For several years, Naperville Central boys track and field head coach Steve Stack invited former Redhawk runners to take part in the school’s sunset track meet to run in the 1600-meter alumni race to cap off the end of the summer training season. The response has been strong enough that for the past two summers, Stack expanded the alumni portion to multiple track and field events.
“Four years ago, we had a bunch of alumni show up, and they just ran the 1600 meters. And it was a lot of fun. And from there, I was like, we should do more because sprinters wanted to have something. So then we made it a whole track and field meet. So this is our second time running most of a track and field night,” said Naperville Central boys track and field head coach Steve Stack.
Past and present Redhawk runners get in on the competition
Despite being Naperville Central alumni-focused, the meet is open to the local running community at large, with nearly 200 participants of all ages and genders getting in on the fun.
“Last year, we had someone from the class of 1973. And so it’s so amazing to see that running passion that’s lifelong and a guy come back 50 years later to run on their high school track with current Redhawks. It was super cool,” said Stack.
Alumni like former All-State distance runner Arthur Graham competed in the 1600 meters and looks forward to the chance to reconnect with familiar faces and run alongside previous generations of Redhawks.
“Yeah, that is pretty cool because you even have the parents and then you have the kids who are still in high school and then like the ones who are still even to come, which is really cool. And it’s also cool just to see the excellence in those generations, both in the teams they made. And then you look at some of the people in that race who have been really good. You have probably five or six All-State athletes in that race who have been really high up in the state and are running in college, and then you have the parents who are involved too. It’s a really cool community and a really successful community just to see what brings people together here. And to have that group is really special to be able to come back to,” said Naperville Central alum Arthur Graham.
With former All-State and even state champion runners participating, the meet is competitive, but the main goals of the night are to have fun, reminisce, and share a love for the sport.
“The heart of the meet is getting former runners and jumpers and throwers to come back home one more time so we could see them so we can catch up with them. But really, we want to see anyone who wants to compete, wants to run fast, and jump far. Come here and have a great opportunity to do it. I love showing off our stadium. I think we have a great stadium. Great for spectating, great for running fast. So really, we want as many people here as want to run,” said Stack.
“It’s just so much fun. It just makes me smile to see you guys, that it’s been a year. It’s been two years. Some of these guys, it’s been ten years since I saw some of the guys that showed up tonight. And that’s especially you just remember how much time you spent working and doing a hard thing together. So it’s just a lot of fun,” said Stack.
A summer training opportunity
For alums like Graham, who will spend his final year as a collegiate runner at Duke University after four years at Alabama, meets like this serve as a chance to knock the summer cobwebs off with old friends before the season picks back up in the fall.
“It’s nice just to kind of get some sort of effort in over the summer because this is usually the longest period of the year where we don’t have a competition. You have end of track season in May and then maybe 1 or 2 meets to that. And you don’t run again until like early September. So you got like 3 or 4 months off. So it’s nice. Even if you don’t run a fast time. Just get some sort of effort in and to get to see people again. But yeah, obviously very excited for Duke. Alabama was a great school and had a great team. Great coach. Love that time there. But I’m excited to see what Duke holds for the fifth year,” said Graham.
With the steady growth of the meet, Coach Stack hopes that even more alumni from years past will return to their old stomping grounds to reconnect with former teammates and coaches, and remember their time running for the red and white.
“Each year, hopefully, we get a couple more from an older class, a couple more from an older class. We’re trying to beat the drum and shake the, shake the trees on, you know, classes from the 1990s and 2000. Really continuing to build that coalition of alumni, all the way back to the 1970’s, where we know we have people paying attention. We just want to give them a reason to come home,” said Stack.
For Naperville Community Television, I’m Justin Cornwell.
