All Daily Record XC: Mendham’s Ehmann lived up to family legacy

A family that runs together stays together.

Paul Ehmann has definitely heard that version of the old adage many times, since the Mendham senior comes from a family of runners.

Both of Ehmann’s parents, Steve and Mary, are marathoners and have been involved with the Mendham Magic youth track club for several years. Mary Ehmann is the head cross country coach at Villa Walsh. Older sister Emily competes in marathons as well. Older brother Peter, formerly a standout runner at Mendham like his little brother, now runs for the University of Colorado.

It’s safe to say that there are tons of pairs of running shoes laying around the Ehmann family home.

Long before he began his senior cross country campaign at Mendham, Paul Ehmann knew that he wanted to take the final step in his high school career and leave as a true champion. It was one thing to be considered an elite runner. It was another to be thought of as the best.

“I saw a lot of guys leave the county and the state, I felt it was my time to make my move,” said Ehmann, the 2014 All Daily Record Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year.

In the summer, long before anyone else would ever dream of even waking up, Ehmann and his big brother took to the streets, hills and back roads of Mendham. Before Paul Ehmann began his summer days working as a lifeguard and camp counselor, he was pounding the pavement to first beat his brother, then take on the rest of Morris County.

“I was more interested in doing more well rounded training stuff,” Paul Ehmann said. “Pete was home for the summer, so we ran together in the morning. It was like at 6 or 6:30 in the morning. We were definitely early birds. It was just a good way to start the day. ... No question, having Pete as a brother motivated me,” Paul Ehmann said. “In fact, it was a huge motivation. I always wanted to be like him or be better than him, run better times than he did, break his records. He was one of the premier runners in Morris County and I put it in my mind that I wanted to run faster than him.”

It didn’t take long for Ehmann to realize that the goals were about to happen. Ehmann appeared to be even bigger and stronger than ever.

“I was definitely looking forward to having my best year,” Ehmann said. “I wanted to run my best times at the (NJSIAA) Groups and Meet of Champions. I wanted to win the county championship. I felt like I was in the best shape of my life. Coach (Roy Hamblen) said, ‘Something looks different about you,’ that I held myself differently.”

Ehmann had the look of someone who spent the offseason in a weight room, his upper body and arms just bulging, but there were was no weight training at all.

“I think he started to mature and become a man,” Hamblen said. “He really blossomed. I told him before the season that he could be the best runner in the county, but that he just had to believe it. I told him that the only person who could keep him from winning the county was himself. He just started to walk out onto the course with confidence. I could tell that this was going to be his year.”

Ehmann enjoyed a dominating cross country season.

He started by winning the Randolph Invitational Varsity B race. He was then second at the Shore Coaches Invitational Varsity B race, setting Ehmann up for the long-awaited prizes.

In October, Ehmann won the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference-Large Schools race in 15:51.22. A week later, Ehmann captured the gold medal at the Morris County Championships in 15:46.34.

“I realized I’m in a list with a group of amazing runners who won the county championship,” Ehmann said. “To be on the same level with some of those great county champs means a lot to me. There’s a huge sense of accomplishment.”

Ehmann finished second at the NJSIAA North 2 Group III meet to Leland Jones of Summit, and was poised to give Jones another tussle in the closing strides of the overall Group III meet a week later.

However, in the final 300 to 400 meters, Ehmann took a bad step, breaking his ankle. But that wasn’t going to stop him from finishing the race.

Ehmann managed to drag his injured leg across the finish line in 18th place.

“I felt the bone snap,” said Ehmann, who underwent surgery to repair his ankle two weeks ago. “I knew it was broken. ... I didn’t want to quit. The damage was already done. I had come that far already. I wasn’t going to stop. Each step just increased the level of pain, but I had to finish the race. ... I saw a videotape of it and had to turn it off. I still don’t know what happened. It was a freak accident. I get mixed responses from people about it. Some people say it was stupid for me to keep going. Others say it was courageous.”

Said Hamblen, “I told him it was one of the greatest acts of courage I’ve ever seen. I can’t imagine the amount of pain he was in. But he’s just a real competitor. It was unimaginable for him not to finish the race. I think that really defines him.”

The courageous completion to Ehmann’s high school career just might be his lasting legacy, not to mention his championship season. Not to mention, he turned out to surpass his brother’s achievements.

Ehmann will head to the University of Pennsylvania next fall, joining his sister, who is a veterinary student there.

“I can’t complain about what I accomplished,” Ehmann said. “Besides breaking my ankle, it was by far my best season. I had a lot of fun. I have great memories, set some great times.”

Ehmann will miss the indoor season as he recuperates from ankle surgery and hopes to be back in time for the outdoor season.

“He’s one of the best runners I’ve ever coached, but not just in talent and his accomplishments,” Hamblen said. “He’s the type of kid who always put the team ahead of himself. He went out of his way to help the younger kids, who really looked up to him. That’s all part of being a true champion. ... I think his best running is ahead of him. Because of his work ethic and attitude, he’s going to get better. I think he reached all of the expectations we had for him, but he’s going to be a better runner in the future.”