It was the search for the white whale. Only in this case Ahab was the great female 800 runner in Lee County history. It seemed ridiculous that Jessica Edwards would go through her storied career without having broken five minutes for 1,600 minutes. The Canterbury star was on course last season to break that barrier until Covid intervened. Then last week, under good conditions against a great field, the 1,600 proved to be this super woman's kryptonite once again. Then when you least expect it... the white whale surfaced.
Following her break through 1,600 Edwards had about 20 minutes of rest before winning the 400 in 60.29. Then after about another 30 minutes Edwards coasted to a victory in the 800, 2:24.76. She was saving not for the 3,200, no she opted to run the 200 about 30 minutes later. She only managed second in 26.74. Let it be known that Bishop Verot's Herrara Geraldine put a harpoon in Edwards the crazy quadruple. Word is puking was involved after the intense 200.
2. Kolton Pickard scored a nice double at the Panther Invitational. The Estero junior distance ace anchored his team's 4x800 team to victory and then scored an easy win in the open 800 in 1:57.98. Pickard will now have to decide whether he will focus on the 1,600/3,200 double along with relay duties or the 1,600/800. I'm sure Coach Olitsky has a plan in place and my guess is the 3,200 plays better to Pickard's considerable strength.
3. The regular track and field season is all practical purposes, over. The cut down District championships are next on the calendar in more than a week. It brings to question why Lee County chose not to hold a county championship for its public schools? It's a mixed bag with Covid in mind but a handful of Florida counties are holding championships. Last year's seniors and this year's seniors have missed out on so much. It seems a shame that some of Lee County's best track and field athletes aren't getting a chance to face off one last time.
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