Amber Calendar had 10 obstacles in front of her: Ten 33-inch hurdles to clear, each separated by 8.5 meters.

Additionally, the Northfield senior had eight of the best hurdlers in Colorado on the line with her.
 Eight more obstacles.

She had the second-fastest hurdler in Colorado to her left, the third-fastest hurdler to her right, and the fourth-fastest two lanes over. But the biggest obstacle of all was on the line with her, in her very own lane.

Herself.

19 obstacles total.

It wasn’t the Colorado state track and field meet, but the 100-meter hurdles at the Liberty Bell Invitational sure felt like a prelude to next month’s big dance.

Calendar had already torched a state-leading, personal best of 13.76 seconds in the prelims a day earlier. But now she was tasked with conquering the 10 obstacles in front of her, while battling the eight obstacles besides her, along with the one within her.

All at the same time.

And so she went at it as she’s done before: one at a time.

Conquer the first obstacle, she gets to conquer the next. And if she conquers enough, she wins the race.

And that’s just what she did.

The Northfield senior soared over the first hurdle fractions of a second ahead of everyone else.

One obstacle down. 18 pending.

By the second hurdle, she had a step on the field.

Two obstacles down, 17 pending.

By the third hurdle, she was in her own race.

Three obstacles down, 16 pending.

She went on to slay each of the 10 hurdles in front of her, in addition to the eight challengers beside her, and the one within herself, clocking 13.80 to win the race.

Nineteen obstacles: conquered.

The performance put an exclamation point on a breakthrough week for Calendar, who won the 100H in 14.05 at the Stutler Invitational Thursday evening. At the time, it was a state-leading mark.

In the days that followed, she sliced over two-tenths of a second off that.

Twice.

Two-tenths of a second is the difference between winning the race and watching the backs of several competitors get to the line before you do.

Prior to her big week on the track, the Northfield senior had a personal best of 14.32 in the event.

She finished fourth at last year’s state meet, clocking 14.51.

What’s additionally impressive about Calendar’s current trajectory is that last year her four fastest times in the 100H all came in the month of May.

And her top six came from Liberty Bell – at the end of April – onwards.

With state just around the corner, it’s clear that Calendar has a few dates X’d out on her calendar, and she’s peaking right in time.

***

Friday night’s action barely escaped the wind, for the most part.

Coronado’s Xavier Campos torched a 4A No. 3 of 1 minute, 52.69 seconds.

The Class 4A 800 already looked insane, and now three have run 1:52 or faster, and five have run 1:54 or faster.

In the girls 3,200, Heritage’s Caroline Fender and Regis Jesuit’s McKenna Groen used all eight laps, taking this one down to the line. Fender took the win, clocking a season-best of 10:50, while Groen was a second back in 10:51.

In Saturday’s action, the Northfield girls 4×800 ran away with a Colorado No. 3 of 9:29, while the Coronado boys dropped a state-leading 7:47.86, which was just ahead of Northfield’s 7:49.

Of additional note on the 4A 4×800, two squads — Coronado and Niwot have run 7:48 or faster, teeing up one great relay matchup at the state meet next month.

Meanwhile, Loveland’s Jackson Conroy dominated the 110H, clocking 13.68. That’s just off his state-leading 13.54 from the Pomona Invitational.

In the girls 1,600 Boulder junior Calia Vaughn closed in 69 seconds over the final lap to win in 4:55.65.
The performance jumped her from No. 15 in 5A, all the way to No. 2.

Likewise, Castle View sophomore Wyatt Dann ran himself into a state-qualifying position in the boys 1,600, clocking 4:16.40. That moved him from a 5A No. 23 to No. 4.

Side note: the top-18 performances qualify for state.

In the discus, Grand Junction’s Isaac Baca made the most of the trip across Colorado, winning the event in a state-leading 184-03.

Run Around The State

Stutler Twilight: There were plenty of highlights coming out of this meet, per the usual.

Among the many stellar performances was Eaglecrest’s Cameron Bell, who made it a third-consecutive week for a rewriting of the Colorado record books.

The Eaglecrest senior leapt to a new long jump statre record of 24-8.25. The performance took down Brandon Hills 24-8 record from 2023.

Sticking with the theme of Colorado No. 1 marks (there were quite a few — 10 to be exact — coming out of this meet…)
Cherry Creek sophomore Brandon Veasley Jr. won the 100 in a state-leading 10.40, while Northfield’s Micah Sheehan won the 400 in a (say it with me now) — state-leading 47.66.

The Fort Collins boys came, saw, and conquered in the relays. They dropped two state-leading marks before heading back north. They won the 4×100 in 40.97, and the 4×400 in 3:15.83.

State-leading marks coming out of the field events (in addition to Bell’s record) were Eaglecrest’s Byrson States in the triple jump, landing at 47-8, and Palmer Ridge’s Owen Twesme, who tossed 60-8 in the shot put.

For the girls, Mountain Vista’s Payton Mathelier shaved a few more tenths-of-a-second off her 400, clocking a Colorado No. 1 of 54.29, while Northfield’s Amber Calendar hinted at what she’d do a few days later, clocking 14.05 to win the 100H (at the time, it was a state-leading mark. She’d go on to raise the bar a few days later at Liberty Bell).

In the relays Mountain Vista ran a state-leading 3:51.48 to win the 4×400.

SCL Pueblo Championships: Pueblo East’s Reagan Falletta won the 300 hurdles in a Colorado No. 2 of 42.87.
Ram Charger Invitational: Air Academy’s Jordan Banta ran a 4A No. 2 and personal best of 2:12.62 to win the 800, while Arvada West’s Layla Petz cleared 12-4 to win the pole vault in a 5A No. 2.

District 2 Invitational: Mesa Ridge’s Josiah Garcia cleared 6-7.25 to win the high jump in a state-leading mark.

Colorado Springs All-City Meet: Sierra’s Suraiya Payne joined the Sub-12 club, clocking a 4A No. 2 of 11.85 to win the 100, while Doherty’s Sontee Keys won the long jump in a 5A No. 3 of 18-0.75. Coronado’s Lyrik Smith won the boys high jump in a 4A No. 2 of 6-6, whlie Harrison won the 4×200 in a state-leading 1:25.97.

High Altitude Challenge/IML Conference: Bayfield’s Tanner Vyborny tied 3A. No. 1 clearance of 6-7 in the high jump.

Weld County Championships: Eaton’s Delaney Reuter won the 3,200 in 10:30, while Roosevelt’s Braelyn Bailey won the long jump in a 4A No. 1 of 18-8.75, and the long jump with a 5-6 clearance. Severance’s Jonah Beck leapt to a Colorado No. 2, and 4A No. 1 of 24-3.5 to win the long jump.

Longmont Invitational: Holy Family’s Claire Tannehill sprinted to a 4A No. 2 of 11.82 to win the 100, while Windsor’s Maya Brasch and Kiana Cumings went 1-2 in the 200, clocking 24.06, and 24.13.

Rye Thunderbolt Invitational: Swink’s Javin Summers leapt to a 1A No. 1 45-3 to win the triple jump.