Do you want to know what STAYMAD is really about? Do you want to know MOTIVATION, AGGRESSIVENESS, and DETERMINATION? Then look no further than Holland Reynolds, a 16-year-old star runner from San Francisco University High School, who collapsed at a state cross-country meet and crawled across the finish line to win her team the championship.
Reynolds, a junior, has been a distance runner for years. She ended her freshman season as the team’s top runner, and has been the lead runner for the cross-country team ever since.
Her aggressiveness and determination are obvious, but what was her motivation? Her coach, Jim Tracy.
Tracy, an accomplished runner, had always been able to keep pace with his fastest runners. About five years ago, he discovered a muscle in his thumb had stopped functioning. He was eventually diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Since the start of the season, Tracy’s condition has grown visibly worse. “He’s been falling down sometimes at practice,” Reynolds said, “and he brings a chair to our workouts.”
The state meet in Fresno took place on a rainy, unseasonably cold morning. Just before the 3.1-mile race, the team did its regular cheer, then Reynolds, the team captain, led a special cheer for Tracy. “I think that made the team really want to win it for him,” Reynolds said.
At the 2.5-mile mark, Reynolds was in third place, pushing for second, among the 169 runners. “I was going to make my move,” she said, “but for some reason my legs just gave out. I was confused, and I started to slow down.”
Tracy, who wears braces on his legs and his back and walks with difficulty, was at the team’s tent near the finish line, and he said he knew something was wrong when another University High runner finished before Reynolds. He made his way to the course and found Reynolds, half a mile out, barely running and weaving across the course.
Tracy said Reynolds looked at him out of the corner of her eye. Within two or three yards of the finish line, Reynolds collapsed, and a race official was at her side within seconds. He told her he could not touch her or help her, but to avoid disqualification, she would have to get over the finish line.
Reynolds started crawling. It took more than 20 seconds for her to crawl two yards.
Reynolds says she did not remember collapsing but did remember crawling: “All I knew was that I had to cross the line.” The instant Reynolds crossed the line, she was scooped up by assistant coaches and a trainers, and taken to an ambulance, where she was given intravenous fluids. Reynolds was still in the ambulance when she heard her mother tell her father they had won the championship. An hour later, her teammates were in the ambulance with her, and they gave Reynolds her medal. Within a few hours, she had recovered enough to go home.
She finished 37th, with a time of 20 minutes 15 seconds, giving University the title it would not have won without her struggle over the line. The race was the team’s eighth state championship, making it the most successful team in California cross-country history.
Dramatic video of Holland’s finish can be seen here. She appears at the 19:32 mark.
By: STAYMAD