Robbie Davidson is a sophomore at Bear River with an inspirational story about resilience.
Davidson runs varsity for Bear River, and has been running cross country for four years.
“Robbie has always been a super active kid, running almost everywhere he went, but his interest in cross country began in seventh grade when he started running for Arete Charter:” said Brandy Davidson, Robbie’s mom.
During the 2023 season, Robbie Davidson had run into a couple injuries that had built up and would ultimately stop him from competing.
“The exact date is Sept. 29,” Davidson said. “It was the fourth race of the season at Sutter and I had been feeling a bit of pain from the Colfax race a week before. I started feeling pain in my ankle and I just kind of pushed it to the side and pushed through it.
“I broke my navicular. It is kind of like what is holding up the rest of your foot. It is where a lot of your pressure goes and it was really hard to break.”
Davidson’s injury prohibited him from running for the rest of the season.
“That was one of the only meets I wasn’t able to get to go to that season,” Brandy Davidson said. “He had been in some pain and we talked about listening to his body and knowing his limits. Robbie always likes to push himself. So, he ran that race, and managed to get fifth place! And then he collapsed at the finish line. He couldn’t walk after that.”
Even though Robbie couldn’t run, he was still at meets supporting his teammates.
“Robbie was very respectful to everyone and was a great team player while he ran cross country,” said Liam Coley, a freshman who runs varsity.
Coley believes that Davidson’s Injury really affected the team.
“Robbie’s injury did impact the team because he was an inspiration for many runners.”
While the injury might have held him back physically, Davidson didn’t let it stop him from working hard to get better.
“I try to stick to more biking and cross training, and this year I am trying to do swim so basically lower impact exercises,” Davidson said. “Just anything that I feel comfortable doing and pushing myself and not hurting myself.”
Brandy Davidson noted Robbie’s swift progress, both physically and mentally.
“I think he has made insane progress in the last couple of months,” she said. “Not only physically, but mentally as well. His choice to try out for the swim team rather than do track this year was all about listening to his body and doing what he felt was best for him, which I really admire. The sky’s the limit with that kind of mentality, determination and resilience.”
Despite his injury, he was determined to work to get better. He trained and did physical therapy to help repair his injury. While Davidson isn’t able to run long distances at the moment, he is working hard to get back into cross country.