ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 11, 1996 TAG: 9604110093
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: E-12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
Louis Booker and Raheem Barnwell already do so many amazing and surprising things for Patrick Henry High School's boys' track team, it's hard to imagine what they could do if they could actually stay healthy.
Considering they are undefeated this spring after three outdoor meets, it might be something never seen before. "In the first meets, they've done well,'' said PH track coach Jeff Johnson. "Hopefully as the season goes along, they'll do something special."
Booker, nicknamed "Dink," is an excellent sprinter who dabbles in the triple jump. Barnwell, a senior who last fall was quarterback for the Patriots' football team, does the long jump, triple jump and high jump, as well as his specialty, the hurdles.
Last Saturday they led the Patriots to a second-place finish in the 20-team Bradford Relays in Lynchburg.
Booker said he wants to win the invitational meet April 20 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville because, "I think if I win that, I can win the state [meet]."
Barnwell said, "My plans are to come out of state with two gold medals and place high in my other events. I want gold in the 110s [hurdles] and long jump. And if I feel I can win the 330, I want that, too."
That may sound greedy, but after the state indoor meet over the winter, he's a little low on trophies. Barnwell had been experiencing flu-like symptoms for two weeks leading up to the state meet, and the illness didn't subside until later.
"It was miserable," he said. "I didn't want to watch the 55-meter hurdles, but I went ahead and looked at it because I wanted to see my competition for outdoors."
Barnwell's best finish that day was fifth in the long jump. He didn't place in the hurdles, despite coming into the meet with the state's third-best time. But he wouldn't even have competed without his friend, Louis.
"I told him he had to," Booker said.
Booker knows about sucking it up and competing. The junior suffers from asthma, but has learned to overcome it. Booker says asthma might have made him a better runner. "It helped me, actually," he said. "It built my stamina up where I run and don't get tired.''
Both have sprained their ankles before and during track season, always on the basketball court. As a result, Johnson and assistant coach James Jones all but forbid their athletes to play during track season. Booker complies, he says, mainly because he's not very good at basketball, but Barnwell now and then sneaks in a pickup game.
"If it's sunny outside, I'm going to the basketball court," Barnwell said. "Basically I try to wear two pairs of socks and hi-tops [sneakers]. They enforce that we don't play basketball, but it's just something I like to do."
Injuries and illness aren't the only bonds between the two. Both figure their participation in other sports has strengthened their track talents. Barnwell, for example, says last fall's football season made him stronger and faster. Booker said he got a lot out of running cross country, even though it was a lot of work.
"Distance helps, though," he said. "I think that's why I got better. It built up my endurance. I just didn't like it. But it helped."
Barnwell and Booker are roommates on the Patriots' overnight trips. Their normal routine is to lock themselves in their room, play some video games, "call other people's rooms, talk on the phone, try to find where the girls are.
"But we make sure we're in the bed by a decent time,'' Barnwell said.
This pair knows something about hiding and coming out of nowhere when it's time to compete. Barnwell arrived at Patrick Henry around Thanksgiving 1994, from Gainesville, Fla. He had lived in Roanoke as a young child, but in 1986, his mother decided it was time for a vacation in Florida. "It was an eight-year vacation," he said.
Barnwell plans on attending Norfolk State University next year. For now though, his coaches are just glad he's around the team.
The coaches feel the same way about Booker, who crashed the state track scene as a sophomore. Booker, seeded 16th out of 20 runners and slotted in the slowest of all the 400-meter heats, won the 100 and helped the Patriots to the Northwest Region boys' outdoor track title.
"It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen," Johnson said.
Booker and Barnwell will be the favorites in many of their events no matter where they compete this spring. Both know what they want: state championships. Booker is trying to take his regional title one step further, while Barnwell wants to storm back from the disappointment of the state indoors.
"It just pushes me harder to compete," Barnwell said. "I'm coming back to redeem myself in the hurdles and long jump. Those are my best events, and I should have placed higher than what I did."
To reach their goals, it will take more than determination. It will also take durability, Booker said.
"Gotta stay healthy."
LENGTH: Medium: 94 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ERIC BRADY/Staff. Friends and road roommates Louisby CNBBooker (left) and Raheem Barnwell of Patrick Henry are undefeated
after three outdoor meets this spring. color.