Utah team takes 3rd in Northwest relay

LANGLEY, Wash. — Stockton Denos finds running both a solitary sport and a way to connect with others.

So when the former Riverton High cross-country runner heard about the Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay, he wanted to get a team together.

Unfortunately, by the time he persuaded 11 of his friends to join him in the nearly 200-mile relay from Logan to Park City, the race was sold out.

"We found out the next available (Ragnar Relay Race) was Northwest Passage," he said. "I thought, 'We can do this. We can make it a road trip.' "

As it turned out, some of his friends didn't want to make the trip to Washington on Pioneer Day weekend to run the 189-mile relay race. So he recruited a couple of runners from West Jordan and Herriman, and the group set out for Washington.

"That first night, we just pulled off the freeway onto a dirt road and slept there," he said. The second night, they slept at the home of a friend's uncle. Friday, they made their way to Blaine, Wash., and began their race. Not only did the race exceed their expectations, but they surprised themselves by winning two different divisions. Team Riverton finished third overall, completing the 189-mile relay in 21 hours, 21 minutes and 23 seconds. They won the high school division, as well as the men's open.

The team was made up of young men who had either just graduated or were heading into their senior year. Chris Barney, Roger Maxwell, Jason Diamond, Braydon Mason, Glen Larson, Alex Schiffman, Alex Dutton, Dillon Jones, Nolan Harris, Jake Lawrence, Bryce Prestwich, and Denos made up the athletes for Team Riverton.

For all of them, it was their first long-distance relay. For some, running is something new in their lives.

Denos played football until last year.

After running track, he discovered not only did he enjoy running, he was good at it.

"I found out I was better at running than football," he said. "So I went to those guys and told them I was going to run cross-country with them."

He made the varsity team, placed eighth in region and earned a trip to state in his only year of competition.

"When you're running with others, you can talk about a lot of things," he said. "When you're alone, it's very peaceful, and you can gather your thoughts."

He said the team knew they were fast, but they didn't know what kind of competition they'd face.