Observer-Reporter Athlete of the Week
Name: Ben Bumgarner
School: Waynesburg
Class: Senior
Sports: Cross country
Bumgarner’s week: At the Mingo Classic held last Thursday on the hilly course at Mingo Creek County Park, Bumgarner defeated a field of 177 runners and broke the course record with a time of 15:41.17. He easily defeated runner-up Casey Conboy of Baldwin by more than 16 seconds.
“I definitely had my eye on setting the course record, so I had planned to go out fast,” Bumgarner said.
There was, however, one variable that made Bumgarner go to a Plan B. Rain last week left the course soggy, muddy and slow in spots.
“It was terrible conditions,” Waynesburg coach Matt Brandstetter said. “It was muddy, a couple of runners fell because of the mud.”
Looking at the course, Bumgarner and Brandstetter decided that simply concentrating on the win would be the plan of action. A course record could wait for another runner and another year.
“We talked and were discussing what to do,” Bumgarner recalled. “We decided to put time goals out the window and just go for the win. But I was running up front and then put on a big move about halfway through and I never looked back. I knew at that point that I had a shot at the course record.”
Mr. Perfect: Bumgarner’s win at Mingo kept alive his perfect season. Bumgarner has finished first in each of Waynesburg’s dual, tri and quad meets. He defeated Conboy by 13 seconds to win the Everhart Classic in Uniontown. Bumgarner’s most impressive victory might have been in September when he defeated 515 runners to win the Division II group at the Spartan Invitational in Boardman, Ohio.
“Ben put a lot of pressure on himself to win the Mingo Classic because he was expected to win,” Brandstetter said. “He knew the course, he knew the frontrunners, everybody expected him to win. …”
Next up, WPIALs: The next big race on Bumgarner’s schedule is the WPIAL Championships Oct. 27 at Cooper’s Lake in Slippery Rock.
Bumgarner’s placed seventh in the event last year after missing the race as a sophomore because of an injury. Finishing seventh last year wasn’t bad, especially when you consider the unique weather conditions that made simply finishing the race a triumph.
“There were 20 mph winds, part of the day it was 65 degrees and another part it was 45 degrees,” Brandstetter recalled. “Runners had trouble breathing because it was so windy. I think Ben ran half of that race with his head turned to the side, just so he could breathe.
“He wants WPIAL gold this time. There are only one or two guys who can run with him.”
Bumgarner brushed off the importance of the WPIAL meet. His goals go beyond a district title.
“There are,” he said, “so many runners who advance to the state meet, especially from Double-A, so I haven’t been thinking much about the WPIAL race. I expect to be chasing PIAA gold in two weeks.”
Seventy-mile weeks: Bumgarner wasn’t always a blazing runner. He took up cross country as a freshman and did it more for fun than serious competition.
“I had played football as an eighth grader. I liked it but it wasn’t my favorite sport,” Bumgarner said. “I enjoyed running and I’m a pretty competitive kid. I wanted to do something I was good at, and that was distance running, so I thought I’d give cross country a try.”
That first season sparked Bumgarner’s desire to win. After the season ended, he joined the Morgantown Flyers track club and began taking running seriously.
“I ran a Turkey Trot 5K that year and I cut a minute and a half off my personal best,” Bumgarner said. “The next day, I ran another one – that wasn’t the best idea – and I cut another minute off my time. That’s when I started realizing the harder I work the better results I would get. It just started clicking for me.”
As a member of Waynesburg’s track team, Bumgarner placed fourth in the state last year in the 3,200-meter run.
Bumgarner’s workout schedule during the summer includes running 70 miles a week. He’s scaled back that total as the cross country season has progressed, but it’s not unusual for him to log 50-mile weeks.
“He’s an incredibly dedicated runner,” Brandstetter said. “Ben decided he wanted to be an elite runner. He has a strong work ethic and that works well in this sport. Has also has a lot of natural speed.”
Compiled by Chris Dugan