Beginning high school as a freshman is rough. You have all of these new classes that will be ten times harder than the classes you took in middle school. Plus, upperclassmen look down on you for being young, and not “good enough”. Bryce Bell is determined to prove them wrong though! Bryce Bell is a freshman running Cross Country and Track for Lyman High School. Already in the season, Bell is running a 16:23 Personal Record in Cross Country!

Mountain Dew Invitational

The Mountain Dew Invitational is a largely known meet hosted by the University Of Florida. This meet has Boys and Girls JV, and Varsity High school races. It also has College races as well, so this meet is pretty big and important. Bell was going into this meet with a seeded position of 10^th, but the night before, there were a few last minute entries, seeding him in 21^st. He had a pretty positive mindset going into this meet.

“I felt good,” states Bell. “I knew there was going to be good competition and a lot of people.” He was very right. There were 67 teams, and 456 individual runners in the Boys Varsity race alone! Bell's goal was to finish in the top 20 and help the team achieve an overall placement of top 3. It would take hard training that week of practice, but Bell was determined. He ran a time, and his personal best, of 16:23 and placing 19^th.  The team placed 5^th overall. 

Bell’s chances of eventually winning the UF Mtn. Dew Invite meet are very high. However, he does have competition. His own teammates are his biggest competition for that victory. Bell's Coach, Fred Finke, says, “Next year, I don't know if he will win.  Will he be in the hunt? For sure.  Keep in mind he has a couple of teammates that are competitive that are not graduating, and they train together.  It is a symbiotic relation at the very least.  They all make each other better and those around them improve tremendously.  As for winning,  I'm pretty sure it will happen.”

A Bright, Ringing Future for Bell

For a freshman to be running the times as Bryce Bell is pretty spectacular. Most of the time they go on to do big things. Bell has already competed in a few championship races. In his eight-grade year, Bryce competed in the State Cross Country Championships, placing 11^th, with a time of 10:46. Then in the State Track meet, he ran a 9:39 in the 3200 meter, which put him in 3^rd place. So the State atmosphere is nothing new to him. His Coach, Fred Finke, is also predicting that Bryce will do exceptionally well throughout his life.

Bell wants to continue doing the 1600 meter this track season and attempt to run a phenomenal time of 4:25. He also wants to continue doing the 3200 meters, but he isn’t sure of a time he wants to beat this season. For a season best Cross Country time, Bell wants to go sub-16.

When asked about how Bryce would do this Season, Coach Finke had to say, “I can't make a guess.  Not because I don't have an opinion, but rather because I would not want to limit him.  Just when I think I have him figured out, he surprises me with a workout or performance that goes beyond his years.”

What Started It All?

Something has to start somewhere, and running in Bell’s family did NOT start with him. His family has been into running for quite awhile.

“My family has always supported running.”

Bell started doing “kid runs” and 5k’s when he was very young. From then on, he has always had a love for it. Bell’s father actually ran when he was younger. Even though his father tells him all the time that Bryce’s times are faster than his were, we still know where he got his speed. Bryce gets his motivation from his teammates! He also gets his motivation from knowing the fact that he can improve even more than he already has.

Bell has a VERY busy schedule with all of his classes, training, racing, etc., so he must be exhausted after the week. He has one long run a week, two strength workouts, and two endurance workouts. When it comes to meets, he says he sometimes doesn’t have a positive mindset, he is just confident in his training. Remember the name, Bryce Bell, because with the track this kid is on, we will be hearing a lot more from him.