Oct. 22—He might bring his last name to life some day by spending some time in the clouds — he'd like to be a pilot like his father. But for now, Becks Bird is more than content running 3.1 miles at a time.
Bird has emerged as the third-best runner in the Greater Spokane League and definitely best among 3A runners.
His finished 15th at the prestigious Bob Firman Invitational in a school-record 14 minutes, 54.1 seconds — the first time he's eclipsed the 15-minute mark. The runners who have established themselves as the best in the GSL — Miro Parr-Coffin of Gonzaga Prep (14:28.4) and Stejer Franklin of Mead (14:45.8) — took second and ninth, respectively.
Mt. Spokane is clearly the best 3A team in the GSL, and the Wildcats finished the GSL dual season Tuesday undefeated. But Shadle Park has been in the hunt.
Bird has reason to be overjoyed with himself and the team. Much of the credit goes to coach Rob Warnock, who has built confidence in his team. And a great deal of credit goes to Bird, far and away the leader who rallied his teammates to a committed summer of training.
All top-shelf stuff considering Bird was just one of the pack back not too long ago.
"I wasn't that good in middle school," Bird said. "Something just clicked when I got to high school."
Bird qualified for the State 2A meet as a freshman, finishing 32nd. He finished 32nd again the following season when Shadle Park returned to 3A, but it was a season of growth. He improved by nearly a minute.
He continued the upward trend last fall when he took fifth at state. He has his sights set on a higher finish in three weeks at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco.
"I want to move up a little bit, maybe top three," Bird said.
"I don't think a top three finish is out of the cards for him," Warnock said. "Last year, the race came together quite well for him at state. So, he's coming back with experience and knows where to push on the course."
His time at Pasco was 15:30.8 and he would like to crack 15 this year, if not get in the 14:30 range.
Bird is ranked fourth statewide among 3A runners. Elijah Graves of Shorewood has the best time at 14:36 and Leroy Lozano Mejia of Hermiston is second (14:43.3). Bird ran against both at the Firman meet.
He'll get another shot at Mejia at the District 6 meet at Veterans Memorial Golf Course in Walla Walla in two weeks.
Bird has overcome some difficult challenges. Two years ago, an uncle, Jake Hartsoch, died in a rock-climbing accident north of Seattle near Bellingham. Hartsoch, a former runner at Gonzaga, had a profound impact on Bird.
Then two months ago, the Birds lost their home near the Spokane Rifle Club in the Spokane Complex fires. The family was at nearby Dwight Merkel Field when they rushed to their home to secure as many things as possible.
They are living in an Airbnb owned by a Shadle Park coach's father. The Birds have had their property cleared and plan to re-build.
"He's had to overcome a lot of adversity," Warnock said. "I think that's why he's so resilient despite those setbacks. He just runs with so much heart."
Shadle Park last qualified a boys team to state when it was in 2A three years ago. The last time a boys team went to state before then was in 1987.
The GSL has produced a string of teams that have had much success in league and state competition. But Shadle Park hasn't been a name one thinks about when it comes to cross country.
The path to state will be challenging for the Highlanders. The top three teams at district move on to state. Heavily favored Mt. Spokane is practically guaranteed a spot. That leaves five teams — Shadle, Hermiston, Ridgeline, Cheney and Central Valley — battling for the other two berths.
Warnock and Bird are confident the Highlanders can contend for a state trophy (top four teams earn trophies).
"But we've got to get out of district," Warnock said. "We'll see if we can bring some hardware home from state.
"It's been cool because we've been able to beat some teams that had us on paper, but not on the day we showed up," Warnock added.
"If we can get to state we'll do well," Bird said. "We've got to lock in and focus the next few weeks."
Things are on the upswing at Shadle. And flying in the middle of it has been Bird.