Five Mountaineers will travel to Eugene, Ore., for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships June 9-12 and leading the pack will be Clara Grandt.

A native of West Union, a graduate of cross country/track powerhouse Doddridge County, Grandt won the 10K at the Eastern Regional Thursday night and washed it down with a healthy helping of chocolate milk.

No, serious. That’s her normal post-race beverage though it seems entirely unappetizing to me and to others.

Then again, you’ve got to be a little different to do what Grandt and her peers do and do so well.  Fortunately for them, their normal is not ours, and their normal is pretty darned effective.

Grandt had an edge and one she’d created by her own choice. While she trains with socks, she actually races with nothing between her feet and shoes. On a warm occasion when feet and legs sweat and soak even the best water resistant socks, it can make a difference.

“I like to keep my feet as cool as possible and I like to feel fast and feel like I don’t have anything weighing me down,” she said.

“I just like to feel comfortable. It’s probably more mental than anything else.”