Reardan senior sprinter Bell enters state as clear favorite

Chances are you’ve heard about Chase Bell running around a football field or playing defense on a basketball court, but the real Chace Bell prefers running in short, straight lines.

Yes, in a stellar four-year, three-sport athletic career at Reardan, the unusual spelling of Chace Bell has been Chance and Chase in various reports.

“I notice, but everybody does it,” Bell said.

The first name, which he said means to hunt in old English – and he’s an avid hunter – isn’t the only thing unusual about Bell.

Despite his success in team sports as a quarterback and point guard, he loves to run.

“I love football, but track is where my heart is,” he said.

His mother, Lorrie, ran for a state championship team at Riverside and is now an elementary teacher in Davenport.

“I’m not sure he is crazy about running, he’s just really good at it,” she said. “It’s the only individual sport. He relies on the work he does. It’s a chance to see what he can do.”

He never thought about giving up a team sport to enhance his running.

“(Injury) has always been in the back of my mind, but you’ve got to do it,” he said. “You’ve got to play sports. You only get this chance one time, so live it while you can.”

Bell turned down some small-college football opportunities, even those that also included track, to run at Carroll College in Helena next year.

“Football is dangerous,” he said. “I love the risk factor of it, but in 30 years do I have to have a healthy life? That’s a consideration.”

Before moving on he has the matter of the state track meet. At the 1A/2B/1B meet that begins at Roos Field in Cheney on Friday, he starts defense of his 2B titles in the 100 and 200 meters. He’ll also long jump and anchor the Indians’ 400 relay. To this point, he is a three-time medalist in the individual events with a pair of relay medals.

Though he hasn’t been quite up to form in the long jump this season, he is the top seed in the dashes (10.94 and 22.34) and the relay is ranked No. 2 (45.08).

But the most exciting thing for Bell is competition, particularly with Christian Meyer of Northwest Christian. The junior has been hot on his heels all season in the sprints.

“It’s awesome,” Bell said. “I love it. He’s right there.”

That explains Bell’s passion best. He’s proud, but not impressed, that he’s never lost a race in a league meet. The only time he lost to a league foe was in the district meet 200 as a freshman, a loss he reversed with a fifth-place finish in the state 200 finals.

“There is always someone out there who is better,” Bell said, giving credit to his coaches for helping him improve. “If you want to be the best athlete, you have to strive and push yourself. It’s been self-competition since I was a freshman. I really haven’t been pushed. You have to find a way to get better. I’m the kind of person (that doesn’t) give up. There’s always the next level.”

There is a story out there that Bell turned to running because of a fear of horses, but that’s a little dramatic.

“I played baseball my whole life,” he said. “From the time I could swing a bat I was playing baseball. I just got tired of it.”

His whole life hadn’t even exited grade school at that point, but his parents brought him to Spokane to run with the Mercury track club and he hasn’t quit running since.

“I liked to run,” he said. “I knew I was fast before I came into the track club. In P.E. I was always the faster kid. They would always make me race against older kids, (but) I wanted to know how fast.”

As he got older, he eschewed video games to run to a friend’s house.

The fear of horses did play a role in his development. His dad loved to ride around their property and to be with his dad he chose to run along.

“He would go all over the place,” Bell said. “He wouldn’t wait for me, but I was right there.”

That made his mother laugh, because obviously his dad wouldn’t leave the preschooler behind.

“He wasn’t too fond of horses,” she said. “Back then he never ran around things or over things, he ran through them.”

Since then, he’s left everyone chasing him, no matter how it’s spelled.