Go ahead, mention that 25-mph crosswind.
Then, watch Lockport senior Kyle Engnell shrug his shoulders as if to say, "What wind?"
"I feel my strength is good for the wind," he said after winning the 800 meters in Friday night's Bill Jackson Invitational at Lockport with a time of 1:55.32, about 1 second off his personal-best.
"It really doesn't affect me as much," Engnell said. "I've been doing a lot of my workouts these last few weeks -- the weather really hasn't been cooperating with anyone.
"So, I mean, I've been getting a lot of hard workouts into the wind. That kind of practice pays off."
Engnell doesn't tire easily.
He returned to the track after a 45-minute delay that was caused by a thunderstorm and added his second victory in the 1,600 meters. He knocked four seconds off his previous best time en route to clocking a 4:19.57.
Engnell also ran legs on Lockport's fourth-place 3,200 relay and second-place 1,600 relay in a Ironman performance that begged the question of whether he had anything left in his tank. He led the Porters to a second-place finish in the A-B-C meet with 215 points.
Hillcrest, in a show of sprint strength, captured the team title with 249 points. Fremd placed third with 144, followed by Buffalo Grove (136) and Plainfield North (132).
"Yeah, I'm tired now, but I've grown accustomed to this kind of workout," Engnell said. "I've been doing these kinds of doubles and triples since my sophomore year. It's really a smart thing to do because it builds up my strength and endurance.
"I'm going to try and have a little edge over everyone at the end of the year, so I'm not fading at the last parts of my races. It's tough -- nights like these. But it pays off."
Buffalo Grove's Clay Locke set the pace in the 1,600 meters for three laps. Engnell passed him at the start-finish line and turned on the jets.
"The kid from Buffalo Grove set him up well," Lockport coach Tom Razo said. "He set up him with a fast pace. So, he believed in himself. He did a nice job on that third lap. He took the lead going into that fourth lap. It was a nice, strong race. And it was great."
Lockport also picked up victories from David Sajdak (C: 3200, 10:23.85), Max Kolemba (C: high jump, 5-8) and Joe Zander (C: shot put, 44-8½).
Plainfield North was led by Chester Bryant (C: 100 meters, 10.37) and Dion Strong (A: long jump, 21-0½). Both won individual events as the Tigers battled to overcome the absences of two of their standouts. Keith Collins was a scratch in the shot put and discus events because of a back spasm, and Jake Arnold was a no-show because of doctor's appointment.
Bryant's time in the 100 was the fastest of the fast -- even though it came in the "slow" heat.
"Yeah, he ran a 10.4 hundred, which makes him a legitimate sprinter," North coach Tony Holler said. "I mean, he ran it in the wind, but everybody runs their good times in the wind. I'm happy about him. And I think if you look at how we placed second in a couple relays -- we set a school record in the 4-by-8, set a school record in the 4-by-4. Our distance runners ran well -- (Andrew) Karas ran a 4:29.
"And we were short-handed. We've had a really tough spring. We're missing our best shot putter and discus thrower, Keith Collins, with back spasms. Our second-best 400-meter guy is not here with back spasms. And, then, Jake Arnold we thought was going to run tonight, but I guess his doctor didn't release him or something. We haven't heard from him.
"We thought we could win this meet. So, in that way, it's disappointing. But, for the 28 kids that were here, we did a great job."
Jake Ferris, Joey Gutierrez, Rudy Bores and Juliano Lodi set the tone for Plainfield South early. The four combined to win the 3,200 relay with a season-best time of 8:17.01. The Cougars also picked up victories from Andrew Haney (B: pole vault, 12-2) and Kyle Fitzgerald (C: pole vault, 12-2).
Plainfield Central's Mark Baron won the 400 meters and smashed a school record with his time of 49.63. The Wildcats' Josh Winder won the pole vault in 15-0. He missed on three attempts to clear 15-9, in part because he was battling to control the weight of the pole in his hand on the runway with the wind whipping him around.
"It started out as a headwind and a crosswind," Winder said. "It kind of came at my back on a couple of jumps. But those last few jumps were just in a horrible crosswind. It's really hard to adjust in winds like that. The wind's blowing you off to the left side of the runway. Your pole's blowing to the left, while you're using all your force to bring it to the right and get it in the box."
He took a call shortly after completing his jumps and found out his older brother, Jake, won the CCIW conference title in the pole vault with a mark of 17-1. He vaults now at North Central College.
"That was an all-time PR for him," Josh Winder said. "That was good news. That was actually way better than me clearing 15-feet. I'd rather see him do well. He's been working really hard."
Baron checked off another one of his personal goals on his record run in the 400.
"It feels amazing," he said. "On the last straightaway, it was really hard. But I knew I had to push it through. I'm glad I did that, and I'm ready for conference now. I had three goals when I got to high school -- set a school record, qualify for state and be all-conference in an event. And I've accomplished all three of them so far."
"I'm really happy for him," Central coach Steve Lawrence said. "He's a great kid. He's had some injuries, some not his own fault. He was doing a workout with the girls and he got run into and got injured. He was standing at a track meet and got hit with a shot. Those things happen. He's really fought through a lot of that. So, I'm really pleased for him.
"Forty-nine six is a really good time. It gives me some thought of what we're going to do with him."
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