A Running Tradition

By Brandon Tauscher

Juwan Nuvayokva runs for tradition. He also runs for pride, which is quickly
becoming another tradition of Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff,
Arizona. Experienced by running at Hopi High School under his high school
coach and guide Rick Baker, Nuvayokva has gained insight into the sport of
running that is anything but traditional for a collegiate cross-country
athlete.

Nuvayokva is from the Hopi Indian Reservation, where running is regarded
historically as the purest form of athletic expression. Born and raised in
the village of Oraivi, Arizona (considered to be the oldest continuously
inhabited settlement in the United States, with an origin date circa 1150),
Nuvayokva lived with his grandparents Mike and Elizabeth Gashwazra and his
mother Christine in a home with dirt floors. Running on unpaved roads was
ordinary, although running water and electricity were not.

The Hopi Basketdance Race, a harvest-time competition celebrating Hopi
tradition, serves to symbolize Hopi prayers and experience, and is a
mainstay of the Hopi culture. The running tradition, kept alive by the
Basketdance race and Na Vo ti tah--spoken histories passed down by
generations--dates back to Hopi ancestral times and is part of Nuvayokva's
history as a runner.

"Basket Dance races and Harvest Races are a spiritual run," says Nuvayokva.
"Many Hopi men run these races for the pride and strength of their lives. It
does not matter if you are first or last, it's as long as you run for your
people and every living thing on earth. Hopi people run with prayer in their
heart, prayers of life, crops, and all races of life, Anglo or Hopi."

When Juwan was first was recruited by Northern Arizona University out of
high school, he was hesitant, in thinking that running for a university
might affect how family and friends would see him as a person from Native
traditions. With many obstacles to overcome, Juwan's discipline and
tradition was always different from the rest, but perhaps it is what has
given him his strength.

"My first impression of Juwan was when he first got his sweats as a
freshman," says 22-year NAU head coach Ron Mann. I recall how proud he was
and how he wanted to go back home and show he had made it (the team)."

Running for Nuvayokva has always been about obstacles and strength. He
relied on his high school track coach for guidance and support before coming
to NAU, but once he had made the team, it was only about running and making
history. Since that time, Nuvayokva has become the only athlete in NAU
history to run on four Big Sky Conference cross country championship
teams--one for every year he competed. In 2001 he became the only
back-to-back individual champion in a 20-year history of the George Kyte
Classic, the lone home meet for the NAU Lumberjacks.

Besides cross country, Nuvayokva has also been an all-conference selection
in track and field, and during the 2001 season, won the Big Sky Conference
10,000-meter event at the Big Sky Conference outdoor championships. In
total, Nuvayokva has participated on six Big Sky Conference championship
teams; earned all-conference honors three times, won an individual
conference title in track and field, and has competed at the NCAA national
championships in cross country three times.

"Coach Baker helped me prepare for what college was going to be like, giving
me advice on what I could expect from running, and what it would be like to
live in a new culture," says Nuvayokva.

With plans someday to return back to the Hopi reservation to teach high
school physical education, Nuvayoka wants to be sure he can have the same
impact on students as he has experienced.

"I'll move back to teach discipline and stand out," he says. "What I have
learned through running is that I can serve as a model, that things can be
accomplished, it doesn't really matter what kind of background you come
from."

As it is, Nuvayokva has been disciplined enough to take center stage on a
nationally ranked Division I cross country team. Nuvayokva established
himself as the Lumberjacks number one cross-country runner from the onset
this season, a team presently holding the number nine ranking in the nation,
and although being a frontrunner for NAU has been a large responsibility, it
is something he feels he is suited for.

"I have waited," said Nuvayokva. "In the past there were others ahead of me
who had their place, now I have mine."

Nuvayokva set a goal to earn All-America status this season (top 25 at the
NCAA Championships), a feat only 11 male individuals at NAU have
accomplished in a rich 30-year tradition.

"He is beginning to come into his own as an athlete and leader," said Mann.
"He has shown much maturity while holding to the traditions of the Hopi
people. It has not been often we have had the luxury of a runner like this
come to our program."

But when asked about his history and the running tradition learned from
running at Hopi, obstacles aside, his philosophy defines his running style:
"It is better to shine than reflect."

Submitted November, 2001

Brandon Tauscher is with Northern Arizona University athletics media
relations.