Kicking Into a Higher Gear
October 11, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Nate Burnand had trouble motivating himself as a freshman. In his words, he was "not a mature student."
Sure, he was balancing two sports during his first semester at Waterford Mott. But he was slacking in the classroom, a shame because he had the potential to do so much more.
We know how much potential because of what he's accomplished over the last two years.
These days, it’s AP economics, U.S. history and comparative politics during the school day and some of the fastest cross country times in the state when class is done. The running achievements came first and the academic success next, and together they’ve provided for an incredible finish to Burnand’s high school career – much like his kick at the end of races that has made him an MHSAA championship contender.
“The positive reinforcement when I have success in running and school, I see the rewards and it makes me want to work harder to do more,” Burnand said. “I think when I made all-state sophomore year in cross country, it clicked for me that I needed to do better things than what I was doing. I had opportunities, and I needed to capitalize on them."
Burnand receives a Second Half High 5 based in part on his 15:21 to win the elite race against a loaded field at Michigan State’s Spartan Invitational on Sept. 14. He also won the Waterford Mott Fall Classic two weeks later in 15:44, and took second last week at the Oakland County Championships.
But his impressive climb to the elite started long before this fall.
He ran his first high school race, in 2009, in 18:16 and finished his freshman season with a personal best of 17:23 while splitting time playing soccer. He decided before his sophomore year to focus solely on cross country, and the surge began.
Burnand opened the 2010 season with a 17:09 and closed it with a 15:45 and 17th place in the MHSAA Division 1 Final at Michigan International Speedway. He improved on that with a 15:38 and sixth place at last season’s Division 1 Final – despite suffering multiple stress fractures that affected how much work he could put in heading into the fall.
Mott coach Ryan Robinson recognized that talent right away, and after Burnand’s freshman year compared him to teammate Scott Albaugh – who went on to win the Division 1 individual title in 2010. The key to this season’s drop has been consistent training; now healthy, Burnand put in 70-mile training weeks this summer, plus swimming pool and plyometric training with his teammates.
And he’s smart with his workload too. After the second stress fracture during spring 2011 forced him to train in the pool alone, Burnand decided he didn’t want to go through that again. He learned his body’s limits and is careful to do just the right amount of work.
“He will do whatever I ask him to do, and then some,” Robinson said. “And he does a lot of research on what other people are doing, what other kids are running, and the times he’d like to run. He’s always trying to do more.”
And as noted above, race success was followed by class success. Burnand had a 2.4 grade-point average after his freshman year, not because he struggled with the material but because he didn’t put in enough effort. Sophomore year was about breaking habits, and the comeback was on.
Burnand scored a 3.8 GPA as a junior, bringing his cumulative up to 3.0. He has the three Advanced Placement classes this fall, and would like to study economics or politics in college.
“I always knew I was capable of this. I wanted to be a good student, but I didn’t have the motivation,” he said. “I knew I wouldn’t be able to have a running career if I didn’t keep up in school.”
That's the plan, and he’s making it difficult for others to keep up. Robinson said Burnand executed strategy perfectly at MSU. Burnand like to push opponents in small spurts through the middle of races before taking off for the final 1,000 meters. That’s what he did at the Spartan, and over the final 500 Burnand had energy that his opponents couldn’t match.
As a junior, he had to convince himself he could finish those races in first. But during that summer training he began to believe, and after a few weeks staying with family and training on the hills surrounding San Francisco, he saw dividends.
Like with his studies, the more goals he hit, the more goals he chased.
“I think my confidence has gone up,” Burnand said. “Over the summer, I was running everything fast, hitting my mileage goals, not struggling, and I think it just started clicking. I had a feeling things were going to happen this year.”
PHOTO: Waterford Mott's Nate Burnand rounds a turn during last season's MHSAA Division 1 Final at Michigan International Speedway.
Challenging Courses, Modified Scoring & Evening Start Highlight UP Race Debuts
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
September 17, 2024
CRYSTAL FALLS — A pair of high school cross country meets made their debuts earlier this month in the Upper Peninsula, with the Gwinn Invitational on Sept. 3 in Sawyer followed a day later by Crystal Falls Forest Park’s first meet at Fortune Lake Lutheran Camp.
According to Forest Park coach D.J. Rasner, it took three months of planning to make the Trojans’ first home meet possible.
“We’re glad to get this in,” he said. “We’re hoping to find out where we need to improve. It’s exciting, and hosting this meet has generated excitement in the community. We were without a program for about 20 years. This is our third year back, and our program has been growing slowly. I’m grateful for the school and administration for taking this risk.”
Bark River-Harris senior Wes Knauf, who runs for Powers North Central as part of a cooperative program, found the course to be challenging.
“It’s a nice course with a lot of shade,” he said. “There was a large sand hill about a mile into the race, and I shortened my stride. Many guys slowed down on that hill. There were a lot of roots out there. You had to watch your footing. There was also a downhill that was nearly as long, which helped me get my second wind.”
Knauf, who won the 3.1-mile race in 19:52.2, was followed by Forest Park junior Joey Mainville (20:47.5) and senior brother Max Mainville (20:47.7) on a sunny and warm afternoon. The Trojans won their home debut with nine points in a meet featuring modified scoring with the top three finishers contributing toward their respective team scores.
“It feels great to win our first home meet,” Joey Mainville said. “Running on our home course for the first time provided us with special motivation. We just didn’t want to start out too fast.”
“Getting to practice on this course really helps,” Max Mainville added. “It’s a big boost for me to finish in the top three, and the victory is a big boost for our team. We had very good conditions for this race, and low humidity helped.”
The North Central girls were crowned champions with seven points, followed by Rock Mid Peninsula with 22 and Rapid River at 24.
BR-H senior Hope Varoni, who also runs for the Jets, won individually at 23:44.9.
“I usually try to follow people and stay with them,” she said. “Today, I decided to run at my own pace. It was a little uneven on parts of the course, although it was a nice course. I’d say my season is starting the way I want.”
At Sawyer, Munising senior Dan Goss took the Gwinn Invitational boys title at 18:32.3 in a meet which started at 6:15 p.m.
“The course was pretty sandy and there were a lot of roots,” said Goss, who trains 40 miles a week. “You had to watch your footing. My goal was to get in front of the pack, and I took my first mile out at 5:30.
“I think it’s pretty cool to run in the evening. It was a great atmosphere. I don’t think I ever started a race after 6 p.m. Lot of times the wind goes down in the evening.”
He was followed by classmate Trevor Nolan (19:13.8), Manistique senior Ben Gilroy (20:00.1) and Gladstone junior Tyler Soderman (20:02.3).
“I’ve twisted my ankle about five times and was trying to be cautious,” Gilroy said. “I tried to take it at a comfortable pace. I started walking on the uphill and several people passed me, but I caught them after the hill anyway. I was just trying not to get injured before our home meet (Sept. 11). I think it was a fun meet. It was an adventure and something new. I told my teammates to take it easy. I don’t want them to be injured for the U.P. (Division 2) Finals.”
Gladstone junior Payton Takkunen recorded her first varsity victory on the challenging 3.1-mile course in 25:56.6
“This feels really good,” she said. “I’m glad everyone was there to support me. I wanted to stride it out in the first mile and continue from there. I thought the race was well-organized, but it was really hard. Although, I think this will give me confidence for the bigger meets.”
Takkunen was followed by senior teammate Kristy Karl (26:34.2) and Ishpeming seniors Peyton Kakkuri (26:39.9) and Laynie Korpi (26:51.8).
“Payton and I were on pace for 8-minute miles, but once we got into the sand we slowed down a lot,” Korpi said. “I was doing pretty good until we got to the hill in the last mile. We had beach sand after the first mile. I enjoyed the race, though. It’s good when you have somebody to run it.”
The Gladstone girls won with 20 points, followed by Superior Central at 47 and Manistique with 57.
“That was a challenging course, but it was a good first meet for us,” Superior Central coach Holly McDonnald said. “It was nice because it was close for us. I hope they’ll do it again.”
The Gladstone boys also won with 32 points, followed by Munising at 57 and Gwinn at 76.
The invite featured varsity, junior varsity and middle school races, with seven varsities competing for boys and girls championships.
“It was a tough course,” Gladstone’ coach Gary Whitmer said. “Although, it was pretty exciting to see the kids get their medals. This is a boost for the kids.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Crystal Falls Forest Park’s Max Mainville crosses a road during his school’s inaugural invitational Sept. 4. (Middle) The Trojans’ Ellie Zaupa crosses the finish line. (Below) Gwinn’s Eloi Lopez (194), Manistique’s Ben Gilroy (464) and Gladstone’s Teagan Reynolds (422) run a stretch of the Gwinn Invitational on Sept. 3. (Forest Park Invitational photos courtesy of the Forest Park cross country programs; Gwinn Invitational photo by Laura Spade.)