Solitary Mission In Woods Around St. Maries, Team Of Two Trains For Singular Goals

One of the best ways to enjoy fall in North Idaho is to take a walk in the woods around St. Maries.

While enjoying the turning leaves and beautiful view of placid lakes and freshly cut wheat fields, don’t be startled if a solitary figure dashes by.

It’s probably just half of the St. Maries High School cross country team displaying the self-discipline that comes from training alone.

“It would be nice to have someone to share the pain with after a tough workout,” said senior Jeremy Badgett, the lone member of the boys team.

At St. Maries High, though, no one helps Badgett through the tough days. Freshman Aree Stone also runs alone and carries the banner of the girls team.

Both runners have consistently run in the top three individual places in the Intermountain League this year, but receive very little recognition even at their own school.

“I’ve asked people to come out for the team, but no one understands what cross country is all about,” Stone said.

While the student body might not have cross country figured out, Stone and Badgett do. At the Farragut Invitational two weeks ago, Stone came in sixth and Badgett placed 13th in the B Division (for schools with enrollments 800 or below).

Those were impressive finishes considering the field included teams from all over the Inland Northwest. The only Intermountain League runners that beat the pair were Moscow’s Kenny Benjamin and Yvonne Shea.

“Kenny has been my archrival for four years now and I’m looking forward to battling it out with him at districts,” Badgett said.

In contrast, Stone doesn’t pick a runner to challenge, as she is still learning the courses in her first year. Fortunately, her family has a history of running.

“My dad has a lot of running experience, so he helps me out and coaches me,” said Stone, who has two brothers, Rye and Dante, who also ran in high school.

Although there is no cross country coach at St. Maries, Lake City coach Donna Messenger has helped the pair.

“Most of the work we do on our own, but Donna has given us some weekly workouts and gives us advice at the meets,” Stone said.

The support they receive from their families is what Messenger feels is the key to Stone’s and Badgett’s success. Messenger has been a friend of the Stone family since Rye ran, and agreed to supervise them at meets.

“Both of them are very self-motivated, but they wouldn’t go through all this if they didn’t love to run,” Messenger said.

That love of running is one of the keys to overcoming the long lonely workouts and physical wear and tear. It doesn’t, however, replace the need for camaraderie.

“Sometimes you need time to run alone, but you can’t replace the help you would get from a team,” Badgett said.

Stone practices in the woods around her house. Badgett also runs in the woods, so cross country seemed natural for both runners, who also run track.

Badgett qualified for state last year in the 800 and 1600 meters, and Stone has run track since she was 7.

The duo is now gearing up for districts and state, which will both be held at Farragut. Both runners like the tough course, which causes runners fits if a good strategy isn’t employed.

“If you start out wrong you’re dead,” Badgett said.

Stone is looking forward to her first crack at the races which are the payoff for a summer and fall of hard training.

“I know the course well, so I’m just going to try and stay with Yvonne Shea and compete well,” Stone said.

It’s a safe bet that there will be quite a few surprised runners at Farragut as a solitary figure in a dark green uniform dashes by them.

But if they look closely, they will see the determination on the faces of two runners who know that they can rely on their own strength.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo