The 2016 track season has officially come to a close, and once again the Wildcats enjoyed a very successful NCAA meet to conclude their seasons. While competing in steamy conditions in Bradenton, Florida (1 hour south of Tampa) 8 Wildcat distance runners collected a total of 5 All America honors. The highlight of these honors, were runner-up finishes by William Reyes (10k) and Kyle Medina (1500). Senior Olivia Watt also enjoyed a great meet, adding two more All American honors to her 2015 certificate. As the points of top-8 finishes were tallied between the various events the Chico State men and women each earned Top-20 team finishes as well. Overall it was a very productive and enjoyable track meet, and a perfect way to cap what has been another amazing year of racing. Onward to the race re-caps.

Thursday-Day 1 NCAA Championships

Women's 1500m Prelims: With faster marks than ever needed just to make this year's NCAA fields it should not have been surprising that the prelims would be relatively fast. Senior Olivia Watt would run a smart tactical heat grabbing the final automatic qualifying spot into Saturday's final with her 4:28 effort. Teammate Lora James never appeared at home in the field and struggled the final 600m while finishing 20th between the two heats.


Men's 1500m Prelim-Heat II: Sophomore Kyle Medina ran a very controlled 3:53 prelim race, grabbing the third of four automatic qualifying spots into Saturday's final. Running even with the heat leaders for the first 1100 meters Medina closed the final circuit in 55 seconds. The biggest victim of Kyle's slow heat was NCAA 2015 4th placer Alec Baldwin who lost a kick for the final spot into the final.

Women's Steeple Heat I: The Wildcats would send two steeplers to the line on Thursday. Junior McCall Habermehl had won the CCAA title and notched a 10:27 PR at the SF Distance Carnival in April. Sophomore Alex Burkhart had an identical PR coming into Thursday's prelim, but nagging injuries had taken their toll on her season, limiting her to a 10:33 seasonal best at the recent last chance invite. Unfortunately the last chance meet had aggravated the injuries even more, and the challenge of the fastest women's steeple field in NCAA history would not make getting into Saturday's final any easier for Burkhart.

Habermehl would run in Heat I, and the early pace was wicked fast as the leaders passed 400m in under 10 minute pace. Habermehl held on tight, running just inside the top-10 for most of the first half of the race. Each of the four automatic qualifiers in McCall's heat ran 10:26 or faster, and even fifth place heat runner Della Lyle of MSU Billings ran sub 10:27. McCall closed well for 6th place in a near PR tying 10:29. Now the wait would begin for Heat II and the 5,6,7th place times.

Much like the previous race had, heat 2 was very honest from the start. Running with less than her hoped training behind her Alex Burkhart fought hard, as the lead pack peeled away from the start. Ironically Alex would end up running a 10:42, which matched her time from a year ago (that got her into the final) but this would not be enough to advance into the '16 final. As the dust settled from the second heat McCall's 10:29 was the Final time qualifier to advance to Saturday's race, making this year's final the hardest ever to make.



Men's 10,000m Finals: If you watch enough championship 10k's your bound to see just about everything with respect to tactics and race story lines, and this year's men's NCAA championship 25-lapper was certainly a unique one to watch. Coming into the race the heavy favorite for the win was Southern Indiana's Johnnie Guy. The senior had won the 10k national title two years ago in Michigan and returned this year with a 28:30's PR to his name (as well as a 13:39 PR). With the winds blowing pretty hard as athletes rounded the turn into the homestretch, tactics would certainly play a role in this race as much as ever.

As the gun sounded Missouri Southern's Kenyan standout Vincent Kiprop (2nd at the NCAA XC Champs this fall) raced to the early lead. His 31 second initial 200m split caught the pack off guard and before anyone in the pack behind could venture to react, Kiprop hit the 24 lap to go mark in a sizzling 64 seconds! Kiprop kept the pedal to the proverbial metal in lap 2 as he hit 800m just over 2:10. With a firm lead established, but a lot of racing yet to run, Kiprop began to let off the accelerator a bit as his lead approached 50 meters after only two laps of racing. The rest of the race resembled a stage of the Tour de France as the one man break away didn't look wise on paper, but without the pack behind working together, it just might work out to the end. . .

Knowing that Kiprop was too good to let him take too large of a lead, Johnny Guy seized the lead of the chase pack and pulled them through 1600m in 4:45. A 4:42 second 1600 saw the chase pack reach 3200m in a swift 9:27, but Kiprop's near 100m lead remained relatively unchanged. Chico's Will Reyes ran at mid-pack in a chase group, that was already dwindling due to the quick pace at the front. An unfortunate setback for the 'Cats came in the form of Steven Martinez' departure from the race. Steven looked very well in the early going matching the moves of the chase pack and passing 4-5 athletes who had slipped from the pace and were already running alone behind. Unfortunately a competitor's heel lift during a stride caught Martinez under the left kneecap sending him almost directly to the tartan surface. Martinez missed much of our winter training with a Bursa issue in the same knee, and has just regained the fitness that took him to a Top-20 NCAA XC finish in the fall. The competitor's heel had somehow found the exact spot on his knee that had kept him from so much training this winter, and left him wondering where he would have finished if he was able to complete the race.

The pace for the rest of the race varied from lap to lap as Johnnie Guy was noticeably heated at the fact that no one seemed willing to help him bridge the gap between the pack and Kiprop. Just as you might see in a high profile cycling race a dysfunctional pack allowed the break to stay out front, due to splits that ranged from 68 to 73 seconds per revolution. Kiprop hit 5k around 14:40 with the chase finding the mid way point at 14:48.

At one point in the fourth mile Johnnie Guy stepped into lane 2 and slowed to what appeared to be 7 minute pace, forcing Shorter's Alfred Chelenga (NCAA XC Champion) to take the lead. This slow down caused a 73 second lap, which most certainly added to Kiprop's cushion at the front. With 2k remaining James Ngandu a Kenyan from Tiffin University swung around Guy and Chico's Reyes followed into 3rd position. An injection of pace dropped Guy and Chelenga, and now it was Ngandu and Reyes battling for second. With Kiprop too far from the front to catch, Reyes measured Ngandu over the final 1600m as the two traded leads and surges. Too strong over the final 800m Reyes sailed away from Ngandu convincingly hitting the line second overall in his first ever NCAA track final. Kiprop's front-running tactic had given him a 9 second win and his first NCAA title.

Women's 10,000m Finals: Chico's Karlie Garcia would step to the line of her first NCAA Championship with only one 10k behind her. Her lack of 10k experience was thankfully outweighed by her love for the distance during her debut. Ranked 9th coming in, Garcia had sights set on a hoped Top-8 finish if all went well. This year's field was a very good one on paper. Alaska had a pair of Kenyans who had each run 33 minutes and change for the 25 lapper this season, and Southern Indiana countered with Emily Roberts who solo'd a 33:50ish 10k at Mt Sac in April.

In the early going Roberts decided to try her hand at doing what Kiprop had just done.. making the pack try to catch her. As Roberts established a sizeable lead in the early going, a healthy chase pack switched gears and ran to a swift first 3200m split. With the very fast pace that was being set by the leaders Karlie fell off the main group and eventually became part of a three woman sub-group that trailed the 6 woman chase pack. During the third mile Karlie ran in 10th place, but on the heels of 8th and 9th. Thankfully for Karlie one of her fellow members of her group was last year's 10k champ, who was measuring her efforts wisely.

Somewhere in the fourth mile the good majority of the first chase pack started to slow, and within an 800m span Karlie's group had absorbed the entire group. With momentum on their side Karlie and her companions made quick work of the main group, passing all between the metric 4 mile and the finish. The one outlier was 25 year old senior Lauran Martin of Adams State who made a strong move with 2 miles to go to reach the leader Roberts. Unlike in the men's race earlier, Roberts wasn't able to replicate Kiprop's magical run as Martin would close exceptionally well to secure the win. Karlie would trade laps with Northern State's Sasha Hovind over the final 3200 before Hovind would eventually take fourth. Karlie would close well to secure 5th place and her first All American award. Her 4 team points would put Chico on the board toward the eventual 19th place finish.

 

Friday-Day 2 NCAA Championships

Women's Steeplechase Final: Having to run within 2 seconds of her PR and 5 seconds within the school's record the day before in the prelim, McCall prepared for what would surely be a tough battle in the steeple final. To make matters more daunting, three of the ten fastest steeplers in DII history would head the field, including DII record holder Emily Oren (9:50 PR). With the heavy hitters controlling the pace at the front McCall knew to drop to the back. Even a planned move to reach 400m in dead last resulted in a 78 second initial revolution for Habermehl (9:50 pace...). In the initial laps McCall traded laps with Della Lyle of Montana, but by the fourth lap, it was evident that there was nothing left in her legs. McCall fought hard each lap in hopes of catching some tiring runners ahead, but unfortunately her own legs were just as much victims as those who had gone out well too fast in front of her. An eventual 12th place finish matched her pre-meet seeding, and earned McCall Second Team All American (awarded to places 9-12). Although the season didn't end quite as well as she'd hoped, she had taken huge steps forward from not making the NCAA meet a year ago. Thankfully she has another year to capitalize on the steps that she took forward this season.

Women's 800m Prelim: Running in Heat 3 together Olivia Watt and Lora James did a wonderful job of early pacing. A pair of 2:07 runners in their heat went to the front and hammered through the 400 in 60-61. Watt and James sailed through in 3rd/4th positions in 62.2. Down the backstretch Watt made up strides on Stanislaus' CCAA champion Kyrah Vaughn (2:07 PR). As Watt made progress, James began to lose strides in the same stretch. Knowing she needed just a 2:09 to secure a time qualifier into the final Watt maintained her momentum well hitting the line 3rd in her heat in 2:09.39. Her second sub 2:10 of the season secured her spot in the final, and on the podium, given that only 8 would race in Saturday's final. James would finish her Wildcat career with a bit of a disappointing 2:14 effort.

Saturday-Day 3 NCAA Championships

Women's 1500m Final: A year ago Olivia Watt enjoyed a near perfect finish to her Junior season taking 3rd in the 1500m final at the NCAA meet. This year the field was faster and deeper than the 2015 version (18 women entered with sub 4:30 marks). Leading the list was Hillsdale's Emily Oren who owns the DII all time record for the steeplechase, and was the NCAA Mile Champion indoors. She was also recently voted the female track athlete of the year for DII.

Olivia went into the competition ready for battle as she always is and put herself near the front from the gun. The Morro Bay native rolled through 400m sharing the lead with another athlete at 71 seconds. Still running at the front of the pack at 800m Olivia crossed in 2:24- (4:30 pace). During the third lap Oren started to make her bid for the title taking the lead and edging the pace down under 70 seconds per lap. At the bell Olivia ran in 3rd position looking composed and full of run (the previous 300m had been covered in 51.1 seconds).

Over the final lap Oren would prove to be too strong for the field as she separated herself from all competitors. Number two seed Sarah Berger (4:21 pr) held a several stride lead over Watt, and then a large pack of runners trailed Olivia as the race entered the final 200m. Coming off the final turn Olivia appeared to straining and her form was deteriorating rapidly. The large pack that had trailed her going into the turn was now on her heels and starting to make their push toward the finish. Never one to throw in the towel mentally Olivia fought hard to the line, but not before 4 athletes made their way by her in the final 100m. Watt would finish 7th with a 4:25 finish time, earning her second straight All American award in the 1500m event. Not too bad for a gal who walked onto our program 5 years ago having never raced over the 400m distance in HS.

Men's 1500m Final: A year ago RS Frosh Kyle Medina had made the final, and managed a nice kick to place 5th overall. This year his 3:41.80 mark lead the nation coming into the championships, BUT he would be up against the most decorated field of qualifiers in the modern era of DII 1500. Just to make the meet, one had to run a 3:48 or faster, and a total of 9 men had run at least a 3:45 or quicker during the 2016 season. The favorites on paper (outside of Kyle) were Oliver Aitchison a 24 year old standout from the UK who ran 3:40 a year ago, Valentin Pepiot a French standout with a 3:42 PR, and Chase Rathke the 2014 NCAA Champ from Tarleton State.

The plan for Kyle was to stay close to the front of the pack so any potential moves could be covered, but knowing that the odds would be for the race to boil down to a fierce kick over the final 4-600m. True to form the race started painfully slow as the pack went through early splits of 64 and 65 seconds (2:09 @800m). With 600m remaining Academy of the Arts' Pepiot took the front with Medina hot on his heels. The race was on.

At the bell the entire 12 man field was relatively attached (the previous 300m was covered in 44 seconds) but things started to separate as they rounded the penultimate turn. At 1200m Pepiot had several strides on Medina, but Kyle appeared to be quite controlled, gradually working up to the heels of the Frenchman as they raced down the backstretch. Medina made a surge to go by Pepiot but a reply in the form of a pace pick-up came back at the Chico athlete. Medina tucked in behind Pepiot and Aitchison and Rathke followed closely having separated from the pack behind. With 200m remaining it was a four-man race with Pepiot looking fast and controlled at the point. Off the final turn Medina made his move to take the lead but Pepiot again answered with another gear change.

Finally with 80-ish meters remaining Medina managed to pull even, and slightly ahead of Pepiot. The bad news came in the form of 6'3 Aitchison (1:48 800m speed) who was opening his stride as well. Just as Kyle edged past Pepiot the Adams super-senior (actually listed as a junior) sprinted by Medina and Pepiot crossing the line .38 seconds in front of Medina who would take second. Pepiot would finish 3rd, and Rathke-4th. Kyle had closed the final 400m in 54.4 seconds and the final 2 laps in 1:55, but came just a fraction of a second shy of winning his first NCAA title.

Women's 800m Final: Making the 800m final as a 1500m finalist is a blessing and a curse. The positive is that you have obviously made the final and are virtually guaranteed All American Honors (8 lane track). The bad news comes in the form that virtually all of the other competitors have only run one 800m prelim before the final. A 1500m finalist will have run a 1500, an 800, and then the 1500 final (90min before the 800) all in the 2 day window leading up to the 800m final. Add a field that contains the fastest 800m runner in DII history, and another Top-10 All Time athlete, and you have the making for a tough final.

Knowing that the pace would surely be quick from the start, Olivia got out well, but put herself into the last position on the track. With top seed (2:02.3 PR) Carsyn Koch pressing the pace at the front Olivia ran through 400m in 61.1 seconds in Dead Last! Being the ultimate competitor Olivia fought down the backstretch to try to pass Stanislaus' Aman Hundal (who was fresh). Hundal held Watt off, and as they hit 600m (1:34) Olivia appeared to hit an invisible wall. With her mind telling her to chase, but a body reminding her of the all out 1500m some 90 minutes before, Olivia fell from the pace with each passing meter. The end result wasn't pretty for Watt, but there's no denying she'd done all that she could.

Five years ago as a freshman Olivia ran times that wouldn't have approached making our conference team roster. A year later she made the CCAA meet, but failed to make the final. Now in her senior year she walks away from the NCAA Championships, a three time All American. Olivia's story will go down as one of the greatest improvements that our distance program has ever had.

Men's 5,000m: As always, the men's 5k field was a collection of the best distance runners in DII on the year. Adams' Sydney Gidabuday was the clear favorite having run 13:36 while winning the Mt Sac Invite in April. It should also be mentioned that he was one of the few athletes in the field who wasn't doubling back from another race. Other top seeds included Southern Indiana's 13:39 runner Johnnie Guy, Mines' Marty Andrie (13:44), Alfred Chelanga (NCAA XC Champ-13:50's PR) and Valentin Pepiot (13:57). Of course Chico's own Will Reyes had finished second in the 10k on Thursday and stepped to the line with a shiny new 13:56 5k PR set at Mt Sac as well.

The race started quickly for 400m, but then it became somewhat tactical. Given the ever present heat and humidity and the number of tired legs in the field, most appeared content with the 70ish average pace that transpired during the initial 3200m. Surprisingly some very good runners were falling from the pace as soon as lap splits began to drop. Reyes who'd run much of the first 8 laps on the rail in 10th-12th position moved up nicely as the third mile began, knowing that moves were likely to be made soon. After an initial 3200m split of 9:19 the field ran a 69 second 9th lap. During the 10th circuit Southern Indy's Johnnie Guy seized the front and Will immediately surged to join his tall competitor. Gidabuday also ran even with Will, as did James Ngandu of Tiffin. Guy's 66 second 10th lap did some damage to the field and now an 8-10 man pack emerged at the front. With little leg speed to his name Guy dropped a 65 second 11th lap which further damaged the pack, but thankfully Will looked quite composed running in third position. Approaching 600m Will made a hard move to the front, and only Tiffin's Ngandu was able to follow closely. Guy fell several strides behind, as did Gidabuday. Will's 200m split from 600 to go, to the bell was 31 seconds and he now had a clear lead over the field.

As the Chico fans screamed approvingly, Adams' Gidabuday and Arts' Pepiot were starting to rally for a quick last lap. Just as the Chico faithful thought Will might steal the race, Gidabuday and Pepiot caught and passed the Chico standout. Gidabuday would win the battle down the final straight to earn his first outdoor NCAA title while Pepiot would finish second. Will was passed by NCAA XC 5th placer Zach Panning with 200m remaining, but didn't give up the fight and nearly caught the fresh GVSU runner at the line (missed by .01!). Reyes' final lap was 60.8 and his final 600m was a very fine 1:31!

Will's 5 team-points coupled with his 8 from the 10k two nights before made him the 'Cats highest points scorer at NCAA's since Scotty Bauhs. It's also noteworthy to point out that Will ran a 29:33 10k on Thursday in humid conditions and finished with a 14:14 5k two evenings later. Both times are substantially faster than his PR's coming into Chico two years ago. This was a great meet for the Junior transfer from American River College.

Women's 5,000m: 2016 was a very stout year in women's distance running at the DII level. How stout you might ask?! Well, Karlie Garcia went into the 5k final with a seed-time of 16:40, and it ranked her only 17th in the 21 runner field!

Despite having the best women's 5k field ever assembled in these championships the race went out at a relatively modest pace, alternating between 80-83 second laps for much of the first 8 laps. Karlie did a commendable job of sticking with the main pack for as long as her body would allow, but in the final mile her lack of overall mileage caught up with her a bit. The lead pack broke away for eventual mid to high 16 minute marks, and Karlie held on well to reach the line 17th overall (matching her seed) in 17:13.

Coach Oliver Hanf says...
It was a combination of speed, strength, endurance and a united commitment to becoming the best that we are capable of becoming , that was on display during the Wildcats 2016 season. The Olympic motto of Citius, Altius, Fortius was present at every one of our practice sessions and every meet we competed in, and in the end it was captured by coach Gary Towne's camera when he took a photograph of Karlie Garcia (10K All-American) on the shoulders of Dotun Olubeko (110 High Hurdles school record holder). The picture shows all of those elements in one still-shot. The attached image is titled Speed/Endurance/Joy.

The Chico State Wildcat Track team ended the 2016 season with a fast and furious finish. The NCAA championships were contested over 3 days in very humid conditions in Bradenton, Florida. In addition to carefully monitoring fluid levels and seeking cooler, shady shelters the athletes (and coaches) had to remain mentally strong and endure long hours of uncomfortable conditions. The Wildcats emerged as one the top programs in division 2. Of the 181 Track and Field teams in D2, our men finished 11th and our ladies 19th (our highest finish in 6 years). The top 8 finishers in each event earned All-American honors and scored points for the team. The scoring format of 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 was used. Our men scored 23 points. The ladies scored 15. An average of 20 athletes competed in each event, with exception of the combined events and relays, which had less.

6 Wildcats earned AA honors, with Will Reyes (10K and 5K) and Olivia Watt (1500 and 800) earning two awards each. Watt, a senior, finished her career with 3 All-American awards and has our school's second fastest times in both the 800 and the 1500. Reyes was the top point scorer for the 'Cats (13) and it was the most since Scotty Bauhs scored 18 in 2007. Reyes finished 2nd in the 10K (29:33) and 4th in the 5K (14:14).

Perhaps the biggest performance of the weekend was by Brooke Whitburn. The junior, who was born and raised in Chico, smashed the school record in the heptathlon to place 2nd. It was the first Heptathlon AA since Robin Hannah placed 4th in 2013, and it was the highest finish ever by a Chico State Hep. Whitburn accumulated 5393 points by hitting 6 Hep PRs, including 3 life-time bests. Her high jump of 5'3.25" was 1 cm off of her PR. With 1 event remaining Brooke was in 1st place. She did her best to battle for a national title, running a 7-second PR in the 800.

Here is a summary of her marks: 100 Hurdles- 14.85 (862 points), 10th place High Jump- 5'3.25" (747), 8th Shot Put - 37'9" (629), 3rd 200- 26.00 (797), 12th Day 1 points: 3035, 8th.a 61 point PR

Long Jump-19'11" (871), 2nd Javelin- 136'9" (700), 1st 800- 2:22.74 (787), 11th Day 2 points: 2258, 1st.199 pt PR!

The previous record was set by Robin Hannah, when she scored 5037 to win the CCAA title in 2013. A special congratulations to Robin who accepted DJ Verduzco's wedding proposal this weekend. DJ was Chico State javelin thrower from 2012-2014.

The Cinderella story of the year was Zak Stroing. The senior from Red Bluff HS was competing for the first time in a Chico State uniform this season. Stroing did not make the team his freshmen year and was not offered a spot on the roster until this year. He made the most of his opportunity. When he threw 202' at the Hornet Invite in March he emerged onto the national scene. That mark ended being his best of the regular season and what ultimately qualified him for nationals. He was ranked 17th coming into the meet. The CCAA championships runner-up turned in his finest performance ever in Bradenton, launching the javelin 208'7 in the prelims before busting out a 209'3" to finish in 7th place. It is the 3rd farthest PR by a Chico State athlete.

Kyle Medina, won the CCAA 1500 title his freshman year and advanced to the NCAA championships in Michigan where ended up placing 5th and earning an All-American award. While he ended up placing 2nd at this year's CCAA meet he did break the school record with a time of 3:41.80 and was the #1 seeded runner in Division 2 coming into the championships. With only 80 meters to go Kyle had the lead and was blazing towards the finish line with victory burning in his mind. That's when defending champion Oliver Aitchison (Adams State) snuck past Kyle on his outside. Together the two engaged in a mad dash towards the finish line but it was Aitchison who emerged with a .38 second margin of victory. Kyle ran 3:48.80 and his second place finish added 8 valuable points to the Chico State total.

Karlie Garcia was perhaps the smallest athlete at the championships but she sure does run Big! Following Will's AA effort in the 10K, Karlie electrified the Chico State cheering section with an impressive 25-lap race. She finished in 5th place with a time of 35:05. It was the highest 10K finish for a Wildcat since Tori Tyler placed 4th in 2009. Alia Gray was the last Lady Cat to earn AA in the 10K. She placed 8th in 2012. Karlie doubled back in the 5K final 2 nights later and placed 17th with a time of 17:13.

Three Wildcats earned 2nd Team All-American, an honor given to the 9th through 12th place finishers. This award is only in its 2nd year of existence in Track and Field.

Aaron Martin missed the podium by 1 place, scoring 6881 in the Decathlon to place 9th in the field of 16. His teammate Jason Dunn placed 14th with a score of 6659. Both Decathletes are juniors and are eager to get back to nationals in 2017 and land a spot on the top 8 podium.

Wade Tsang had a good opening mark in the discus when he heaved the dish 160'4", but fouls in the next two throws left him in 9th place after the first round of the prelims. He ended up in 12th overall and did not advance to the finals. It was an extraordinary year for the former DeAnza College and Concordia University athlete. In his only year wearing a Chico State uniform, Tsang was the CCAA champion in the discus and was only 2 feet from breaking Scott O'Brien's school record. Wade was the top point scorer for the Wildcats at the CCAA champions, also placing 2nd in the shot put and 6th in the hammer throw.

McCall Habermehl successfully advanced to 3K steeplechase final with a time of 10:29 in the prelims. She finished 6th in her heat and 12th overall. It was a gutsy effort to finish in the finals and earn 2nd team AA honors. She placed 12th in a time of 10:58.



In the words of one of our student-athlete's parents': "no matter what the place, point total, the highs, lows or standings, NOBODY has the heart of a champion- and the Ohana- like Chico State! Other members to compete at the championships but who fell a bit shy of earning a trophy were: Chris Jaeger (15th in High Jump), Dotun Olubeko (16th in the hurdles), Alex Burkhart (16th in the Steeplechase) Meghan Delamater (18th in the Javelin), Taylor Sack (18th in the Pole Vault), Lora James (20th in the 800 and 20th in the 1500), and Steven Martinez (injured in the 10K, DNF).

Success, as defined by legendary basketball coach John Wooden is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to do your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming. I believe that this team tasted success in 2016. The attached photo of Karlie and Dotun says it all.

Thank you to everyone who supports us in your own special way. It is so appreciated. We feel like we have the BEST fans in America!