CROSS-COUNTRY TRACK
Going the extra mile
Bryce Jenkins will go any distance to become the best prep cross-country runner
By Brandon Lee
Special to the Star-Bulletin
LEILEHUA cross-country runner Bryce Jenkins admits that his father, Bruce, vicariously shares with him what is very quickly becoming a successful prep career.
Bruce Jenkins also ran cross country during high school and for a couple of years in college, and "he's living his dream through me," Bryce Jenkins said.
Jenkins doesn't feel pressured by the situation, however.
He believes it brings him and his father closer together, particularly now that his dad is deployed in Kuwait as the commander for the Army's 556th Personnel Support Battalion, 25th Infantry Division.
"He's been deployed (two other times as well), so I've kinda had to deal with it," the 15-year-old Jenkins explained. "It just motivates me to do better."
Only a sophomore, Jenkins convincingly won the boys varsity individual title at the Punahou Invitational last Saturday, finishing the 3-mile course in 16 minutes, 42.51 seconds, more than 20 seconds better than second place.
PAUL HONDA / PHONDA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Cross country has been a common thread for Bryce Jenkins and his dad, Bruce (pictured in frame). Sue Jenkins has covered many a mile with her son, who always liked running for fun rather than medals -- until recently. CLICK FOR LARGE
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It was his third and most prestigious win so far this season, even though he spent six weeks not running during the late summer because of a stress fracture in his right foot.
Returning to Oahu -- where Bryce was born and spent his first five years -- from Fort Bragg, N.C., in May of last year, his parents initially had to push him into trying out for cross country with the Mules as a way to meet kids during the summer before his freshman year.
Though he had never run competitively before, at the end of last season, Jenkins finished 18th in the state championship race -- the only freshman in the top 20, and one of only two in the top 60.
After Bryce's performance at this year's Punahou race -- where he competed against the best from his own Oahu Interscholastic Association as well as the Interscholastic League of Honolulu -- he has to be considered one of the favorites for this year's state meet Nov. 10.
Asked if he immediately thought that this year's state title could maybe be his, after last year's result and the defending champ graduating, the soft-spoken yet confident Jenkins simply said: "Yeah, I did."
But Jenkins and Leilehua still have two races before states, including the OIA Championship on Oct. 28, which the Mules enter as the defending team champion.
"He's a real good runner, and he's only a sophomore," Leilehua coach Shawn Nakata said. "He's a person who is always trying to get better."
The driving force behind this used to be just Bruce Jenkins.
But over the last year and a half -- and particularly since his dad left a month ago -- Bruce's dream has become Bryce's own.
They e-mail and talk on the phone about running almost daily. Where once his father would prepare all of his things before a race because it otherwise wouldn't be done, every detail is now enthusiastically taken care of by Bryce.
"He got the bug ... and he's just stuck with it, and it's kind of taken on a life of its own," said Bryce's mother, Sue. "This year he's really taken ownership of it. He has a really full plate, so we're just proud of what he's doing."
Jenkins' load also includes participating in ROTC, and struggling to maintain his academics because he has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
"He has to work really, really hard for what he's doing," his mother said.
Wanting to follow his dad's tracks in more than just running, Jenkins also desires to eventually make his career in the military.
As proud as Bruce is of what he is doing, Bryce is just as proud of his dad.
"I think it's totally necessary, and I thank him every day for being out there," Jenkins said. "I just pray to God he stays safe."