photo: Eastbay XC
I was in elementary school and the only sport they offered in school was cross country and track. They called it Pups Running. You were allowed to participate in 4th and 5th grade. I watched my sister (who’s 2 years ahead of me) compete and I thought it was the coolest thing. It inspired me to try running as well once I reached the 4th grade and started me on my running journey.
Definitely winning the team state title my sophomore year at the Track & Field State meet. It was such a fun atmosphere to be apart of and there’s truly nothing better than a team championship title. I would also say that winning my first individual state titles in track in the 1600 and 3200 was a blast. Eastbay Nationals was a great experience as well. Getting to meet and hang out with some of the best athletes in the country was a really fun opportunity.
In cross country, definitely winning a team and individual state title. Beyond that, the goal is to win a national title along with a team podium finish. I also plan to compete in the USATF U20 Cross Country Champs in hopes of qualifying for the U20 World team. In track, the main goal is to break the 4 min barrier in the mile, but overall I just wanna have fun. It’ll be my last season in highschool and I want to enjoy it with my teammates and everyone else who’s got me to where I am now.
This year AP Biology is by far my favorite. I’ve always been a math and science guy and not so much language arts and history. I’ve always been intrigued with how the human body works.
I actually began my life living in Xi’An, China. I was born in Indianapolis, but 2 months later flew out to China with my parents and sister. My parents were missionaries for CRU. We lived there for around 2.5 years and in that time my younger brother was born there.
The Bear. It’s a workout we do once a year during our tournament season. This year we did it on Lavern Gibson. It’s 5k, 2mi, 1mi with about 8min of rest after the 5k and 6min rest after the 2mi. It’s always been one of my favorites and I love the challenge it gives me.
Boulder, CO. There’s not a place in Indiana that I could confidently say is my favorite place to run. Indiana is pretty boring. Boulder is the opposite. There are so many great places to run and I’m so excited to spend 4 or more years training out there. Best place in Boulder for me would probably be the Rez because there’s so many routes you can run from there.
Peanut Butter pretzels. It’s my go to snack and it never fails. Very underrated and if you haven’t tried it you have to.
Chick-fil-a. Hands down. Not even close. There’s nothing on the menu that’s bad. Their breakfast is crazy good too. The service is unmatched. There’s truly no better place to go get a meal. My go to is a #1 with no pickles, large fry, and replace the drink with a vanilla shake.
I’m more a fan on chill music. Some of my favorite artists are Rex Orange County, Glass Animals, Dominic Fike, and Still Woozy. I can also go for some early to mid 2000s throwbacks.
Stranger Things and F1 Drive to Survive are my top 2, but I just finished season 1 of Rings of Power and it was so good. I’ve never been a huge TV show person, but these are some great ones.
Instagram for sure. I barely use Snapchat and I don’t have Twitter. I don’t like spending a ton of time on social media though because it can be pointless sometimes. It’s not what I want to fill my time with.
Anthony Rizzo. I’m a big Cubs fan and when I first started following the Cubs Rizzo was my guy. He was there from the beginning and helped bring the World Series title back to Chicago. He’s got such a cool personality and I think it’s be cool to talk over a good lunch with him.
I’d probably choose Morgan McDonald because I feel we’d have some good conversation. Chances are we’d probably doordash something for dinner. I’ve actually already had dinner with Morgan and the rest of Team Boss when they raced here in Indiana, but it’d be fun to do it again.
Probably my dad. He’s done so much for me and I’ve always looked up to him. I look down on him now though because he’s a good 5 inches shorter than me. He’s shaped me not only as an athlete but as a person and how I hold myself each day. He’s also led me in my faith a great deal too.
Joe Klecker. The things he’s done and the work he’s put in to get where he is is so respectable. He makes sure he’s doing every little thing to be at his best. It’s fun to see him accomplish he’s dreams and I hope to some day follow in his footsteps. I’ll be getting in as many #kleckermiles as I possibly can.
I couldn’t be more excited to become a Buff. The rich history, the community, the team. It’s all such a special thing. It was a long process that took some twists and turns, but I eventually ended up where God wanted me to be. I visited 6 schools. They were Stanford, Notre Dame, Colorado, Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Indiana. I’m blessed to have had such an amazing selection of schools, but couldn’t be happier to call Boulder my new home.
I’ll be in Colorado’s Integrated Physiology program. I’m very interested in studying the human body and how it works and moves. I want to eventually go into something in the realm of sports medicine.
In 5 years, I want to be signing a professional running contract to fulfill my ultimate dream which is to run professionally. In 10 years, I want to have made an Olympic team. I also want to give back to the running community in some special way because it’s done so much for me. I want to give something in return.