As a freshman, Bates College's Justin Easter collected the first of seven career all-America honors during a steeplechase competition that ultimately would decide that year's national champion.

And he did it wearing just one shoe for part of the race.

With both shoes on, however, Easter has competed in what is thought to be a record 12 NCAA championships. Even more remarkable, Easter's appearances were in three distinctly different sports -- track (steeplechase), cross country and Nordic skiing.

Bates track and cross country coach Al Fereshetian recalls the moment that Easter's championships feats got off on the wrong foot, so to speak. He said two Bates athletes were competing in the steeplechase -- a senior who Fereshetian thought had a shot at challenging for the national title -- and Easter.

"We were just hoping Justin would get some great experience and be able to build his career from there," Fereshetian said.

It was Easter, however, leading the race after three laps. Then a competitor stepped on his shoe.

"I see a shoe go flying up in the air about 25 feet," said Fereshetian. "It was half on and half off and Justin decided to just kick it off."

The coach didn't immediately realize it was Easter who was in trouble, but he did see that the student-athlete began to slip back in the field.

"When he came around again, I could obviously tell it was Justin who had lost his shoe. He had to run more than half the race with one shoe on."

At one point, Easter was as far back as 12th place. But in the final 600 meters, he began making a move. With 200 meters left, including a water jump, he had captured ninth place, and was outsprinting others down the home stretch.

"When I saw that, it was very evident to me that we had something -- not only an outstanding athlete but an incredible person, with character and integrity and an intense desire, who was really going to be able to do some special things in his career," Fereshetian said.

He turned out to be right.

Easter, who graduated this year, became the first Bates student-athlete to qualify for NCAA championships each fall, winter and spring over the course of four years. Along the way, he collected two national championships in the steeplechase and earned all-America honors in each sport -- track, cross country and skiing -- including four times in the steeplechase. In his last year, the Bates 2003 male athlete of the year placed third in the Division III Men's Cross Country Championships and fifth in the 20-kilometer event during the National Collegiate Men's and Women's Skiing Championships.

Easter credits excellent coaching and supportive teams for his successes.

"It was, without a doubt, easy to accomplish with that type of support and motivation," he said.

Despite his achievements as a runner, particularly in the steeplechase, Easter has decided to turn his full focus to Nordic skiing, something he has been doing since the third grade.

Currently a resident athlete at the Maine Winter Sports Center training with a marathon ski team, Easter also is pursing his ultimate goal of joining the U.S. National Ski Team and eventually becoming an Olympian.

"I'd love it if any time I'd have a chance to don the uniform of the USA," he said.

With that goal firmly in mind, Easter said he's content to leave what he did as a runner as college achievements. He said he has no desire to return to the track competitively beyond an occasional road race.

"I think I got from track and from running a great deal of confidence. I got from it a base for the things I'm doing now in skiing," he said

Fereshetian thinks that Easter, now with a chance to focus intensely on one sport, has a chance to move to the next level. But, in the coach's mind, it's not Easter's successes -- past or future -- that stand out.

"You can look at all that stuff and it's impressive. It really speaks to an outstanding athlete. But as impressive as they are, they don't hold a candle to the quality of person that he is and the character that he possesses as a human being," said Fereshetian. "I don't know that I've ever really met many people, if any, who can compare to his integrity, his desire to help other people and make other people better. He's just a phenomenal individual."