How does a high school cross country runner go from 41st to fifth place at the state meet in just one year?
In Cohen Butler’s case, it’s a recipe of more miles, harder workouts and a confidence that has risen as his times have dropped.
“My training has changed a lot,” the Camas junior said. “Sophomore to junior year I had done even more training because I had seen how much I improved from freshman to sophomore year.”
Butler set the stage for a successful year Sept. 28 when he ran a personal-best time at the elite Danner Championships at Nike Portland XC. He covered the 5,000-meter course in 15 minutes, 8.6 seconds, a time that turned out to be the fastest by any Southwest Washington boy this season.
After a midseason case of shin splints nearly tripped up his progress, Butler finished the season with a strong closing sprint. One week after placing fourth at the bi-district Westside Classic, he delivered a standout performance at the state meet.
Butler’s time of 15:36 in the Class 4A race on Nov. 9 in Pasco was the fastest of any local runner. He was one of two locals to finish in the top five — Columbia River senior Jacob McManus placed fifth in the Class 2A race.
For his accomplishments, Butler is The Columbian’s All-Region boys cross country runner of the year.
As Clark County emerged from COVID lockdowns in 2020, Butler searched for an activity to spend the pent-up energy typical of a middle school boy.
That turned out to be running. Butler joined the club Whisper Running and found joy in competition and training. His enthusiasm for the sport has only grown at Camas High.
“It kind of built from there,” Butler said. “I found a real love for the sport.”
After a solid sophomore year, a breakout race early this season showed the benefits of Butler’s offseason training. On Sept. 21, he beat the previous season’s fastest time by nearly 30 seconds when he clocked 15:23 at the Fort Steilacoom Invitational.
“I was like ‘OK I could actually do something a lot better than what I did last year,’ ” Butler said. “I could actually be really good at this.”
But early October brought shin splints, a painful condition in which tendons and tissue in the lower leg become inflamed, usually due to overuse. While ice and rest usually bring relief, the condition can become chronic.
“I had done a lot of hard workouts in the gym and on the track before that,” Butler said. “I took a break for a few days after that and tried to come back, but my shins were shot. It wasn’t very good.”
With the district championships fast approaching, Butler started to consider worst-case scenarios.
“At that time, it wasn’t getting better for a week,” he said. “I was worried I wouldn’t be able to compete at all for the rest of the season.”
Having not raced for three weeks, Butler toed the starting line at Lewisville Park for the district championships on Oct. 23. While he finished second in 16:00, the victory was in racing without the shin splints returning.
“I wasn’t too happy with that time,” Butler said. “But I was happy to see that I was back and able to run and still feel good after that.”
Ten days later, Butler finished fourth among 127 runners at the Westside Classic near Tacoma. From there, it was all-systems-go for the state championships.
“I was really excited to get that last chance to prove myself and prove that my injury hadn’t completely killed my season,” Butler said.
At state, Butler settled in behind the lead pack during a fast first mile. As the field thinned during the race, Butler picked off runners one-by-one.
After not running as well as he hoped in two prior state meets, Butler was thrilled with his fifth-place finish and a time that was 70 seconds faster than he ran the previous year at Sun Willows Golf Course.
Butler is eager for this spring’s track season and his senior year, which he hopes will include scholarship offers from Division-I colleges.
And Butler will lean even more heavily on the formula that led to this season’s success.
“I’ll be increasing my training to see how well I can compete next year,” he said.
The Rest of the All-Region Boys Cross Country Team
Bradley Harris, Union
Senior was 4A district champion and seventh at Westside Classic. Personal best of 15:19.
Dekota Houfek, Prairie
Senior was district runner-up, seventh at bi-district Westside Classic and fastest local 3A finisher at state.
Jacob McManus, Columbia River
Senior was back-to-back 2A district champ, placed fifth at state and had a personal best of 15:13.
Lord King Nana-Badu-Weah, Battle Ground
Sophomore was 17th at state, third at 4A district and had five finishes under 16 minutes, including a personal best of 15:41.
Andres Orozco Stansbery, R.A. Long
Junior had a state-meet breakthrough to place ninth in the 2A race in 16:01, a personal best by 28 seconds.
Davis Sullivan, Ridgefield
Senior was 2A district runner-up, 11th at the state meet and had a personal best of 15:43.
