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Changing course

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By JEFF JONES

Tribune correspondent

Published: October 21, 2009

TAMPA - For Chamberlain High distance runner Max del Monte, there has been a number of turning points in his life, but none as important as the day when his grandfather passed away.

Up to that point, del Monte had played basketball and enjoyed the sport from an early age. He started at the YMCA and progressed to competitive AAU leagues. Along the way, he was always cheered on by his family, especially his grandfather, who attended every one of his games.

But without his No. 1 fan there rooting for him, a void arose in that enthusiasm for a sport he once hoped would carry him all the way to the elite level of the NBA.

"After my grandfather died, I couldn't play, I couldn't do well in basketball, so I just started running," del Monte said. "It wasn't planned. It just kind of happened."

So instead of just running as another form of exercise, del Monte decided to channel his competitive drive into a different area of athletics and try out for the Chamberlain cross country team.

It wasn't an easy transition for someone who has been home-schooled since kindergarten.

"Two years ago, when I was still in the eighth grade, I came out to check out the team to see if cross country was something I wanted to do," del Monte said. "Both coach (Bill) Strack and the team was great, they just kind of took me in and they let me do workouts with them. So by my freshman year, I knew everybody."

And del Monte adjusted nicely, helping the Chiefs as the No. 5 runner finish in second place at the 2008 3A state cross country meet. It was the best showing by a Chiefs boys team at the state cross country finals in school history.

That experience turned out to be invaluable lesson for del Monte and fueled his intensity and focus as a sophomore.

"My freshman year I was just kind of running not really having any strategy," del Monte said. "This year, I'm stronger; I have more strategy and know what I can do and what I can't do."

In only his second year participating in prep sports, del Monte has found his niche and has emerged as one of Hillsborough county's premier distance runners. That was most evident when he recently placed first at one of the state's biggest meets, the flrunners.com Invitational 10, in the meet's "Invitational" division.

His victory was quite a change from last year, when a mishap at the beginning of the race cost him precious time.

"I actually fell at the start, so I made sure to get away from the mess this year, and I got out pretty quickly," del Monte said.

The Chiefs' No. 2 man (behind senior Mark Parrish) soon found himself in the lead with two other runners and realized that he had to come to a crucial point in the race.

"I made a little surge, and I looked back and there was no response from the other two runners, so I thought 'OK, this is what I'm here for,' and I made my move," del Monte said.

He pushed through the pain and surprised not only himself when he was the first to cross the finish line, but also his coach.

"To be perfectly honest, I thought he was a long shot," Strack said. "I knew he would finish in the top five and I was hoping he would win it. But I really didn't expect it, so I was a little bit surprised."

What also impresses Strack is how well del Monte follows instructions during training, as well as offering input himself about how to become a better runner.

"Max is very coachable and very quick to listen and to take your advice and do what you ask," Strack said. "He follows suit very nicely. He's not hesitant to come up to me and tell me what he'd like to do during a workout, but whether I agree with it or not, he goes along with it and puts 110 percent into it."

Along with becoming a better competitor on the course, del Monte has also become more of a motivator for his team, alongside Parrish.

"Both Mark and Max have been really supportive, really pushing their teammates, and encouraging them and really being coaches in a way too," Strack said. "That's the big thing I've noticed with del Monte this year. He's taken on more of a leadership role."
Strack thinks the best is yet to come for his up-and-coming runner, and that he will continue to get better. As del Monte makes great strides during his prep career, he has no doubt that there will be someone cheering him on to the finish line - just like when he was a kid shooting a free throw to win the game.

"Sometimes I kind of think that maybe my grandfather is in the crowd somewhere as I'm passing by," del Monte said. "But I definitely know he's up there in heaven looking down and he's smiling at me."

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