showed as he found a new personal best (and club record) with a mark of 24.06 meters to take 4th place overall. Alas, the heat got to Jake in his 400 and he fought to the finish with a time of 1:23.78. Maddox Moses found a kick on Saturday as he turned on the jets with 300 meters to go in the 800 and won the heat with an impressive new best of 2:46.16. Sunday he may have even run better, as he ran a smart and strong race to a personal best time of 5:32.14, which would bring Maddox to under the 6-minute mile mark for the first time ever! Lucy Arana once she figured out how to navigate through the crowd of girls in the first 200 meters of her 800 meters race, she looked awesome. Lucy ran a speedy 800 and was able to drop her time down to 2:51.58. Like all our distance runners on Sunday, Lucy was able to run a season’s best time that day of 5:47.82, which also was a PR for her as well. Ava Clegg had a successful weekend, like many of our Flyers. She is closing in on that 3-meter mark in the long jump (2.95 m), where she garnered a new PR. And Ava’s speed is improving with each race – she cruised in the 100 meter event in a PR of 16.51 and then threw the shot 5.26 meters to round out her weekend.

13-14 Division

Sebastian Arana had many great throws in the javelin on Saturday, but due to a few foot fouls his best legal throw for the day was 17.62 m, which was over 1.5 meters better than his previous best mark in the 600 g spear. Sebastian also had a slight improvement in the shot put where he set a new high mark for himself with a toss of 6.24 m. Charlie Allison, had three personal bests this weekend on the ground, in the air and off his feet. Charlie took 5th in the long jump with a new best mark of 5.11 m. He won the javelin outright with a new best throw of 36.10 meters and is getting closer to breaking 27 seconds in the 200 as he ran out of steam down the stretch but still managed a PR of 27.2 seconds. Charlie is human and didn’t PR in the triple jump, but did take 2nd overall with his best sand landing being 10.03 meters. Robert Vloemans ran yet another personal best in the 200 (33.05), but also did some field events for the first time this year. He had solid marks in both the discus and shot put. He hurled the discus 14.45 meters and muscled the shot put 6.37 meters for a very satisfying invite.

Our next meet is in three weeks (April 22) down in Tucson.

Go Flyers!

West Siiiide Meet at Youngkers Good for Flyers

March 20, 2017 by dAllison

Ribbons, Club Records and PRs Abound at Youngkers HS

We thought the last meet was impressive for the Flyers, but on Saturday there were 18 personal records and 11 club records set at the March 18th USATF Regulation Meet at Youngkers High School in Buckeye. With it being so early in the season and so many great performances from our athletes, the future looks quite bright for the ladder part of the 2017 campaign.

8 & Under Division

Isa Allison feeling back to her old self had some impressive performances on Saturday. Isa crushed the competition in the javelin with a new best throw of 17.82 m, which would have been good enough for 2nd at Nationals in 2016. Isa also took 7th in the 100 meters with a new club record of 17.03 seconds and placed 5th in the long jump with a mark of 2.47 m. Charlotte Faltis, a new member to our team this year, competed hard in her first ever 100 meter race with a good time of 20.58 seconds. Emerson Rhodes has those hops, baby! She once again set a new club record in the long jump (beating her own one from two weeks ago) by taking 2nd overall with a jump of 2.79 meters. Emerson also ran the 100 meters in 18.78 seconds. Brooklyn Bowman improved her 400 time to 1:31.34, which was over 3 seconds better than her time from two weeks ago. Max Columbus had a solid day on Saturday. He placed 2nd in the javelin with a throw of 11.08 meters and ran a 1:28.3 400 meters in the sweltering heat.

9-10 Division

Simon Reynolds had a great meet on Saturday. Simon set a new personal best in the 100 meters (16.95) and then ran his first 1500 meters of the season with a strong effort of 6:18.51 to take 5th place overall. Seth Henry also had another strong outing on Saturday. Seth set a new PR (and club record) in the 200 meters (30.40) for 7th place, had a new farthest jump for himself of 3.5 meters to take 6th place and then ran his first 400 meters, which got him 4th place overall and a new club record as well! Diego Mendoza was able to make a meet and he did a great job. Diego ran a nice 1:25.93 in the 400 meters and then later in the hot sun crossed the line in the 200 meters in 37.48 seconds. Micah Newkirk held back a bit in the first 200 meters of his 800-meter race and it played out beautifully. Micah took fourth overall and slashed his best time by nearly 7 seconds with a 2:46.88. Micah also competed in the 400 meters later in the day and ran a strong 1:15.81, just missing another personal best for himself.

11-12 Division

Khaleb Henry is getting more and more comfortable in the throws. Khaleb took 4th in the shot put with a new PR of over 1.5 meters (7.70 meters) and a new club record. Khaleb started out his day with a 2-meter PR in the discus, taking 2nd, with a best throw of 16.96 meters. Macy Baerman running her first 800 meters of the season, ran a new personal best of 3:04.94, dropping 3 seconds from her previous best time. Macy was close in getting new two PRs in the long jump (3.47) and 200 (34.42), but was just a smidgen off of both. Braden Lolli had his wheels revving on Saturday as he set a new PR in the 100 meters (14.72), dipping under 15-seconds for the first time ever. He then ran his first 1500 of the year and demolished the competition after the 1000-meter mark, running a new personal best of 5:21.94, which got him 1st overall and a new club record. Ben Geist got off the line fast in the 100 meters and had a strong finish with a new personal best of 15.72 seconds. When it came to the running his first 1500 m, Ben put in a good effort but perhaps the sun was just too strong. He finished in 6:18.76, which doesn’t compute when you compare his other strong times this season. But we know Ben will bounce back being the determined kid he is.

Jake Blair played soccer all morning and made it to Youngkers HS just in time to run the 400 m and throw the aero javelin for the first time in competition. Jake won his heat in the 400 m with a solid effort of 1:22.52 and then took 3rd in the javelin with a nice mark of 20.90 meters. Maddox Moses got some good turnover work first as he crossed the line in the 100 meters in a time of 16.6 seconds. Later in the day, Maddox hit the 1500 meters and ran to a 7th place finish in a time of 5:46.92, a good start to the early season. Landon Day made it out for his first track meet ever and did quite well. He jumped 3.86 in the long jump, which is a great start and then was looking forward to throwing the aero javelin for the first time as well; he competed quite admirably with a good toss of 13.62 meters, which got him 7th place overall.

13-14 Division

Sebastian Arana had a good strong throwing day at Youngkers. Sebastian PR’d in the shot put with a new best mark of 6.18 meters and then threw the real 600 gram javelin quite well with a best throw of 16.09 meters. Charlie Allison, competed in 4 events and found 4 club and personal records on Saturday. Charlie took 6th in the long jump (4.97 meters), ran 1:02.94 in the 400 meters (winning his heat), triple jumped a new best of 10.52 meters and won the javelin with his best toss of 33.77 meters. Peyton Burnside didn’t have the time she wanted in the 1500 m (6:04.72), but she ran valiantly to keep her focus. We know Peyton, with the work she has put in this season, thus far, will see her times drop in no time flat.

Our next meet is in two weeks (April 1-2) at Mesa Community College – The Phoenix Invitational. This is one of the biggest and most competitive meets of the season. It’s also a two-day meet. The Flyers will be ready to rock.

Go Flyers!

You Get a PR! …And You Get a PR! … And You Get a PR! | Rhodes Wins Long Jump!

March 14, 2017 by dAllison

Flyers Soar In Regulation Meet with Great Personal Results

There were 24 personal records and 7 club records set at the March 4th USATF Regulation Meet at Millennium High School in Goodyear. To say the Flyers had a good day would most definitely be an understatement. Let’s break down how our little Flyers fared.

8 & Under Division

Isa Allison had some medical matters that kept her out of the 100 meters and mini javelin, but She was still able to be part of the girls 8 & Under 4×100 relay team. The team took 2nd and also set a club record with a time of 1:19.81. Ellie Amsbaugh, also a member of the girls’ 4×100 relay team, managed to have two new PRs for herself as well. Ellie ran a 20.91 in the 100 m and also took nearly a full second off her 200-meter time (45.51) to round out a really terrific day. Emerson Rhodes another speed demon in the girls’ 4×100, also had a personal best jump of 2.68 meters, which got her 1st place overall in the event. Emerson also PR’d in the 100 meters with a time of 18.45 seconds. Brooklyn Bowman ran a great 400 meters with a nice opening time for the season of 1:34.89. Brooklyn also was a member of the record-setting 4×100 girls’ relay squad. Max Columbus had the trifecta with awesome personal results for himself. Max had a 2nd place finish in the mini javelin (14.27), a huge 400-meter PR (1:24.48) and a blazing 100 meters’ time to round out his day (16.96).

9-10 Division

Simon Reynolds, while we wouldn’t call him “speedy”, still managed a huge personal improvement in the 100 meters with at time of 17.29. Simon, later in the afternoon, feeling more in his element in the 800, found himself crossing the line with his second PR of the day, just missing the sub-3 minute barrier (3:00.85). Seth Henry, somehow with even a slow start out of the blocks, managed a 7th place finish and a new club record in the 100 meters with a clocking of 14.84 seconds. Seth also jumped 3.38 in the long jump and took 8th in the 200 meters, just missing a best time by .3 seconds (31.70). Sienna Amsbaugh, blasted out of the blocks in the 100 meters and grabbed a new PR with a time of 16.79 seconds. Micah Newkirk, while still figuring out this middle distance thing, ran two great times on the west side. Micah dropped 6 seconds in his 400 meters (1:15.70) and took 8th overall in a very competitive 800-meter race with time of 2:53.09.

11-12 Division

Macy Baerman found some wheels in the 200 meters and just missed a personal best with a strong time of 34.46. Macy was a bit off the mark on the long jump and found only a jump of 3.29 meters. Macy also ran the 400 in 1:21.40. Braden Lolli, showing more signs that we may not need to wait for next year to see great results, smashed his recent club record in the 400 by nearly 4 seconds (68.79) and already was nearing his PR in the 800 with a 7th place finish in 2:38.28. Benjamin Geist, not to be outdone by his middle-distance teammate had not one, but two new PRs at the meet. Ben shattered his 400 best time by almost 5 seconds (72.86) with a gutsy finsih and then broke his old 800 top time by over 5 seconds (2:55.92) to round out a very successful afternoon. Khaleb Henry finally got a chance to throw some implements and did quite well. He took 3rd in the discus (14.97 m), after borrowing Coach Allison’s shoes (No, you can’t wear spikes when throwing the shot or discus, Khaleb!) and then threw the shot put a good distance with a measurement of 6.18 meters.

Gael Pacheco put in some great effort in his events and after a long day in the sun was able to muster these solid times: 16.78 (100 m), 38.66 (200 m) and 1:24.9 (400 m). Ava Clegg, matched Max Columbus with the most PRs and club records set that day at the meet. Ava set a new club record in the shot put (5.73 m) taking 7th overall; and then ran some personal quick times in the 100 m (16.69) and 200 m (36.48) to have a strong Saturday out west. Lucy Arana had another strong meet with two new personal best times. In the 400 meters she bested her time to an impressive 1:15.82 and then began her season in the 800 with a strong 8th place finish in a great time of 2:54.55.

13-14 Division

Robert Vloemans traveled all the way out to Goodyear for one event, but he made it count. Robert high-stepped it to a PR in the 200 by over 1 second (34.18 seconds). Sebastian Arana, who is becoming on of our throwing specialists here at the Flyers, threw the shot put that Saturday and set a new PR for himself in the heavier weight class (4 kg), now that he’s in the 13-14 division, with a mark of 5.90 meters. Charlie Allison, like Sebastian, opened up his season at this meet, set two new PRs for himself – 13.36 (100 m) and 27.8 (200 m). Charlie also took second and set a new club record in the triple jump, launching himself across the runway in 9.97 meters.

Our next meet is this weekend at Youngkers High School – 8 a.m.

Go Flyers!

First Day of Practice Tomorrow!

January 8, 2017 by dAllison

Track is back for 2017!

We hope you all had a great summer/fall and are ready once again for an enjoyable and exciting season with the Phoenix Flyers! This will be our 5th year and are looking forward to meeting and coaching all the new and returning young athletes.

We will meet at Mt. Pointe H.S. tomorrow, Monday, January 9th at 5:30 p.m. If there is a soccer game being played, then we will be on the upper practice field – just northwest of the track on the Mt. Pointe campus.

Practice this week and for the rest of January will be Mon, Tues and Thursday at 5:30 p.m. to around 6:30. We won’t start breaking up into our various training groups (field, sprint and distance) until early February.

As of now, our online registration is being updated, so we can’t take any online payments or sign-ups until Friday, January 13th. If you have previously registered on our old registration site, don’t worry we have your info and payment (if you payed online).

No spikes are needed. Please hold off buying spikes until we have our team’s “Spike night” at Sole Sports sometime in late January or early February.

It’s still cool – so please dress appropriately and have water.

Come with a great attitude!

Coach Young, Todd and I can’t wait to get you running, jumping and throwing in 2017!

Go Flyers!

Training & Location Schedule

Trip to Tucson Finds Good Results for Flyers

March 13, 2016 by dAllison

A rare Sunday only meet for the Flyers last week in Tucson. But those who made the trek down south to U of A country found good to great results at the Walter Wallace Relays at Cholla High School.

8 & Under Division

Isabella (Isa) Allison, finally stepped on the track in 2016 after a successful flag football season. Isa managed to take 2nd in the mini-javelin (9.29 m), 6th in the long jump with a new personal record of 2.52 meters and ran her best 100 meters ever in a quick time of 17.95 seconds. Solana Leyva had some strong performances herself last Sunday with times of 21.32 in the 100 meters and 48.89 in the 200. Max Columbus, back on the track for the second week in a row, jumped 2.27 for his first ever try in the long jump event. Max also ran 19.15 in the 100 meters and we believe (timing and placement errors) 46.06 in the 200 meters.

9-10 Division

Ava Clegg, who was under the weather for the Millennium meet, came out last Sunday with a new found vigor. Ava set a personal record in the shot put (4.03) and took 2nd place as well! Ava also ran aggressive 100 meter (18.69 ) and 200 meter (42.75 ) races to finish up her day. Sean Camping, who was excited at the crack of dawn, sprang 2.50 meters in the long jump, ran 17.51 in the 100 and was part of the winning 4×400 team that ran 5:43.89. Benjamin Geist, another member of the 4×400 team, also had a great 400 race of his own with a new PR of 1:18.94. Sofia Jourdon, nervous for her first 800 of the season, seemed to have nerves of steel as she took 3rd overall and crushed her personal record by 14 seconds with a time of 3:00.66.

Levi Shoemaker although he had the power, he could not find the mechanics in the mini-javelin last Sunday. Nonetheless, Levi still found a way to capture 3rd place with a very respectable throw of 14.61 meters. Levi got out of the blocks well in the 100 and took the tape in 16.67 seconds and was also another leg of the 4×400 boys’ team. Braden Lolli, the anchor leg of the 4×400, also had a pretty strong day on his own. He took 3rd in the 800, just missing his PR with a time of 2:47.23 and ran a hard 400, crossing the line in 1:13.49.

11-12 Division

Macy Baerman had a very good opening meet for herself for 2016. Macy jumped a very strong 3.17 meters in the long jump, ran a hard 1:23.37 in the 400 meters and finished her day with a 37.41 200 meter race. Charlie Allison took to the track for the first time as well with strong opening performances. He took 2nd in the long jump with 4.49 meters, set a new PR for himself in the 100, winning his heat with a time of 14.42 seconds and taking 1st in the javelin with a toss of 34.29 meters. Jaiden Gilette a new member to the Flyers this year, had a great first meet as well. He ran 16.28 in the 100, ran a strong 200 in 33.34 and threw the mini-javelin for the first time ever and managed to get it 10.14 meters.

13-14 Division

Haila Reed although no PRs last Sunday, still managed three very strong times in her sprints: 13.54 in the 100 meters (4th), 27.69 in the 200 meters (6th) and 62.72 in the 400 meters (4th). Nathan Lind, found some good times as well last Sunday in the sprints. Nathan took 5th in the 100 with a run of 12.77 seconds and took 6th in the 200 with a time of 26.89 seconds. Maddy Shoemaker, stole back bragging rights from one Braden Lolli in the 400 when she crossed the tape in 71.93 seconds and setting a new PR for herself. Maddy also took 2nd in the 1600 meters with a new PR for her of 5:49.04. Carson Dada, seemed to be going through some Groundhog Day like moment, as he ran 1:20.83 in the 400 meters, which was the exact same time he ran at the end of January. Carson also took 1st in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 21.60 to cap off a strong day.

This weekend we were at the Bobcat Relays and I will posting a blog about that meet in the next day or so.

4 New Club Records Set at Arcadia High School

May 4, 2015 by dAllison

With only about half the team coming out this past Saturday for the USATF AZ Regulation Meet held at Arcadia High School on May 2nd, you would think that maybe the Phoenix Flyers had lost some momentum in the early days of May – nothing could be farther from the truth, as 4 athletes set new club records for the Flyers, with many others setting new personal best marks/times for themselves.

8 & Under Division

Jade Elcock got another PR, this time in the 200 m (22.43) and also jumped for only the second time this season with a leap of 1.52 in the long jump. Emma Fernandez who has run a couple of our Time Trial Tuesday events, hadn’t been out for a meet all year – but wow, did she show her stuff on Saturday! Emma took 4th overall in the 400 with a great time of 1:26.83, ran 18.48 in the 100 m and jumped a 2.11 in the long jump. Isabella Allison placed 5th in the mini-javelin with a solid throw of 8.47 meters and jumped a respectable 1.84 meters in the long jump, as well.

9-10 Division

Ava Clegg just missed her PR in the long jump, going 2.50 meters and ran the 100 meters in 19.27 seconds. Braden Lolli set 2 new PRs for himself over the weekend, one of those being a club record as well (400 meters). Braden ran 15.82 seconds in the 100 meters (not too shabby for a distance guy) and then came back with an 8th place finish, from the outside lane, to run 1:14.02. Brynn Pickavance was ready to go on Saturday with 2 new PRs of her own – got to the 3-meter mark in the long jump for the first time and also broke 18 seconds in the 100 meters with a good split of 17.74 seconds. Jay Nergard running one event all day, made it count as he ran a new PR in the 100 with a time of 18.2 seconds.

Ty Stinson got his feet out in front of him finally and that enabled him a new PR in the long jump of 2.77 meters; Ty also competed in the javelin where he threw 11.66. Macy Baerman came so close to hitting a new PR in the long jump, leaped a very solid 2.86 meters. Macy also ran in the 200 (38.37) and 400 (1:29.34) on Saturday. Taylor Pinteric had 2 new PRs, and one of those breaking her own club record (400 m). Taylor jumped 2.86 meters in the long jump, but took 6th in the 400 meters and went under 80 seconds for the first time with a very strong run of 1:18.21.

11-12 Division

Although Colorado Stanley didn’t have his best jump (2.94) or best throw (18.74) on Saturday, he definitely left it all out there in the hurdles where he ran a new PR and a new club record. Colorado nearly dropped a full second off his best hurdle time and took 2nd overall in the 80 m hurdles (17.93). Charlie Allison having been getting over bad allergies and breathing issues, stuck with field events on Saturday and had some solid performances. Charlie jumped 3.71 m to take 8th and won the javelin with his first throw (37.91), which also is a new Flyers’ club record. Peyton Burnside, who doesn’t usually like the faster races, showed great enthusiasm as she took the 800 and the 400 with gusto and ran two new PRs (2:58.50 and 1:20.92). Clayton Huston had some solid performances on Saturday with a 2.96 jump and 3:02.07 800 meters. Reece Johnson, like Jay Nergard, came out to run only one race (100 meters) on Saturday, but made it count, as she ran a new PR of 17.50 seconds.

13-14 Division

Emily Hancock, our sole 13-14 athlete, had a new season’s best in the 100 (14.95) and ran the 400 in 1:16.89 to finish out her day.

In two weeks (May 16th), the Flyers will be heading west to compete in the new Walter Wallace Relays. It should be a fun and different feel due to the number of different relays the Flyers will be able to compete in.

Hot Day, Scorching Results for Flyers at Chandler

April 2, 2015 by dAllison

Not even April yet and the temperatures were rising into the 90s on Saturday at Chandler High School for the USATF AZ Regulation Meet (Mar. 28th). Our Flyers had some great results, many PRs and even some ribbons from their efforts on this sunny day in March.

8 & Under Division

Isabella Allison threw another personal best in the mini-javelin (8.06 m) and was able to squeak out a 6th place ribbon. She also long jumped with good form, but a bit short of her best with a 1.85 m leap. Looking smooth as usual, Jade Elcock found success in the 100 and the 200 meter races. She ran solid times for herself with a 22.93 and 53.68, respectively – just barely missing two new PRs for herself. But our 8 & Under athlete who had a banner day was our own Sofia Jourdon, who dropped nearly 2 seconds off her 800-meter time and took 3rd place (3:17.39). Sofia also took 4th in the long jump with a new personal best of 2.55 meters.

9-10 Division

Ava Busot only competed in one event on Saturday, but she made it count. She knocked-off nearly a full second in her 100-meter dash with a very respectable time of 16.97 and a new PR. Anderson and Toby Lim made it just in time to the track after their basketball game to run the 200 meter and trucked it half-way around the track in 35.39 and 36.65, respectively. Jumping, running and throwing is what Ava Clegg does now on the track and she came away with two new PRs out of the three events. Ava jumped 2.47 meters (PR), threw the shot putted 3.3 m (PR) and ran a 18.59 time in the 100. Although no PRs for Braden Lolli on Saturday, he still came away with some very good performances. Braden jumped 3.23 m in the long jump and took 5th in the 800 meters in 2:56.12.

Brynn Pickavance took to three events on Saturday with some success. She PR’d in the long jump (2.55 m), ran a strong 100 m (18.35) and threw the shot put for the first time with a mark of 3.75 m. Camila Cornejo-Farmer missed setting yet another PR for herself in the 100 meters (16.85), but did find one in the long jump where she soared 2.88 meters and a 9th place finish. Jay Nergard came out for his second meet and ran a hard 19.78 in the 100 and threw 8.20 meters in the mini-javelin. Another javelin thrower, Levi Shoemaker, fell a bit short of his PR with a throw of 11.08 meters, but once again got below 18 seconds in the 100 (17.97).

Ty Stinson is getting the hang of the javelin and threw very nice first throws in competition, with a best of 12.32 meters. Ty also took to the air a bit longer than in his previous meet and long jumped to a new PR of 2.49 m. Taylor Pinteric couldn’t believe how much of a lead she had in her first ever 400-meter race and won her heat in an impressive 1:24.87. Taylor also long jumped for the first time with a good mark of 2.73 m. Lucy Arana dropped nearly a full 8-seconds off of her best 800-meter time and crossed the line in 3:10.92. Lucy also PR’d in the long jump (2.42) and got those fast-twitch muscles going in the 100 with a 18.36 finish.

11-12 Division

Colorado Stanley got more competitive in the 80-m hurdles with a new PR of 19.41 seconds and then threw just short of another PR in the javelin with a best throw of the day of 18.68 m. Charlie Allison after not throwing competitively in the javelin since last July due to injury, took three throws only and came out with a victory (35.44). Charlie also PR’d in the 100 m (15.04) and jumped a solid 3.85. Clayton Huston took to the 800 with a great debut of 2:54.33 and then followed that up with a strong PR in the long jump (3.09 m).

Reece Johnson came out to her first ever track meet and got those knees high as she ran the 100 meters in 18.12. Reece also tried the long jump for the first time and found a mark of 1.95. Luke Busot, who is working on his form, ran a smooth 16.52 in the 100 and came back with maybe too much strategy in the 400, but finished strong in 1:22.66. Natalie Coats, like Reece, came out to her first meet, and ran a very solid 100 meters, as she took to the finish in 17.4 seconds.

13-14 Division

Three events Emily Hancock competed in with some good solid performances. Emily had a season best 100 m in 15.09, did the 100-m hurdles in 21.08 and just missed a season’s best in the 400 with a 1:16.44. Maddy Shoemaker set yet another PR on Saturday running 2:37.88 in the 800 m (knocking almost 7 seconds off her time a month ago). She then came back and went after it in the 1500, where she took 5th with a 5:36.33, to complete a strong double for the day. Colby Grennan, a new Flyer this year, showed up big on Saturday. He took 5th in a very competitive long jump (4.81), 2nd in the 100-m hurdles (20.18) and ran a strong 400 (65.93). Another new member, Ariana Coats, competed in her first ever track meet as well and took to the 800 m. She gutted through the 2nd lap of the race and finished in a time of 3:21.84. A new jumper, but not new to the Flyers, Aria Jones, took 7th in the long jump (3.96), 2nd in the triple jump (8.88) and ran a new PR in the 100 with a time of 15.18.

The Flyers are heading west again to Millennium High School this weekend (7 a.m., Saturday, April 4th) and then are off for a couple of weeks before the prestigious Phoenix Invitational, April 18-19 at Mesa Community College.

A Baker’s Dozen (+1) of PRs on Saturday at Millennium

March 18, 2015 by dAllison

In the truly first hot day of the year the Phoenix Flyers headed west to Millennium H.S. for a USATF AZ Regulation meet on Saturday, March 14. There were 14 personal bests by our athletes this weekend, plus some top-6 performances that earned some of them ribbons as well.

8 & Under Division

Jade Elcock had a strong performance in the 100 meters on Saturday, nearly dropping an entire second off her previous best time as she crossed the finish in 22.72 seconds. Isabella Allison, maybe will try to set some state records like her brother in the mini javelin one day, but at 6 years old, she found a way to get 5th place and set a new PR for herself with a nice throw of 7.41 meters.

9-10 Division

Ava Clegg, didn’t set any new PRs on Saturday (but just missed one in the long jump where she jumped 2.31 m), but she did try a new event – shot put – where she found air under the weighted orb for 3.06 meters. Braden Lolli found another gear in the 400 meters, where he shattered his previous time by almost 5 seconds with a new best of 1:15.98. Braden also managed to garner himself with two ribbons (5th and 6th places) in the long jump (3.24 m) and in the 800 meters (2:55.79 – PR by over 4 seconds), respectively.

Brynn Pickavance was no novice this day. With now one track meet under her belt, Brynn competed much more confidently and found 2 new PRs for herself in the long jump (2.52 m) and in the 100 meters (18.26). A new member of our team, Ava Busot, ran a very strong 100 meters with a time of 17.89 seconds. Ava’s friend, Camila Cornejo-Farmer, keeps knocking down her time in the 100 meters, where on Saturday she set another PR for herself with a finishing time of 16.73. Jake Blair, who came directly from a lopsided soccer victory to make the meet, wasted no time in setting two new PRs for himself and taking a 2nd place ribbon. In the long jump, Jake jumped a new best of 3.15 m; but Jake showed why he was a national qualifier in the mini-javelin last year by throwing 22.78 meters on the west side of town and landing himself in the 2nd spot.

Levi Shoemaker, absolutely crushed his former best in the 100 meters by over a full second with a new time of 17.74. Macy Baerman, moved up to the 400 meters for the first time on Saturday with a strong race and finish (1:28.94) and looked like she may have found her new event for 2015. Ty Stinson, a bit apprehensive about competing in his second track meet ever, performed admirably in the 100 meters (20.36) and long jump (2.06 m) on Saturday, as well.

11-12 Division

Colorado Stanley seems to be taking a strong liking to the mini-javelin, where he once again set a new PR for himself (18.98 m) and made it to the final round. Colorado also had his first go at the 80-meter hurdles, where he placed 3rd and succeeded in the first goal of hurdling – to not fall down. Charlie Allison, like Colorado, also tried the 80-meter hurdles for the first time, didn’t fall either and took 2nd. Charlie found a new PR in the 100 meters, where he posted a 15.09 time and also managed to find his mark in the long jump to take a 5th place ribbon (3.73 m). Clayton Huston (I am allowed to call him “Clay”) had nearly a 5-second PR in the 400 meters, where he ran 1:17.66 and also enjoyed the long jump (2.91 m) and 100 meters (17.05), as well.

Peyton Burnside, who finally had her chance at a distance event (1500 m) didn’t squander the opportunity at all by taking 6th place and ran a very impressive opening season time of 6:14.85. Luke Busot, another new addition to the Flyers this season, ran a strong 400 meters where he clocked in at 1:19.98 and also took to the air in the long jump where he got a mark of 3.25 meters.

13-14 Division

The lover of track and field, Emily Hancock, had a very strong day on Saturday. Although no new PRs were established, she ran season bests in the 100 m (15.14), 400 m (1:16.4) and looked great over the 100-meter hurdles for the first time ever with a time of 20.56 seconds. Maddy Shoemaker is getting too predictable by setting PRs every meet and Saturday she didn’t disappoint. She set a new PR in the 1500 by over 12 seconds (5:27.95) and just missed our club record by 2 seconds in the 13-14 girls’ division – oh, and she took 2nd place in the race, by the way…ho-hum…

The Flyers are off this weekend, but will have a shorter trek for their next meet, which will be at Chandler HS on March 28th.

Overcast Skies Don’t Deter Flyers at Westwood

March 16, 2015 by dAllison

A cloudy day that teased of rain never brought precipitation at the February 28th USATF AZ Regulation Meet held at Westwood High School. Our Flyers, many their first meet of the season (or first meet ever), preformed admirably in Mesa.

8 & Under Division

Jade Elcock and those tiny legs of hers had a new PR in the 200 meters with a time of 52.32 and also ran the 100 meters for the first time of the season with a solid finish of 23.6 seconds. Isabella Allison, who was one of only two of our Flyers who earned herself a ribbon on Saturday, had a personal best jump of 2.08 meters in the long jump and took 5th place.

9-10 Division

The largest division of our team this year had many first time athletes put in some very nice performances. Basketball stud and newcomer, Anderson Lim, took to the 100 meters where he ran a fast 16.39 seconds and then came back in the 400 meters where he had a valiant effort with a time of 1:25.06. But bragging rights in the Lim family will be going to Toby Lim, who eeked out his brother Anderson’s time by .02 seconds in an earlier heat of the 400 with a finishing time of 1:25.04. Toby also took to the 100 meters where he crossed the line in 17.44 seconds.

Our “old timer”, Ava Clegg, came out blazing in her 100 meters on Saturday with a new personal best of 18.56 seconds, as well as jumping 2.12 m in the long jump and turning in a strong performance in the 200 with a time of 43.99 for a long day’s triple. Another strong and the most gutsy performance of the day is for our own Braden Lolli, who looked confident in the 800 meters before falling hard on the second turn. Not to be discouraged, Braden bounced right back up and held the lead through the first lap, but then by 500 meters he started feeling the effects of his fall in his back and arm, which slowed him down a bit, but he still managed to cross the line in a very respectable 3:13.05.

Brynn Pickavance, one of our first-time track athletes, was a bit nervous at first in the girls’ long jump, but pulled herself together with a 1.99 meter jump and then came back roaring in the 100 meters with a very good first time run of 18.7 seconds. Camila Cornejo-Farmer, one of our returning Flyers from last year, had the fastest 100-meter time for our 9-10 girls, with a personal best of 16.88 seconds and also leaped 2.27 meters in the girls’ long jump. James (“Jay”) Nergard may have had the most fun at his first ever track meet where he competed in three events. In the 100 meters he ran an 18.84, in the tough to figure out mini-javelin, he had a blast and threw 8.38 meters and then finished his long day with a 200 in a time of 43.7 seconds.

The tight-lipped Lucy Arana, who ran many of our Time Trial Tuesdays last year, came out officially this year to become a Flyer – and we are glad she did. Lucy ran a strong 800 meters in 3:18.48, then came back and ran a tough-minded 400 in 1:28.96 and interspersed the long jump in between the two running events with a nice opening mark of 2.38 meters. Macy Baerman, who was so nervous had only brought her spikes and no training shoes to warm up in, settled down in the long jump where she made the finals and jumped a very solid 2.89 meters. Macy also competed in the 100 and 200 where she ran 18.52 and 39.49, respectively. Taylor Pinteric, after her long day up in Flagstaff a few weeks back, settled on just running the 100 meters on Saturday in a very strong time of 17.32 seconds.

11-12 Division

Although Colorado Stanley couldn’t find his steps in the long jump on Saturday, he looked awfully strong in the mini-javelin and 100 meters where he claimed two personal bests. Just missing the finals in the javelin, Colorado threw a nice dart of 17.34 meters and before that ran a time of 17.33 seconds in the 100. Sebastian Arana, who, like sister Lucy, doesn’t say too much, spoke with his actions on Saturday with a new personal record in the mini-javelin (12.88 meters) and a nice first go at the long jump this season with a top mark of 2.64 meters. Our last 11-12 athlete for the Flyers on Saturday was Peyton Burnside, who is chomping at the bit to run a 1500 or 3000 meter race, but is still working on her turnover. Peyton turned in two strong efforts in Mesa with a 1:25.29 400-meter time after competing in the 800, where she ran a solid 3:06.92.

13-14 Division

Our 13-14 girls are coming along nicely in the early track season. Track enthusiast, Emily Hancock, ran two good early season times in the 100 meters and 400 meters, where she crossed the tape at 15.42 and 1:17.55, respectively. Maddy Shoemaker just keeps setting personal bests this season with two more on Saturday, where she ran 1:15.03 in the 400 and a nearly 10-second PR in the 800, where she ran 2:44.44. Megan Griffith, who seems to want to try every event out there on the track, on Saturday competed in the long jump, high jump and 100 meters. Megan had a new PR in the long jump with a mark of 3.83 meters and just missing making the finals; she also took 3rd in the high jump with a mark of 1.15 meters and finished strong in the 100 with a time of 16.14 seconds.

The Flyers will be heading to the west side in a couple of weeks for their next meet and look to improve on some already strong performances in 2015.