Running against time

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, May 24, 2001

Revenge no longer a factor as Arlington’s Jensen shoots for state record

By Aaron Coe

Herald Writer

ARLINGTON — She’s been plotting revenge for nearly a year, but Cam Jensen will probably have to settle for being a state champion.

That’s not how the Arlington hurdler wanted it. She’s not interested in carrying a 300-meter hurdles time three seconds faster than anyone into the state meet today and Saturday at Tacoma’s Lincoln Bowl.

She wanted to beat the mighty Ginnie Powell of Rainier Beach.

That’s the girl who erased Jensen’s state championship dreams last year in perhaps the most fascinating race of Star Track 2000.

Powell will be there, but won’t line up next to Jensen in the starting blocks of the 300. The Rainier Beach junior, who likely will be remembered as one of the greatest ever to lace up spikes in this state, decided earlier in the year to concentrate on sprints and the 100 hurdles.

The 300 hurdles is one of the more grueling events in the sport, and Powell has had enough. She’s tired of the pounding on her shins.

Perhaps she’s afraid she’ll lose for the first time ever at a state meet.

"Maybe," said Jensen. "I’m really bummed that she’s not running this time."

Last spring, Jensen ran the second fastest 300 hurdles in state meet history.

If it would have been the 295-meter hurdles she’d have won. Everyone, except perhaps Powell, believed the race was over when Jensen cleared the last hurdle.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Powell ran the fastest 10 meters of her life and leaned across the tape one-tenth of a second before Jensen.

The race was so exciting that Jensen has not seen it on tape. The suspense got to her father, who put down the video camera to watch with his own eyes.

"That’s been her motivation all year, so it’s disappointing" Arlington coach Kelly Clapp said. "There has not been any competition for her in the 300 this season. That’s not a good situation."

And to make matters even more mundane, Bellevue’s Jill Bell, who finished fourth last year, won’t compete in the 300 hurdles because of an injury.

So Jensen’s race will be against time. The folks from Arlington, who wear shirts that read "Who let Cambrielle out," will be looking at the scoreboard when Jensen crosses the finish line, hoping the time is faster than 42.12 seconds.

Maybe even Powell, whose only loss in three years was to Kamiak’s Heather Hetzer in the 200 this season at the Pasco Invitational, will look up to see if her time from last year will be erased from the records.

Jensen isn’t only about revenge. She’s loved hurdles since she was eight years old, when she jumped over a hurdle on the side of the track. The hurdles were not an option for 8-year-olds, but it was just sitting there.

All alone.

Calling her name and begging her to jump over it.

So despite protests from her mother, Cam went over it and has been addicted ever since.

Jensen is constantly encouraging teammates. She wants them enjoy track as much as she does.

"I just love it," Jensen said. "I’m a trackie. I can’t get enough."

Like Powell, Jensen also downsized her workload for this weekend. Last year Jensen competed in the 100- and 200-meter sprints as well as the 100- and 300-meter hurdles. That’s eight races (qualifying heats and finals) in two days.

Jensen, who will run for the University of Washington track team next year, finished fifth in both sprints last year, but considers those races even more boring than a Powell-less hurdles run.

"There are no barriers," Jensen said. "All you see is open track and that’s no fun. It makes the race go by faster when you have hurdles out there."

Jensen will face Powell in the 100 hurdles, but admits it would take an other-worldly performance to become a double-winner.

"She’s just really, really good at the 100 hurdles," Jensen said.

Jensen, who was voted student body vice president and homecoming princess by her classmates, stands 5 feet, 6 inches — noticeably shorter than most top-flight hurdlers. The hurdles are set three inches higher in the 100. For Powell, who stands 5-10, those three inches don’t seem quite as far.

For Jensen, it might as well be three feet, but it doesn’t stop her from pushing Powell.

"If you can’t win, make the person in front of you break the record," Jensen said.

College track coaches often asked Clapp, "Is she really a hurdler?"

One look at her gliding strides, however, makes them wise up. Jensen had offers from several Division I schools, but her visit to Washington made her choice an easy one.

She had dinner with Huskies sprinter Ja’Warren Hooker, a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team who still holds state records in the 100, 200 and 400.

Jensen is glad to be staying close to her family and friends, including Arlington’s Kayla Burt, who will play for the Washington basketball team next year.

The two ran track and played basketball together at Post Middle School. Burt set the record in a hurdles race, only to have it beaten by Jensen a week later. The record still stands.

"We were middle school rivals and wanted to beat each other," said Burt, who will watch Jensen run this weekend. "She’s an amazing athlete. She’s worked very hard to become so good. She eats healthy and makes good decisions, socially. I really admire her."

For a year, Jensen has been consumed with one thing: Beating Powell in the 300 hurdles. She spent fall afternoons on the cinder track at Arlington High School, alone, striving for perfection and vengeance.

Now, only one of those goals can be reached.

Dad, you better zoom out the camera on Saturday. If you don’t, you won’t catch how far ahead your daughter is when she crosses the finish line.