Carlisle (Pa.) senior Noah Affolder takes first at the Nov. 26 Foot Locker Cross Country Northeast Regional in Bronx, N.Y. Affolder’s younger brother, Sam, placed second in the race. Both will be competing at Saturday’s Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals at Balboa Park in San Diego, Calif. (Photo: Victah Sailer/@PhotoRun)
Imagine standing at the starting line for the biggest race of your life. Then imagine your brother being right there next to you.
For two pairs of siblings, that improbable scenario will become a reality at Saturday’s Foot Locker Cross Country National Championships in San Diego.
“It should be a lot of fun,” said Carlisle (Pa.) senior Noah Affolder. “Being with my brother this year makes it that much more special.”
A year ago, Affolder finished 15th at nationals. This time around, he will be joined in San Diego by his younger brother Sam, a Carlisle sophomore. The pair finished 1-2 at the Nov. 26 Foot Locker Northeast Regional at Van Cortlandt Park in Bronx, N.Y., with Noah crossing in a blistering 15:28.2 and Sam close behind at 15:36.6. It was Noah’s second straight Foot Locker Northeast title.
“We race in just about everything we do,” said Noah, who will be running at Syracuse next year. “Whether it’s who will be the first one to walk up steps after getting home, the first one to get out to practice – I think the competition definitely makes both of us stronger as runners.”
“I’ve never experienced anything like this, so it’s great getting to go through it with my brother,” said Sam Affolder. “Noah’s someone I spend a lot of time, especially because we have a lot of interest in the same stuff. He’s someone I’m usually with.”
They won’t be the only speedsters who share a bloodline taking to the Balboa Park course Saturday. Also among the 40 runners in the boys race will be Grayslake Central (Ill.) seniors Jack and Matt Aho. The triplet brothers (they also have a sister, Elizabeth) fared well at the Midwest Regional in Kenosha, Wisc., to earn their spot in San Diego. Jack took second in 15:00.4, with Matt coming in sixth in 15:10.8.
The top 10 runners from each of the four regional races will be competing, with 40 runners apiece in the boys and girls races.
Grayslake Central (Ill.) senior Jack Aho places second at the 2016 Foot Locker Cross Country Midwest Regional in Kenosha, Wisc., on Nov. 26. (Photo: Bruce Wodder/@PhotoRun)
“It’s pretty crazy that we both made it,” said Jack Aho, who will be running at the University of Michigan next year. “I guess we didn’t really think it would be possible until our state sectional meet. At the state meet, (Matt) got a little more aggressive. Then after Nike Regionals, he got ninth, so I knew he could have a great race at the Foot Locker meet. The work paid off.”
Both Jack and Matt Aho filled their falls with soccer when they entered Grayslake Central, with each playing the sport freshman year. While both ran track as well, Jack Aho got the head start on cross country his sophomore year. Matt and his sister, Elizabeth, didn’t start the sport until they were juniors.
“I ran a 4:44 mile as a freshman, so I always had it in mind,” said Matt, who will be running for Bradley University next year. “Once I started doing well in track and my soccer career wasn’t going as well, it was an easy choice.”
Grayslake Central (Ill.) senior Matt Aho (right) finishes sixth at the Foot Locker Cross Country Midwest Regionals in Kenosha, Wisc., on Nov. 26. (Photo: Bruce Wodder/@PhotoRun)
As for the Affolders, it was not until this year that they began to tear up the courses in Southern Penn after previously starring at Carthage (N.Y.). They moved to Pennsylvania this summer when their father, Jason, a lieutenant colonel at Fort Drum, was accepted into the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle.
A two-time New York state champion before arriving in Pennsylvania, Noah Affolder said the number of moves for his family is “in the double digits.”
Running, though, has been a steady presence. When Noah was in fourth grade, he remembers going on a jog with his grandfather while his family was stationed in Alaska. As he recalled, they just ran a few laps around the neighborhood. Noah’s grandfather, Dan Price, had run the Glass City Marathon in Toledo, Ohio, in 2:27. He also qualified for the Olympic Trials before he was drafted into the military.
Noah (1) and Sam Affolder (right) stand at the starting line before the 2016 Foot Locker Cross Country Northeast Regional in Bronx, N.Y., on Nov. 26. (Photo: Victah Sailer/@PhotoRun)
Not that the fourth-grader Affolder knew any of this at the time.
“My grandfather had a history in running, but he didn’t say much about it,” said Noah, whose mother, Brandyn, ran track at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. “He wanted us to pursue our own things, to come into it on my own and find my own passion for it without trying to fill any shoes. When I finished that four-mile run, I was on my hands and knees. I remember that he said, ‘Good run, Noah.’ Then he looked me right in the eyes and said, ‘You’re going to be one of the best distance runners America has ever had. You’re going to be the reason America is back near the top for distance running.’ … That still motivates me today.”
Once Noah got his footing in the sport along with their older brother, Murphy, it was Sam Affolder’s turn to get racing. While a sixth grader in Mascoutah, Sam recalled running 4:54 in his first mile ever.
“It’s been love since then,” he said.
Price, who lives in Cincinnati, will be in attendance along with Brandyn, Murphy, and their father, Jason. The pair also have a younger brother, Luke, and younger sister, Hope.
Both the Aho and Affolder brothers will have to get used to being away from each other next year, with three of the four heading off to college. Matt and Jack Aho will even compete against each other at various races.
“We’re around each other almost every moment of every day, so it’ll be weird being away from him, not training with him,” said Matt. “It’ll be fun to see each other doing our thing at other schools.”
Added Jack, “It’ll be weird for sure, because Matt’s a guy I’ve been around my whole life. But I think it’ll be good at the same time to have independence … It will also be fun racing against Matt while not wearing the same jersey.”
“It’s going to be different without Noah around,” said Sam Affolder, “but he’s gone through the same shift when our older brother Murphy went to college. I’ll assume the same role with my younger brother and sister.”
Sure, the four of them still have the winter and spring track seasons ahead. Saturday, though, is one last chance to take to the trails as brothers, as teammates. And for a high school cross country runner, there is no better stage to share with your brother.