COLUMBIA FALLS — Columbia Falls' Payson Scribner has had a summer to remember, going from junior high track meets to the national stage.
At the start of summer, Scribner, 14, qualified for the USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships in California in the 200 meters.
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But Scribner’s journey to the meet was not easy, being one year younger than her competition and facing a mental challenge she did not expect at her regional race in Pocatello, Idaho.
“It was 107 degrees, just blazing heat in front of these girls that I'd never run against before,” Scribner said. “Just trying to make it there, it toyed with my head a little bit, but it was really fun. It was really interesting.”
All those challenges made the achievement of qualifying for the Junior Olympics even more special after Scribner crossed the finish line.
“I was jumping up and down, screaming just like super, super happy about everything because, you know, I was going to the Junior Olympics,” Scribner said.
Although the national race in California may not have been the result Scribner wanted, her running coach, Joshua Harris, says the ceiling is high for this young runner.
“I had maybe four sessions with her prior to her first race, and she's kind of shocked us all in terms of her ability to improve,” Harris said. “PRs in almost every single race that she's done so far, and sometimes multiple times in multiple races.”
With Scribner entering her freshman year of high school at Columbia Falls, it is clear she is just getting started.
“I kind of want to just go run,” Scribner said. “I'm just going to go, you know, try out for the team and try to make it to state, really.”
