Cowboys run up Devil’s Thumb in Delta

MEEKER | Normally, it does not take 30 minutes to run a high school cross country race, which is five kilometers but there is nothing normal about the Devil’s Thumb Hill Climb race in Delta, which Meeker runners attempted last Saturday. The Cowboys will run in Hotchkiss this Saturday.
“The race starts near the golf course in Delta and climbs sharply toward the namesake feature,” Meeker head cross country coach Marty Casey said of the Devil’s Thumb course. “A quick loop around the rock formation and the runners are on their way back down, sometimes sliding down the steep and loose dirt trails.”
Meeker junior Pake Burke was the first Cowboy to complete the course in 29:56 and Josue Martinez needed 32:26 to finish. Meeker freshman Greg Jones and Ashdon Siebert completed the challenging course in 33:53 and 34:49 respectively. Senior Christopher Strate sprained his ankle during the race but finished in 37:39. Josh Day and Zach Harman also ran the course.
Meeker junior Briar Meszaros was the only girl to run for the Cowboys, finishing in 29th place with a time of 36:34.
“The team was really intimidated upon first seeing the course but after finishing, they thought it was fun,” coach Casey said. “I am very proud of all or our runners for stepping up to the challenge.”
The Cowboys will run in Hotchkiss Saturday with the races starting at 10 a.m.