Cholla Charger Network

By Maddelyn Lopez and Gizelle Ruiz

  Cross country is one of the hardest sports; not everyone is willing to join. Races can be intense the first couple of times- that is when runners start giving up and quitting. Runners may feel pressure from coaches, teammates, and spectators. There are also certain people that when they want to do something, they set a goal, and those people work towards it until they achieve it.

Cross country is all about you running across all different types of terrain, which could be fields, mountains, sidewalks, and parks. This is pretty good cross country practice because you never know where you will be racing for your next race.

Anaid Guerrero

A sophomore student athlete at Cholla high school, Anaid Guerrero in her first year of cross country, was interviewed and this is what she said: “I feel comfortable playing cross country because it helps me stay in shape and stay active even though long runs can be tiring and exhausting. I like doing this sport because it keeps me motivated and helps me feel good.”

Anaid’s true feelings about what she likes about cross country were, “Cross country challenges me to get better and to keep me going, and it helps me to see the progress I have made since I started towards the end.”

Teamwork means to celebrate successes together, which can build mental toughness. Anaid’s preference was, “I prefer team sports because you get to meet new people that play the same sport as you, and you can support them, be there for them and work as a group to get better.”

Anaid gave some reasons for running cross country. “The reason I wanted to play this sport was to be prepared and be ready for other sports I would like to do, that include running or even staying healthy and in shape. Another reason was because I wanted to challenge myself and get better as I keep practicing.”

When it comes to cross country races or practices, Anaid tries her best every day. “I push myself to get better and to stay focused.” Being an athlete is hard. “I get tired a lot, and I always want to take a break and rest more, but I try to work on that, and not to stop.” She also wants to improve a lot of strengths and weaknesses, when it comes to cross country. “I want to keep running without stopping as much as I do, and just keep it at a pace, where I feel good at, and not get all tired.”

Anaid shared some advice for beginners, “Take it slow don’t go fast if you’re racing someone on the first day. Go at your own pace where you feel more comfortable, and to be patient with yourself.” 

Terry Garcia

      A junior student athlete at Cholla, Terry Garcia, was interviewed: “I feel comfortable doing this sport, because of all the people you meet, and everyone makes you feel welcomed.” “I have been playing for 1 year, and I am going for my 2^nd year.”

Terry is passionate about running cross country. “I’m so passionate playing this sport, because it helps me get better in running and staying fit.” According to Terry team sports are much better, “I would prefer a team sport over an individual sport because team sports have a lot more energy than individual sport.”

Having friends tell you to join a sport can help you start liking it. “The reason why I started playing is because one of my friends told me to do it and I’ve liked the sport ever since. My strengths as a player are always being supportive for others and good stamina. My weakness as a player is not able to keep a good pace for the whole race.”

Some skills Terry would like to improve are, “being able to keep a steady pace and be able to pass more people, when racing.” 

Terry also shared some advice, “What I would tell a beginner is don’t worry about being in first be more focused on not stopping and don’t let the idea of stopping get to your head.”  

Gabriel Dabdoub

       A Senior student athlete at Cholla, Gabe Dabdoub in his second year of cross country gave his opinion. “I wouldn’t say this sport is comfortable exactly. I would even consider it the most uncomfortable sport you could do at Cholla. It’s a great feeling when you improve upon yourself each cross country meet. It shows direct improvement. Running has also been a part in each and every one of us, so being the best at something we’re born to do is cool.”

Gabe prefers to do more individual sports. “I enjoy individual sports more often. I like to keep myself accountable, and you can’t blame anyone but yourself.”

Gabe gave some reasons for starting this sport. “I wanted to try something new, get conditioned for later sports, meet new people, and challenge myself, which can help me get stronger muscles.”

This is the truth behind Gabe’s strengths and weaknesses: “I’m extremely dedicated to improving, there’s no stopping me once I get going. I got stomach issues, and my schedule is very busy, too busy to really take care of my body with cross country practices.I need to lock in, just overall learn how to put absolute 100% into my run.”

To make beginners more comfortable, Gabe would say, “You’re not going to start out running state times, it takes time to improve, especially as a runner, but don’t give up. My first practice was terrible, I couldn’t even run for a minute. My first cross country meet was 37 minutes to finish, but with enough effort and determination to succeed and improve, you can improve exponentially. You’ll really feel it in every way and take care of your teammates. They’re there to back you up.”