By Gary Lloyd
Pinson Valley High School varsity boys cross country and track coach Ed Palmer earlier this month was inducted into the Largo (Fla.) High School Hall of Fame.
Palmer, a 1974 Largo graduate, was on the 1973 Largo cross country team that won the Florida high school state championship. Palmer won the race individually, running the 2.5-mile race in a state-record time of 12:11. That broke the previous record of 12:38. Palmer still holds that record, as the 2.5-mile race later became the 3.1-mile race.
“It just means the world to me,” Palmer said of his induction.
Palmer was coached by Brent Haley.
Palmer, who ran cross country at Troy State University, coached at Berry High School in 1981 before spending 1982 through 1997 as a physical education teacher at Pinson Elementary School. Since 1997, Palmer has been the varsity boys cross country and track coach at Pinson Valley High School.
The Pinson Valley cross country team has won four of its last five meets, finishing second in the only meet it didn’t win.
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.