Solana Quistorff pulls away in the rain on the final lap of the Twilight Girls Elite 3200. Photo by Alan Versaw.
The only real obstacle to the meet schedule going as planned was a brief lightning delay in the early afternoon. The daytime set wrapped up around 6:30 giving the air some time to cool, the wind some time to die, and the out-of-town spectators opportunity to sample the Dutch Clark cheese goo.
As the sun set and the lights went on at Dutch Clark, anticipation began to build toward the elite heats of the 1600 and the 3200. For those who have never experienced a distance carnival, it is quite the exciting spectacle. Alternating heats of boys' and girls' distance events build up to a crescendo of elite seeded athletes going blow-for-blow to see who can push their own limits the hardest.
For many an elite distance athlete, it is not uncommon to find yourself as the number one seed by a wide margin at some invitationals. This was not the case in the elite 1600s. There were six girls ...
