Unprecedented Video Coverage: Multiple Fixed Cameras, Go Pros, All From Horse Park Invitational

Florida Horse Park Invitational
Todd Grasley

Never before in the history of flrunners.com have we had race video from as many angles and aerial coverage. David Armstrong of RunFlix teamed up with us to give unprecedented video of the Florida Horse Park Invitational including 10 fixed Sony Cameras, two Go Pros, and more. Do you like what you see? What's even cooler is that with his site you can create custom videos. Highlights of you running that can be added to your flrunners.com profile. For more information on ordering them visit runflix.com/20flhopa.html. We look forward to working with David on creating high level video coverage as well as a way for our viewers to give each race a personal twist!

Also check out the rest of our coverage including over 700 photos and a complete recap of all the action from Darrin DeTorres who was a triple threat at the meet; serving as announcer, coach and flrunners freelancer! Great work team!
 

Race Videos By David Armstrong

Girls Varsity Boys Varsity Girls Middle Boys Middle
Girls JV Boys JV

 

Photos: Florida Horse Park Invitational by Doboy

 


Race Recap by Darrin DeTorres

On a muggy Saturday morning in Central Florida, athletes from all of the state competed in the 2014 Florida Horse Park Invitational.  The race , held in Ocala Florida, took place at the internationally renowned Florida Horse Park. The venue, being the home of the US National Equestrian team, saw what many hope to be the first in a long line of future cross country invitationals. With everyone talking about the level of competition at the meet, an even more interesting storyline appeared. Coaches suggested that this could be a future state meet venue.
 
With over 500 acres, the property proved it was capable of handling a major invitational and more. Parking always being a major issue was no problem, as Coach Travieso of Vanguard estimates they could have parked 10x as many cars if needed. This being huge as there were nearly 500 cars that entered the gate. 
 
The course itself had no problem holding runners, as the biggest race of the day, boys varsity, saw 148 finishers. With no cut backs or sharp turns, the runners were treated to a 3 finger course that was mostly flat. With the right conditions, cooler weather and a packed down starting line, the course could be a great place to PR. When all was said and done, the future prospects of the course left Vanguard’s Coaches with a feeling of excitement. 
 
Races
 
The races lived up to the hype as some of Florida’s most storied programs made the trip to the first year event. Multiple time state champion teams in Chiles, Bartram Trail and Oak Hall were all in attendance.
 
In the girls race it was Oak Hall high school that made the early charge. Going through the first mile in roughly 6:30, Oak Hall had 5 runners positioned in the top 10 places. This did not last long as Vanguard and Chiles then went to work. Audrey Carpenter of Vanguard dropped a 6:10 second mile to break the field. Also managing to escape the pack was Carpenter’s teammate Elizabeth Mulford. Running 19:17, Audrey managed to win her second race of the season beating out 2nd place Mulford by 36 seconds (19:53). Coming in third was Junior Alexandra Wallace of Chiles in 20:05, followed by Lindsay Rosenburg of Oak Hall in 20:07.28 and Emma Tucker of Chiles in 20:07.9.
 
If the race were determined in the first mile it would have gone to Oak Hall hand down. In the final two miles Vanguard and Chiles went to work against the 1A powerhouse. Vanguard ended up with the edge over Chiles as they scored 38 points on their home course and managed to place 3 runners in the top 6. Chiles came in second with a score of 61, beating Oak Hall by 8 pts. Rounding out the top 5 were West Orange with 85 points and Eastside High School with 165 pts.
 
The guys race saw a hard charging Joey Fitzpatrick of Vanguard take the early lead. Going through the first mile in sub 5, Joey was by himself most of the race. In the final mile, teammates Avery Bartlett and and Tyson Murray of Chiles went to work. Closing the gap on Fitzpatrick, they managed to cut a huge lead to virtually nothing by the time they hit the finish. In what could have been the most exciting finish in a long time, Bartlett caught Fitzpatrick with less than 10 meters to go and it was a fight to the line. Coming across the finish it was unlear who had won as the were neck and neck over the mat. It was later revealed that Fitzpatrick was able to hold off the 3A 800 meter state champion, winning by 1/10th of a second 16:01.67 to Bartlett’s 16:01.77. Murray finished 3rd in a time of 16:15 followed by Brad Dixon of Bartram Trail in 16:30 and Allan Hernandez of Chiles in 16:38.
 
In the race for a team title, Chiles came in as the heavy favorites. The number 1 ranked team in 3A had with heavy targets as FACA #3 ranked Bartram Trail and #5 ranked Vanguard came to race. Going through the first 2 miles it was anyone’s race as each team had multiple runners in the top 10. But as anyone who follows the sport of Florida running knows, mile 3 is what Chiles does best. In a little under 6 minutes, the Timberwolves from Tallahassee managed to separate themselves and finished with a team score of 31 pts. As they’ve done the prior two weeks, Bartram Trail managed to edge out Vanguard by a matter of places. Bartram finished with 67 pts to Vanguards 69 pts. Rounding out the top 5 were Matanzas with 174 pts and Belleview with 209 pts. 
 
The race also served  as a state meet qualifier for the FLYRA Middle School State Championships. The girls individual champion was Isabella Pawloski, as she ran 11:40 for the 3k. Pawloski’s team, the Hillsborough Harriers won the meet with 32 pts. The boys champion for 3k was Gabriel Curtis of Circle Christian in a time of 10:34. Lake City Middle School won the team championship with a score of 50 pts.

 

Elite Performances

Girls Highlights

Boys Highlights

 

Watch Videos of Avery Bartlett