It's not NASCAR, but it is still racing

Jess Huffman

Sun Journal

There goes the New Bern track team again, making history.

New Bern's 4x400 team - Anthony Hendrix, Fuquawn Greene, Miles Sparks and Andrew Hendrix - broke a U.S. High School indoor track record Friday in New York, finishing the event with a time of 3 minutes, 13.06 seconds.

Not impressed? Who are you, Usain Bolt?

Take into account the population of New Bern - around 27,000 people. The fact that four of the nation's fastest high school athletes live in a town this small is remarkable. It makes you wonder what they are putting in the school milk.

Track and field does not get the same amount of attention as other sports.. It just doesn't have the fan base.

But go out to a track meet sometime and watch these athletes run. Tell me you are not entertained.

The Hendrix twins alone are genetic miracles, made to operate at a faster level than normal human beings. They are Lamborghinis to the average man's Honda Accord.

Anthony ran a 47.5-second split in the 4x400 Friday, the fastest of the bunch. A day later he took third place in the 600 with a time of 1:18.89. Andrew won the event, clocking in at 1:18.36 - the second-fastest time in the history of U.S. high school indoor track.

Running the 600 takes speed and endurance, and the Hendrix brothers clearly have both.

Greene is no less impressive. As a sophomore last year, he placed third in both the 100 and 200, highlighting New Bern's third straight state championship.

Dave Simpson, who coaches the club team Track Eastern Carolina, thinks Greene has Olympic potential. Greene said he's shooting for 2012, but Simpson said 2016 is more realistic.

Watching Greene turn the corner in the 200 is a sight to behold. His speed sparks excitement, but his acceleration is what puts you in disbelief. It makes you wonder how one finds another gear when already going so fast.

Sparks is no slow-poke, either. His split in the 4x400 was 49 seconds. He's just a year removed from placing sixth in 300 hurdles at the state outdoor meet.

Put the four athletes together and you have something special. You have one of the fastest groups of high school athletes ever assembled.

In a region of the world so infatuated with NASCAR, I wonder why track and field is not more popular. It does not involve cars, but it is still racing.

Maybe there is no parallel.

Regardless, these athletes provide some thrills. And if you don't look now, you may never see something like it again.

Jess Huffman can be reached at (252) 635-5669 or at jhuffman@freedomenc.com.