 |
Doyle WallaceSt. John Catholic SchoolValdosta, Georgia by Andy Johnson photography by Jonathan Chick |
Doyle Wallace was born to be a runner, but his potential was unseen until he was in the fifth grade. One Saturday morning in October his mother Carol woke him up and asked him to go to the St. John's Road Race with her, then a new event that has now become the biggest road race in Valdosta. After never training a day in his life, Wallace beat his mother in the 5k with a time of around 23 minutes, and even won the 10-and-under age group. "He came in so early in the race that we thought he had missed a block when he ran or cut a corner," remembers his father Mike. "That was when I knew he was truly a runner, and we were all hooked after that.” A few weeks later Wallace ran in the Honey Bee Race and again finished first in his age group.
The next year Wallace was a member of the first cross country team at St. John's and began running three to four days per week. He didn't win any races his sixth grade year, but he steadily saw improvements in his times. "He would run a strong, hard race and then at the last few yards of the race people would come and clobber him," says his mother Carol. He would lose it right at the end, and he learned about that. The coaches saw that the first and second year, and they really worked with him on his sprints.” In seventh grade Coach Mazurkiewicz took over the team and saw a lot of potential in Wallace, pushing him to win one race that year with a time of 5:27, as well as finishing in seventh at the GISA state meet. This year Wallace won five out of the six races he ran. He lost once to his arch rival, but redeemed himself by winning the 1.6 mile state meet with a time of 8:59, all the while battling asthma. "I went to Iowa for a wedding over the weekend and we got back on Sunday, then the state meet was on Monday," he remembers. "I had asthma over the time I was in Iowa, and it really got bad Sunday so I went and got a shot to loosen up my lungs for running… it didn't help at all. I hadn't had asthma for probably two years and suddenly it flared up, but I ended up doing really well." Wallace's win at Bleckley in Hawkinsville was his most promising of the year, as it was the only race he ran with public school kids, and he won first place in a group of 250. The other big race of the year for him was winning the Mercer Invitational in a field of over 200. "The funny thing, Doyle's brother Austin ran in the race also and he won second place about 15 seconds behind him," says Carol. "Austin came over the hill in second place and he only had on one shoe. I don't know what was more memorable, Doyle getting first place or Austin getting second with only one shoe." Wallace is a triplet, with brothers Austin and Pierce, and has a younger sister, Madeline, who is a fifth grader and also a runner. Mike has run competitively at times in his life, but mostly just for leisure. Carol is a runner that still holds records in Fort Dodge, Iowa for high school relay teams, but she says her niece is determined to break all of them. In the past she taught a variety of aerobics classes, and now she teaches spinning classes. It is safe to say that she is a major influence in her children staying active. "We've always been pretty active people, and they are getting some of that from me," she admits. "I don't know if it's natural talent, but they dig deep down and use that extra ‘it’ that athletes have… they pull it out of the center of their being. I see it in my children and it's so awesome- one of the best gifts you can get as a mother. Everyone has ‘it,’ but not everyone uses it. They found it, and they are using it." |
   Favorite:
|
Wallace also began playing basketball in the fourth grade, and he is now a starting guard for St. John's' "varsity" eighth grade team. His brother Austin starts at forward, and his brother Pierce, who is 6'1, starts at center. The team is currently 3-1 and is working well as a unit. "I like the players that are on my team," Wallace says. "I've been playing with them for five years out on the court, and we just play together and we work really well as a team." His most memorable moment from his time on the court was winning the championship tournament for the southeast area while in the fourth grade. "I didn't really play a lot because I hadn’t been exposed to basketball before," he says, "but just to go out there and win- that really got me involved. I really enjoyed the game."
Doyle is an A-B student in school, and since he stays active year-round he doesn't necessarily train in the off-season. He likes to take it easy with his friends and play basketball and soccer. He played soccer for St. John's' team last season and plans on playing again this year, but he says when he gets to Valdosta High School next fall he will focus solely on his running. "I know that my freshman year will be the year that I'll just have to look around and get used to it," Doyle says. "It will be a huge change from private school races to public high school races, but I think I can do better with their format of three miles instead of one mile. I've heard a lot of good things about Coach Kite at Valdosta, so hopefully we'll start training soon." • | |
January 2012
Robert Preston Jr. 
Micki K Photography 
