We considered it “essential” travel when we risked the airports the week prior to Thanksgiving to take Zachariah to meet Coach Parno, tour the Minnesota State University campus in Mankato, MN, and get a feel for how their track and field program was run. I specifically didn’t think he could make an informed decision on his future without a physical visit.

Any concerns I had about the trip were put at ease the moment we stepped out of our rental car and onto the MSU campus. The level of precaution being taken was impressive and as you can see from the photo of Mackenzie (Kenzie) Keune above, masks were being worn even during practice sessions. They staggered workouts to limit the number of people in the facility, were testing athletes several times per week, and frankly, went above and beyond what I thought we might find.

And as a bonus, I was able to make a few of my favorite kind of track photos — action composites.

Because of the numerous restrictions, Zachariah wasn’t able to workout on the indoor track or with the MSU team, but he was able to get in a solo workout on the Maverick’s track he will one day get to compete on. We got unseasonably warm weather for our visit, but he still got a small taste of what the transition was going to be like going from Southern California to the middle of Minnesota. 🙂

We are happy we made the trip!

Jeff Turner

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