YOUR AD HERE »

Tiernan breaks 21-year-old record in 3,200-meter run

John StroudCarbondale Correspondent

It took the night air under the lights of Grand Junction’s Stocker Stadium May 6 for Roaring Fork senior distance runner Alex Tiernan to put a long-sought-after feather in his cap.Running at the Tiger Invitational with a 10 p.m. event start last weekend, Tiernan broke Roaring Fork High School’s 21-year-old 3,200-meter record, finishing sixth overall with a time of 10 minutes, 6.50 seconds – good enough to pre-qualify him for the 3A State meet next week.The time eclipsed the previous RFHS boys record of 10:16, which Mark Clark set in 1984.And Tiernan didn’t go it alone, pacing teammates Casey Weaver and Colin Stewart to state prequalifying times as well.Weaver, a freshman, also topped the old school mark with a personal-record time o f 10:15.32, while Stewart, a junior, clocked a PR 10:22.78″Stocker Stadium has a really fast track, and running under the lights made it a little different,” said Tiernan, who came within four seconds of the school record last year. “I’m just stoked that we all prequalified for state.”The three runners have benefited from each other, not to mention the tutelage of Tiernan’s older brother, Zeke Tiernan, a former standout distance runner at Aspen High School and the University of Colorado, who is Roaring Fork’s distance coach this season.”For a school this size to have this many good runners who can train together is pretty special,” Stewart said.Weaver also credits his early success to his elder teammates.”Having the faster pace, it’s been something to strive for as the season has progressed and helped me drop my times,” he said.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Glenwood Springs and Garfield County make the Post Independent’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.