ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 3, 1996 TAG: 9610030085
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: N-12 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
SOURCE: KEITH POMPEY STAFF WRITER
BEN DOWDY, a Cave Spring cross country runner, already leads the pack in the Roanoke Valley. He's looking ahead to the stiff competition waiting for him at the end of the season
Ben Dowdy can't forget last year's Group AAA cross country and track meets.
On both occasions, the Cave Spring High School student came up short trying to put Roanoke on the map.
"I wasn't too happy about my performances," said Dowdy, the area's top cross country runner. "My mind wasn't in those races. Going up the hill I just gave up. I didn't have my mind in it. And I ran out of gas at the end of the track season."
Since those performances, he has been labeled as only a ``big fish in a small pond.'' One that doesn't get any respect from the state's elite runners.
"I don't think that anyone outside of the area is looking Roanoke's way," said Mark Donahue, a Knights assistant coach. People think "all of the powerhouse cross country runners come from Northern Virginia. They look down on Roanoke. They don't think anyone's here because Ben didn't have a [state meet] last year."
Dowdy feels it's time to redeem himself and put last season's misfortunes behind him.
One way to keep focused is to think back to last November's state cross country meet. Dowdy was in awe of his competition.
He didn't know what to expect. It was the first time he had made it that far. To make matters worse, West Springfield's Sharif Karie and Thomas Edison's Eric Kweder - two of the nation's top runners - were on hand.
Dowdy, who hasn't lost a Roanoke Valley District meet in two years, finished a disappointing 39th.
"That's the first time we've really seen competition like that," said Cave Spring coach Troy Smith. "This area isn't too deep in competition. When we got up there, we saw the heavy stuff."
And the same thing happened to him this past June at the state track meet in Newport News. After going undefeated in the 1,600 meters against district competition, he finished eighth in 4 minutes, 30 seconds - five seconds off his personal best.
His coaches felt the only way Dowdy could compete against the top competition was to train like them. That's why he logs about 60 miles a week in practice, compared to 45 a year ago.
"Ben has relied on his natural talent for a long time," said Donahue. "But you don't get any better than that unless you have a great desire to work hard. That's what he is doing right now. His work ethic is starting to show in his field work."
Smith agreed.
"I have seen a lot of improvement in his work ethic [since] last year. All he does is work, work, work."
His first test came Sept.21 at the Virginia Tech High School Invitational. The 23-school meet not only included Karie and Kweder, but also competitors from Washington, Maryland and Ohio.
Dowdy responded with a fourth-place finish. His time of 15:19 was nearly a minute faster than last year's performance, and he stayed with the top two runners for most of the race. Karie finished first with a time of 14:31; the next three runners were bunched up.
"The top six runners broke the old course record," said Smith. "And Ben wasn't comfortable with that fourth position. He was going for third all the way until he crossed the finish line."
Dowdy's second test was Saturday.
Competing in the Festival at Great Meadows meant two things: He could redeem himself on the same course where he took 39th in the state, and he could show off his talents against the top competition. "So when he goes back to the state championship, he will not be in awe," said Donahue. "Hopefully some [competitors] will look at him in awe instead."
Dowdy ran one of his best races in finishing second to West Potomac's Gene Manor. Dowdy started quickly and held a sizable lead after two miles. But Manor regrouped and caught Dowdy with a half-mile remaining. They traded the lead back and forth until Manor outkicked him.
"I felt good with my performance," Dowdy said. "I'm not really mad that Manor passed me. Stuff like that doesn't matter that much to me until the state meet.
"Right now after this performance, my confidence is pretty high . All of my goals are pretty accomplishable."
Dowdy is set on leading the Knights to a sixth straight district title. He also would like to win the individual district and regional titles, place at least third at state, and qualify for the national meet.
"Ben can reach all of his goals this year," Donahue said. "But we are not just planning for cross country season."
Dowdy wants to stand out all year and reach his peak at the end of the cross country season. Then he'll lay low throughout the winter getting ready for the track season.
"We don't want to end up where we were last year," said Donahue. "Right now he is on the right track."
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: STEPHANIE KLEIN-DAVIS/Staff. Ben Dowdy, a senior, runsby CNBcross country for Cave Spring High School. The team trains at Hidden
Valley Middle School - along its trails and through the nearby
woods. color.