When did you start running?
My mom told me I had to do a winter sport, so I decided to do indoor track because my dad had ran all through high school and college and he loved it and I figured it would be easy. As I’ve come to find out, it definitely isn’t easy, however I loved it! I actually decided to not try out for softball that spring, which was my plan before winter, and ran outdoor instead! After getting to know the girls, they convinced me to run XC instead of playing soccer as I did freshman year and I have been running year round ever since!
How does your family support you in your running career?
I don’t even know where to begin. My mom is the ultimate XC mom. She asked to host every team dinner this year (she got 4/6) and she gets me pumped for every race. My dad, being a XC runner himself, is more like a volunteer coach. He sprints around the field to get to us while racing. We see him like 7-8 times at Nashua South! During our cooldown we all tell stories about hearing “Bri-Guy” as we call him and how he helped us in a race. My parents and I always sit down and watch the race videos from the past year and we come up with a strategy.
Briefly describe the experience as a member of your team/program. Give an example of some of the “fun” stuff your team does together.
I love being a part of the team. We have a lot of traditions that we do together. We have running buddy runs each time we have a premeet. In the last few years, we get assigned a specific teammate, or the seniors chose, and you had a special little connection on the team. My first mentor, Morgan Sansing, was my first runba and we were perfect for each other; I’m so happy she chose me. Now, we have different runbas for each meet and we are able to get to know all of our teammates a little bit.
What motivates you most to do well?
I want to be a mentor for all of the girls on the team. They motivate me to do well as well as my family that is so supportive to me. You can catch both of my parents racing us around the course to cheer us on.
What is your favorite workout?
I think my favorite is the Derryfield workout that our varsity does the week before D1’s. We go to Derryfield and do a 3×1 mile on the course. We run each mile hard and then have 2-3 minutes of rest. It’s a great way to see the course right before D1’s. We also talk about tangents and strategies between each mile so we have little highlights on the course for the next week.
What is your go-to pre race meal?
I don’t really have one. Normally if I’m running in the afternoon, but we have to be at the bus at 9 because of JV races before us, I have some gluten free chocolate chip pancakes. The way my family makes them is with a lot of eggs, so I still get protein! I normally bring a protein bar to eat when I get off the bus and a banana to have before warmup.
Do you have a favorite pre-race song?
Meghan Cross and I are bus buddies all through XC and track and we have a playlist that we always jam out to. They are very peppy songs that we can get excited with, but the last song that we listen to together all of last year was Closer by the Chainsmokers. I’m not sure how it happened, but now we listen to it every time and we carried that tradition into this year!
Do you have a specific racing strategy?
It varies from race to race, but something I tried at this past Nashua North/South Invite was putting on a 10 step surge every time I heard someone say my name from the sidelines. So when I went by my mom, I would count 10 steps on my left foot and surge. It kept me on my toes and didn’t let me settle into a slower pace. I am definitely going to keep that up for the rest of this season because it seemed to work!
What is the best advice ever given to you?
The best advice ever given to me applies to everything in my life, not even just running. It was that as long as I try my best, nobody can tear down that effort.
What is your favorite thing about Cross Country?
My favorite thing is that everybody on the line will run their guts out for each girl that they are in the race with.
What is your favorite course to run? (High school courses)
I like to run Derryfield because it’s a challenge and I like hills, but I also like to see my family during the race and at Nashua South, I see my family the most.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years???
I would hopefully be in a good med school, working toward being a pediatrician. I hope I’m still running. I also know in 5 years I will be happy wherever I am
