Loss of training time doesn’t have Johnson worried
Coming off a stress fracture, Ocean City standout has plans for a big junior year

By Kevin Cranston
Runningco.com Writer

Brett Johnson couldn’t believe what was happening.

It was a couple days after the South Jersey Group 3 track and field sectional championships, in which he won the 1,600 meters in 4:22.22 and the 3,200 in 9:51.00, and the Ocean City High School sophomore was sitting in a doctor’s office.

In the process of pulling off the nice distance double at Buena, Johnson experienced constant discomfort in his left foot. Upon seeing his doctor, he learned the unfortunate news that the discomfort was a stress fracture.

There would be no state meet for Johnson. His season was over.

“It was real tough for me,” Johnson said of having to miss the Group 3 state championships. “In the days after I learned about the stress fracture, my parents told me I was unbearable to live with. I was just frustrated because I had high goals left.”

Naturally, as time passed, Johnson was able to put the disappointment of not competing at states behind him, as he turned his focus toward recovery. And ever since he started back running in early July, Johnson has been thinking ahead to when he can finally get back into a race and compete.

“He started back slowly in July,” Red Raiders coach Bill Moreland said. “At first, he ran about 15 minutes a day every other day and was in the pool the days in between. Once he was fully cleared by the doctor on August 1, we’ve been gradually building up.”

Now up to 30-35 miles a week, Johnson may not have the training base he’s used to entering a season with. But with less than a month before the start of his junior cross country season, Johnson feels he will be just fine with the training he’s put in.

“The foot feels good right now and I’m confident I will be back to the level I was at last fall,” Johnson said. “I’m expecting big things.”

Moreland feels the same about his No. 1 runner.

“Brett has never been a huge miles guy,” Moreland said. “I think he can do just fine off this type of training. Being the competitive person that he is, I think he can get by with less miles than some other runners.

“I’m hoping he can pick up where he left off last season. He was one of the guys up for South Jersey Runner of the Year last fall and I think he can be right there again this season.”

What Johnson showed in 2006 was that he can run with the best in the state. Unbeatable early in the season, Johnson won the sophomore race at the Cherokee Challenge, the 1, 2 race at the South Jersey Shootout and the Varsity B race at the Shore Coaches Invitational in a Holmdel Park PR of 16:13.

He concluded his season with a second-place finish at South Jersey Group 3 sectionals, a sixth-place finish at the Group 3 state meet and a 20th-place finish at the Meet of Champions. At the M of C, Johnson was the third South Jersey finisher (behind senior teammate John Fennekohl and Cinnaminson senior Matt Poskus) and the fifth non-senior finisher in the entire state.

“All of it was a shock for me last year,” Johnson said. “Coming into sophomore year, I was just hoping to be one of the top two guys on my team. I never thought I would be one of the best guys in South Jersey.”

This year, though, Moreland feels Johnson can have an even better year.

“It’s very reasonable to think he can be the South Jersey Group 3 champ and place very high at states and at the Meet of Champs,” Moreland said. “I also know he wants to try and approach what John (Fennekohl) ran at Holmdel last year (which was 16:03).”

While Johnson isn’t in top shape just yet, he’s on his way. He plans to run a road race in the next week to gauge where his fitness level is at. He’ll then make his season debut on Sept. 11 in Ocean City’s dual meet against Mainland. Johnson’s first major meets will be at the Cherokee Challenge on Sept. 15, followed by the South Jersey Shootout on Sept. 22.

For Johnson, he might need a little bit more time to get his legs and breathing back. But his attitude is certainly in the right place.

“The fire in me to win is unbelievable,” Johnson said. “Knowing I was cheated out my track season, I want to go after every win I can.”