2007 Bob Firman Invitational Saturday September 22, 2007 Eagle Island State Park, Boise ID DyeStat on-site coverage with John & Donna Dye, Dave Devine and Rob Monroe See WINNER TABLE for links to results, stories and pix Elite winners: Mountain Brook AL girls, Nicole Nielsen ID, Crater OR boys, Luke Puskedra UT Photo albums: top 25 BOYS - GIRLS

DONNA ON THE SIDE 200 sideline scenes Preview - Schedule Meet Information Meet's own site DyeStat Previous Years 2006 - 2005

Boys Elite - a tale of two races: Luke Puskedra's solo tour de force and a battle of nationally ranked teams. Girls Elite - Mountain Brook girls trusted themselves and had fun, with whitewater rafting a side benefit of their long trip from Alabama. Cool Hand Luke steals the show Plus: Nielsen's Near-CR, a crush of Comets and the Alabama Slammers by Dave Devine At the 2006 Bob Firman Invitational, then-junior Luke Puskedra of Judge Memorial UT was leading the boys’ elite race after two miles, but found himself helpless against a surging Taylor Farnsworth of Highland ID, and ended up a well-beaten second to Farnsworth’s impressive 15:16.65 course record. “I just couldn’t go with him,” he lamented at the time. “I tried to make a move at the two mile mark and paid for it on the third mile.” What a difference a year makes. Read More

jr Madeline Morgan leads Mountain Brook with 3rd place finish	Nicole Nielsen was a popular winner for the Idaho crowd	Luke Puskedra had it all his own way	Ryan Santana in 9th place led Crater's big win over North Central
		y	photos by John Dye

Under swirling skies threatening rain all day, Puskedra attacked this year’s race like a man possessed, making the entire field pay as he clocked 4:36 through the opening mile en route to a jaw-dropping tour that left veteran coaches in awe and laid waste to Farnsworth’s record. Puskedra’s composed, untouched effort—14:49.16 on a rolling course with significant hills and shifting terrain—was clearly the race of the day at the 2007 Bob Firman Invitational, but there were other compelling storylines. The girls’ elite race featured Nicole Nielsen of Borah ID, a bubbly hometown hero who narrowly missed a course record of her own with her 18:18.40 defeat of Judge Memorial’s Hailey Knettles—a repeat runner-up at 18:24.06. In the much-anticipated team competitions, a collision of ranked teams from multiple regions produced a series of surprises, let downs, upsets and disappointments. The Mountain Brook AL girls, ranked 4th in the Southeast entering the race, shook off any lingering jetlag from the long trip north and sped to an impressive 64-80 win over SW#3 Davis UT, leaving two of the top-ranked teams in the Northwest—NW#3 Boise ID (9th) and NW#2 Gig Harbor WA (10th)—well in their wake. Meanwhile, Crater Oregon’s boys—initially declared the winner of the boys' elite race over US#3 North Central WA, among others—had to wait through two recounts of the scoring after a discrepancy in the finish line chute left the results in question for over an hour. Once the timing chip data had been thoroughly reviewed, Crater’s win held up, although by a far narrower margin than originally thought. Behind the top-ten finish of senior Ryan Santana, the soaring Comets upended North Central’s vaunted squad by 3 points, 121 to 124, simultaneously knocking off four other regionally ranked teams and US#17 Trabuco Hills CA. In the past few years the Bob Firman Invitational has offered a chance for ranked teams to ratchet up their status or improve their standing in a season-long quest for NTN berths based on year-end rankings. A hiccup at Firman, as some teams learned the hard way, could spell the end of national aspirations, as departures from the top-5 were rarely reversible. Now, with selection to Nike Team Nationals based on head-to-head racing at regional meets, an early season slip-up by a highly regarded team is a far less punishing setback—a fact several coaches emphasized as they tried to put a positive spin on their disappointing outcome. Many suggested there was plenty of time to regroup, and the mere fact of having seen the course and measured the competition was enough. With the Northwest regional meet scheduled for the same Eagle Island State Park course on November 10th, it’s almost a guarantee that several anticipated rematches will be contested over the same trampled ground.

	The course at picturesque Eagle Island State Park features a rugged start on a wide, freshly mown hayfield.
	Meet Information Course Eagle Island State Park is a championship tested cross country course that challenges competitors by requiring constant adjustments to a variety of surfaces including grass, sand, packed dirt, open field, and asphalt (but only 9 meters of the black stuff). The course also requires competitors to constantly adjust pace as they negotiate a number of turns and two trips up and down Spectator Hill with its 50 meter climb and fast 90 meter descent. Course elevation 2,724 feet This park has been actively used for cross country meets since 1989. It has been the site of the Bob Firman Invitational, numerous district meets, four state championship meets, the WAC championships, and will be the site for the 2007 NCAA DII West Regionals. It was also selected as one of eight courses nationwide as a meet site under Nike's original NTN regional qualifying format. Schedule Tentative Time Schedule Collegiate Men 8:50 Collegiate Women 9:25 DII Varsity Boys 10:00 DI Varsity Boys 10:30 Elite Varsity Girls 11:00 Elite Varsity Boys 11:30 DII Varsity Girls 12:00 DI Varsity Girls 12:30 JV Boys 1:00 JV Girls 1:30 9th Grade Boys 2:00 9th Grade Girls 2:30 Middle School Boys 3:00 Middle School Girls 3:30 Times subject to change 3K for 6th-8th grade 8K collegiate men 5K for all other races Awards Top 20 Finishers in all six High School Varsity Races: Custom Medal Race logo Nike sackpack Certificate of Recognition Top 3 Varsity Teams: Trophy Custom Medals for 7 team members Meet Registration 2007 Entry Fees by September 1st: High School $80 per school or $12/runner for incomplete teams Middle School $40 per school or $5/runner for incompleteteams Checks payable to Bob Firman XC Invitational c/o Dave Mills 923 E. Bannock St. Boise, Idaho 83712