Hello and welcome to episode #18 of The Blue Water Running Podcast! This podcast features and celebrates the accomplishments of high school and collegiate cross country and track and field athletes from the Blue Water Area of Michigan.

Imagine this: you're standing in the middle of Hayward Field in Eugene Oregon, looking out at the crowd as you get ready to fulfill one of your greatest goals and dreams: competing for a spot on Team USA at the Olympic Track and Field Trials. Oh, and you’re also going to fling yourself almost two stories in the air using a thin pole. Our guest on today’s episode has done all of those things!

We will be talking with Kenzie Shell Beukes, a 2015 Port Huron Northern graduate who recently vaulted in the 2024 Olympic Track and Field Trials. Kenzie is an incredibly accomplished athlete: she was undefeated in pole vault during the regular season her entire senior year as a Husky, including winning the Division 1 state meet with a vault of 13’3”. That made her a back-to-back MHSAA champion, as she also won the state meet - indoor and outdoors - her junior year and was third as a sophomore. She set a state record in pole vault for indoor (13-6.00) and outdoor (13-9.00) and was a USATF Junior Olympics All-American. Kenzie went on to have a very successful collegiate career at the University of Oklahoma, becoming an NCAA All-American as a freshman, winning various invitationals and setting meet records, and graduating in 2019 as the school record holder in pole vault (at that time) at 14-5.5.

A little background on pole vaulting: according to historians, people have been vaulting since the ancient Greeks for non-competitive purposes such as jumping over walls (think castle invasion during battle), obstacles, or even to get from place to place across very marshy and wet areas. In some parts of Europe, they kept stacks of jumping poles at every house to cross canals without getting wet or to avoid long journeys to find a bridge. Pole vaulting is now a competitive sport for height instead of distance and has been an Olympic event for men since 1896. An American man won every pole vault gold medal from 1896 until 1968. The women’s pole vault has only been in the Olympics since 2000. The technology of poles has changed quite a bit as well, starting with ash or hickory wood, bamboo, aluminum, and steel, and then to modern fiberglass or carbon fiber.

I’ll leave you with this quote by Stacy Dragila, the first woman to win Olympic Pole Vault Gold when the event debuted in the 2000 Olympics in a vault of 15-1. The world record is currently 16-7.

“I think women have brought a lot of life back to the sport: first because a lot of people doubted women could actually do it well. Two, part of it is that old fascination some people have in watching athletes risk injury to win.” Stacy Dragila

Once again, thank you so much for tuning into today’s Blue Water Running podcast. I can’t wait to feature more cross country and track and field athletes from the Blue Water Area…stay tuned because it might just be YOU!

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Hello and welcome to The Blue Water Running Podcast! This podcast features and celebrates the achievements of high school and collegiate cross country and track athletes from the Blue Water Area of Michigan.

Today’s episode #17x2 is a bit different from our regular format. The eagerly anticipated Region 17 preview from Michigan XC Speed Ratings came out this week, and it has St. Clair and Yale once again at the forefront of the regional projections. This is a local matchup that never disappoints and features some of the Blue Water Area’s fastest runners each year. Both programs have a long tradition of excellence and building talent: in fact, St. Clair holds the D2 state record for the longest continuous streak of qualifiers, taking a team to the state finals every year since 2000. Yale has done the same for the better part of the last decade. In a close race last fall, Yale came out on top 37-46 at the 2023 D2 regional meet. The Bulldogs went 2, 3, 4, 11, and 17 for their top 5 with a team spread of 1:51, while the Saints went 5, 7, 9, 10, and 15 with a team spread of 1:01. Yale graduated their top 3 runners; St. Clair their top #1 and #4. As you can see, it’s shaping up to be another great rivalry.

We will be chatting with Jerry Westrick and Ethan Kreger of St. Clair, and then Ted Rutkofske and Wyatt Murtos of Yale. St. Clair’s Westrick (PR 17:10) is a senior and Kreger (PR 17:05) is a sophomore and they were both in the top 10 last year at regionals, returning as favorites in the area. Yale’s Rutkofske (PR 17:18) was 11th and Wyatt Murtos (PR 17:24) was 17th and both are seniors this year. To make this even more interesting, in the Speed Ratings regional projections, Kreger is rated first, Murtos fourth, Westrick fifth, and Rutkofske sixth, and all were within 25 places of each other at the state meet at MIS last fall. With the St. Clair guys in the first half of the pod episode and the Yale guys in the second half, we’ll get to chat with all four gentlemen about their team training, respective league competitions, goals, and expectations for the season, and the inevitable St. Clair vs. Yale showdown.

Ethan Kreger: “Always ask yourself if you want to be one of the greats.”

Jerry Westrick: “Float like a Cadillac, Sting like a Beemer” - Doc Hudson

Ted Rutkofske: "Get out there and show them what you guys can do." Coach Jared Shutko

Wyatt Murtos: "No one starts at the top; you have to work your way up." Muhammad Ali

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Hello and welcome to episode #16 of The Blue Water Running Podcast! This podcast features and celebrates the achievements of high school and collegiate cross country and track athletes from the Blue Water Area of Michigan.

On today's episode, we will be chatting with Hannah Fisher, a 2022 Marysville High School graduate and a current member of the Golden Grizzlies' track and field squad at Oakland University.

Hannah was an accomplished runner at Marysville, earning All-State status numerous times. As a junior, she finished 7th in the 800 meters at the Division II state meet, running 2:19 and crushing her personal best by over 8 seconds. She also placed 6th with her 4x200 relay and 4th with her 4x400 relay team, including 400-meter state champion Reese Powers (now a runner at MSU). Hannah saw huge improvements in her 1600-meter times during her senior year, running 5:02 and 2:20 in the 800. She was also a state qualifier in cross country, running a 5K best of 19:56 and winning several MAC jamborees and invitational meets.

Hannah has translated her middle-distance success onto the track at the collegiate level for Oakland University, running bests of 2:14 in the 800, 4:37 in the 1500, and 4:05 in the 4x400-meter relay. She is also dedicated to improving her craft in many facets, including nutrition, weightlifting, and sharing her training with others via Instagram.

Hannah's favorite verse is: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

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