Ex-Cape Henry standout back in town for Shamrock race

A couple of cases of wine hardly seems a suitable prize for winning a distance race.

When you're running through fertile grape country in France, though, it's more than appropriate.

Amanda Scott admits she has much to learn about distance running. When she won a half marathon in only her second attempt at the distance - and received the wine at the podium - she was surprised.

But not unhappy.

"It was excellent," said the Virginia Beach native who lives in Boulder, Colo. "I mean... we were running in wine country. What else would it be?"

Scott was living in England at the time, working on her master's degree in chemical engineering from Cambridge University.

She rationed the expensive grape so that she could enjoy the last bottle during a graduation celebration with friends.

"It was perfect," said Scott, a Cape Henry Collegiate School graduate who is working on her doctorate.

No matter how well she does in Sunday's Shamrock Half Marathon at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, there won't be any bottles of wine waiting for her at the finish line.

With Yuengling as the weekend's banner sponsor, though, the 23-year-old can count on a few cold cups of hops and barley.

"I'm looking forward to having a few cold beers with family and friends and people I haven't seen in a while," Scott said. "I don't get home much these days. I'll be enjoying spending time with my dad during my stay.

"It's going to be great seeing (Shamrock founders Amy and Jerry Frostick). I've never run the Shamrock and really am looking forward to it."

Scott's only experience with the event was during her high school days, when she worked as a volunteer.

She was busy back then with Beach FC club soccer and earning all-state and All-TCIS cross country honors. Amy Frostick was her cross country coach at Cape Henry.

"I ran a lot to train and stay in shape for soccer. I didn't run cross country until meeting the Frosticks when I got to high school," Scott said. "But I loved the attitude. When I did my first 10-miler, I just really fell in love with it."

Even with little experience, she earned a spot on the Vanderbilt cross country team as a walk-on. There she benefited from former Olympian and Vanderbilt coach Jim Spivey.

"You think you just run, but it's so much more than that," Scott said. "He was an amazing coach, and I learned so much."

Scott earned a Bill Gates Scholarship to Cambridge and "ran all over England and some other areas of Europe" while attending the exclusive British school.

"Running was becoming so much a part of my lifestyle," she said. "I owe all that to the Frosticks, so it's really going to be great to see them."

Scott's first big race was the London Marathon. After recording her best half-marathon time of 1:19:03 in the French event, Scott ran the Denver and Phoenix halfs. A goal these days is to meet a qualifying time so she can return to one of the major full marathons. She had planned to try in the Shamrock full.

"I hurt my left ankle while running on a treadmill in February," she said. "I was so cold and there was so much snow in Boulder, so I ran inside and hurt myself. I've been cross training and running some to be ready for the half."

Scott still plays some club soccer in Colorado but said running has "ruined my fast-twitch muscles."

She's not sure what she is going to do professionally after completing work for her doctorate.

"I'm doing research on renewable energy, and we're using concentrated sunlight with mirrors to react with different biomass to create fuel," she said.

Almost sounds like she could return to France and make more wine.

Lee Tolliver, (757) 222-5844, lee.tolliver@pilotonline.com