By Kim J. Harmon

One day this spring, on the same day that the Newtown High School track and field team was having a quad meet, senior co-captain Joe Blanchard was off making a college visit and, well, some probably would have thought that was okay because Joe likely wouldn’t have finished first – or even second – in any of his events.

When the meet got close against a couple of teams, though, Joe was a guy the coaches sorely missed.

But it was like that in the fall, too, during cross country.

Or in the winter, during swimming.

While he wouldn’t often be first and even though he wouldn’t be testing the limits of a school record, Joe – a captain all three seasons in the 1999-2000 school year – was the type of athlete a team had to have to be successful.

Versatile.

Hard-working.

An athlete who didn’t just challenge the runner or the swimmer next to him, but who challenged himself.

That’s the kind of stuff that has made Joe Blanchard so invaluable to his coaches – Rich Pesce in the fall, Brian Reiff in the winter, Ed Obloj and Carl Paternoster in the spring – and the kind of stuff that has made him an Unsung Hero.

A Running Family

With a father who was a rugby and football player, it certainly would seem as if the four Blanchard children – Tristan, Joe, Whitney and Quincey – would have taken up something a bit more physical, a little more rough and tumble.

All four were and are into track.

Tristan, now at St. Mary’s, once did the weights for the Lady Nighthawks. Whitney, a sophomore, is now a hurdler.

Joe – he’s the distance guy.

But even though Joe first started – and grew to enjoy – track doing the Parks and Recreation program as a student at the Newtown Middle School, he first gravitated towards basketball at Newtown High.

“I tried basketball as a freshman,” he said, “but I found individual sports were a way I could push myself and still have that team concept. In all the sports (cross country, swimming and track), it’s all up to you.”

It was up to Joe to help lead the cross country team this past fall (with Chris Caroland and Glenn Steiwing) . . . and he helped lead it to a 14-1 regular season record. Along with Carolan and Jeff Heller, Joe was a solid, dependable performer and often finished right at the top of the a race.

He was also a true leader. With his attitude and effort, he helped teach a younger generation of runners that cross country can be an individual and a team sport – besides being a lot of fun – and said, “I saw my role as a captain and a senior to be an example to the underclassman.”

Being understated is simply a part of who Joe is, too. He also understated his importance to the swim team when he said, “I saw myself more as a leader than a points scorer,” despite the fact that his ability in the relays, the individual medley, breaststroke and backstroke were crucial to the strength of the team depth.

Joe captained the swim team along with Ryan Eberts, Mark Kalb and Karlis Griffiths.

In the spring, Joe took over a track and field team – with Steiwing, Kyle Tobin and Anthony Mentessana – that had lost a lot of talent from a 10-4 team and was, to put it mildly, all of a sudden thrust into the rebuilding process.

But the Nighthawks finished 10-4 again and took third at the South-West Conference meet and Blanchard – with his ability in the relays and the 800 meter run, in particular – had quite a bit to do with that.

The key to his success, he said, has been focus.

“I’ve always tried to stay focussed. On a Saturday morning when I could be sleeping in, I get up and run – and it’s paid off.”

Joe will be taking something with him, too, as he heads off to run cross country and track at the University of New Hampshire (and not just the wonderful memory of the swim team’s training trip down to Orlando this past February). His experience as a three-sport captain has taught him quite a bit about leadership.

“I learned a lot from it,” he said. “Being captain is a great leadership position. With each sport, the coach demands something different (from the captain) and it’s tough switching the mindset from, say, swimming to track.”

But it was something he was able to do well as the success of the cross country (14-1), swimming (12-3) and track and field (10-4) teams would attest.