Strike up the Band Tri-Cities, because we have a new cross country talent in the region.
His name is Josh Vasquez of Dobyns-Bennett.
The super sophomore is no Clark Kent. He's a little more unique. He wears two suits.
A band uniform and a cross country singlet.
You see Josh Vasquez is a clarinet player for the Dobyns-Bennett marching band and the No. 1 runner on Dobyns-Bennett's cross country team.
That in itself is quite an accomplishment. I've known dual sport athletes in the same season but a marching band member and cross country runner of his caliber is quite a feat!
"Josh trains with us on Monday and Wednesdays and is with the band on Tuesday and Thursdays unless of course we have a meet on one of those days," said Tennessee Hall of Fame Coach Tom Coughenour. "This is his first cross country season so he's a little new to all of this."
He may be a little new but he is performing like a seasoned veteran.
At the Furman Invitational in South Carolina on Oct. 8, he was the second finisher from the Tri-Cities. Vasquez placed 22nd in a time of 16:22 out of 392 runners over the 5K course (3.1 miles).
"The race was difficult," said Vasquez. "I just pushed through and just felt great after the race on how I did and what I had accomplished."
Last month at the Santo Cicirello meet on Sept. 13, he ran 16:58 on the Daniel Boone course. This past Thursday at the Trailblazer Invitational, he ran 16:10 on the same course, equating to a nice 48-second improvement.
The real question is what will happen if Vasquez were to become a full-time runner and start increasing his mileage from a mere 25 miles a week.
"I feel like I can be putting in more miles but I feel good," said Vasquez. "I'm starting to fall in love with running. It's a great sport."
Vasquez first gained notice last spring when he broke on to the track circuit by running an exceptional 4:43 mile as a freshman with little or no base work.
"In the beginning, Josh didn't get the idea of practice," said Coach Coughenour. "Once he started performing well, he was like, hey I might like this!"
Vasquez feels like maybe the mile might be his event in the future.
"I prefer to run the mile but I guess I am running right now just seeing what I can do," said Vasquez.
"I think Josh will go 4:30 in the spring," said Coach Coughenour. "He has a fluid motion, and good speed. Probably in the 57 quarter range if I had to take a guess."
For now though, it is cross country and Vasquez could be headed to Nashville for the Tennessee State Cross Country Meet on Nov. 5 depending upon if he qualifies out of the region on the same Daniel Boone course he is accustomed to. He has already defeated every runner going into region meet, with the exception of Todd Smalling of Science Hill, so his chances are good.
In my view, Vasquez has tremendous upside potential suited for the longer distances. He has a light frame (my guess would be 125 lbs. but it might even be less), and has an extremely efficient stride. He doesn't have a high back kick and is more of a shuffler, which is good for the longer races.
Throw in the combination of endurance and speed and he should be successful from the mile on up.
The Tri-Cities area is blessed with exceptional cross country talent at the sophomore high school level. Griff Graves, a sophomore from Abingdon, made his mark this past weekend by winning the Trailblazer Invitational in a time of 15:27, which is really moving.
It will be interesting to watch Vasquez whittle away at the 43-second gap over the next two and a half years as he begins to increase his mileage.
Although I could be missing out on some revolutionary training method.
When asked how he could race the morning after performing in a half time show of a D-B football game, Vasquez responded, "Actually I feel good the next day. My legs feel energized and I feel pumped for races."
The possibility exists that the State Cross Country Meet in Nashville and the high school state football playoffs will be held on the same weekend.
I'm sorry to say but the D-B marching band may be short one clarinet player that Friday night. Once Vasquez toes the line at the Percy Warner state course, it won't take much for him to get pumped up for that race.