HONORARY REF — Jeff Janssen, his wife Bailey and their daughter Juniper take a break from their busy schedules in Indianola, Iowa. Jeff Janssen, a former Fairmont High school athletic standout, will serve as the Sentinel Relays track & field meet’s honorary referee on Friday in Fairmont. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Janssen)

FAIRMONT — When Jeff Janssen received the news that he was selected as the 2022 Sentinel Relays track & field invitational’s honorary referee, the former Fairmont High School three-sport standout inquired about the role’s specific duties.

“If I had to officially start the meet in an honorary capacity, I don’t think Mr. Bonk would let me use the starter’s gun,” Janssen said with a chuckle in reference to legendary Cardinals’ head coach Bob Bonk. “I remember after I had graduated in either 2008 or 2009, he asked me to be the starter for the annual Fairmont Summer Run at Cedar Park, and he only let me use a whistle. Hopefully, he considers me more trustworthy now.”

Janssen, who’s currently in his fourth year of teaching and coaching at Indianola (Iowa) High School, earned the Sentinel Relays’ prestigious honor 14 years after he last donned a track & field uniform as one of the Fairmont program’s most prolific student-athletes.

“The Sentinel Relays got weathered out my senior season, so the last time I stepped onto the track in Fairmont was during the sub-section meet,” said Janssen, who went on to capture three medals to help power the Cardinal boys team to the Minnesota State High School League’s 2008 Class A state championship. “I finished my high school career with nine state medals — three straight years in the same three events.”

Janssen, whose family moved to Fairmont prior to the 2005-06 school year, quickly etched his name into the school’s record books as he anchored the Cardinals’ state championship 4×800-meter relay team as a sophomore. Tanner Bulock, Tyler Laue and David Haegeman completed the gold-medal relay’s first three legs, respectively.

Janssen’s 4×400 relay team claimed third-place medals in 2006, while he garnered all-state accolades by placing fifth in the 800-meter run.

“People probably don’t remember that Tyler Laue was a late replacement for Eric Hugoson — who was injured — in the 4×8,” said Janssen. “That’s how deep our team was that year.”

A year later, Janssen anchored the Cardinals’ 4×800 relay consisting of Hugoson, Haegeman and Tanner Bulock that set the school’s record of 8:00.7 and placed second in the MSHSL’s 2007 state meet.

Ironically, Janssen and the 4×400 took third again at state, and he finished fifth once more in the 800-meter run.

Janssen not only added three more state medals to his impressive high school track & field resume in 2008, but played an integral role along with fellow all-state standout Paul Mallory in powering Fairmont to the MSHSL’s Class A state team championship.

Mallory struck gold in both the high hurdles (14.51) and 300-meter hurdles (38.57), in addition to claiming all-state honors with an eighth-place performance in the triple jump (42-9).

Meanwhile, Janssen pocketed fourth in the 800 with the program’s third-best ever time of 1:57.23, and anchored the Cardinals’ bronze-medal 4×800 team of Trevor Bulock, Josh Koehler and Jesse Walters that posted a time of 8:09.69.

Trevor Bulock, Walters, Janssen and Mallory then combined forces on the tarred surface to ice Fairmont’s state team crown by winning the Class A state gold medal in the 4×400. The fearsome foursome compiled a winning time of 3:22.88, which is still No. 2 all-time in the FHS record books.

“I probably had more opportunities to run track in college than I did in basketball, and I wonder sometimes, ‘What if?” reflected Janssen, who went on to earn numerous accolades during his four seasons as a member of the Buena Vista University men’s basketball team. “However, knowing that I ended my track & field career by reaching my full potential in being part of a state championship helps with that decision.

“I’ll always have a pretty special memory of winning the team title and the 4×4 at state during the last race of my career,” said Janssen, who also won the sectional 800-meter crown three consecutive seasons (2006-08). “There will always be a special place in my heart for those guys on the 4×4 in 2008.”

Now, Jeff Janssen, along with wife Bailey and daughter Juniper, enjoy life in Indianola — a community of nearly 16,000 residents just south of Des Moines, Iowa.

As for Jeff, he possesses the best of both sports worlds as the 7th-grade language arts instructor serves as Indianola’s head varsity girls basketball coach in the winter and middle school boys and girls cross country mentor in the fall.

Janssen, who exited his prep basketball playing days as Fairmont’s single-game points record holder (41) and the program’s No. 3 all-time scorer (1,427 points), guided Indianola to a spot in the Iowa Class 4A, Region 5 finals this season on the heels of earning a spot in the Class 5A, Region 2 championship game in 2020-21.

Janssen credits Bonk for helping him understand the intricacies of coaching athletics at the high school and middle school levels.

“Mr. Bonk always got the best out of his athletes. He builds relationships with kids, and they always seem to respond in a positive manner,” said Janssen. “In cross country, I use his methods of having the kids dig deep and challenge them to do things the right way, and work hard each and every practice.

“In basketball, it’s more of the same philosophy. If we reach our potential, I have no regrets at the end of the season. He (Bonk) has definitely been a big driving force for me as a coach.

“Despite all of that, he still won’t let me use the starter’s gun to begin the Sentinel Relays (on Friday),” Janssen added with a laugh.