Woodmont senior Aaron Ramirez talks about the summer and season ahead. Ramirez is entered in Saturday's Eye Opener meet at The Roger Milliken Center in Spartanburg. Ramirez finished first in the championship boys race in 2008 at Eye Opener. The Woodmonts boys are entered in the international and girls in the championship race.
Date of birth: Feb. 18, 1992
Academic interest: Math/sciences
Hobbies: Music is probably my biggest hobby, I have several guitars which I play often.
Brothers/sisters: Only child.
Years on team: three
Years running: three
Personal bests: 1600: 4:28, 3200: 9:54, 5000: 15:45
scrunners: How would you rate your summer training?
ramirez: After a long year full of injuries, I struggled to get into decent shape, Im hoping that I will be able to bounce back after a dissapointing season.
scrunners: Did anything change for you from this summer to the past?
ramirez: Yes, last year I ran at least 1,100 miles over the summer and with no injuries. But this year, Im taking a step back and looking much farther in the future. I want this to be something I do well in college, and burning myself out is the last thing I want to do. Ive been running roughly 45-55 miles per week.
scrunners: How did you set your summer training plans?
ramirez: I looked at what I did last year, both right and wrong and planned accordingly. Post-season track is where Im aiming to peak, so workouts over the summer were very relaxed with almost no hard runs at all.
scrunners: Did you attending a running camp?
ramirez: No, I did not.
scrunners: What was your biggest summer challenge?
ramirez: Honestly, waking up in the morning to put in the miles. As I said before, I kind of reached a point where I was unsure if I should keep running or not. I lacked the motivation because of a huge chainof let downs in the spring. But eventually I wised up and now I feel that same fire burning again.
scrunners: How do you handle injuries?
ramirez: I try to avoid injuries as much as possible, I have been very stubborn in the past but injuries are not something I will take lightly this year. If I feel something ailing me, Im not hesitant to take a few easy days (or off) if needed.
scrunners: What do you want to achieve as your last cross country season at the high school level?
ramirez: I want to best prepare myself to the best of my ability for post-season meets. I am undecided whether I will attend NXN or footlocker, but I am set on running my best at these meets.
scrunners: How do you see yourself achieving this?
ramirez: I'm making sure to not overdo my training this early in the season, I have plenty of time to get in the hard workouts later on in the year.
scrunners: What do you see your team achieving?
ramirez: We have a very young team, as a good bit of our main squad have either graduated or left the team. Our ultimate goal is to get everyone on that starting line for the state meet.
scrunners: What races are you looking forward to the most this season?
ramirez: I'm really looking foward to Coaches Classic and the state meet, as well as the post season cross country events. I love that Sandhills course for some reason!
scrunners: How do you prepare the week of a meet?
ramirez: In season, I make sure to get in a decent workout three days ahead of the meet, allowing for a couple of easy days. I make sure I get plenty of rest and eat well during the days leading up to a meet. But overall I don't let pressure or stress get to me, which is what I think allows me to run so well when it counts.
ramirez: I look at my competitors as friends before and after a meet. Im a very easygoing guy and Im not hesitant to talk to whomever I meet. During the race however, I focus on my own race, not my competitors.
scrunners: What kind of cross country course do you prefer?
ramirez: I prefer the traditional, 1 lap, no roads cross country course. Courses with long stretches of grass or dirt where spectators are not likely to go. I prefer silence rather than a huge crowd, it allows me to better feel how I am doing.
scrunners: As the season progresses, what kind of workout changes will you make?
ramirez: We progress from longer workouts with little rest, to shorter, closer to race pace workouts with more rest. I will probably run a little less on long run days as well.
scrunners: Over the years involved in the sport, what have you seen change?
ramirez: The competition. When I first started running, I think I remember "good" runners were around 17 minutes or so, but as I progressed I saw that bar begin to rise. There have been more people participating in the sport, which has a lot to do with the changing competition. I think we need to keep up this momentum if South Carolina is to pass other states in their quality of distance runners.
scrunners: What do you see yourself doing in the future?
ramirez: I would very much like to pursue a running career in college. I'm still not sure what I want to do after college though!
scrunners: Have you been on college visits? How is the searching going?
ramirez: I will be visiting colleges over the next few holiday breaks.
scrunners: If there is one thing you could say to your coach what would that be?
ramirez: Let us play ultimate frisbee more! Haha, but seriosouly I would tell him to keep training these young men and women the way he has been. If only a little bit of progress is made, he's at least prepared them for a life outside of running.
scrunners: What would you like to see change in the sports?
ramirez: I would like to see more support and fan base for cross country. It's not very spectator friendly at the moment, and while at times I think it should stay this way, there are ways it could be improved. I think that the sport doesnt get enough exposure and lacks a certain attractiveness. People think of XC as "just running," but it's so much more than that, we just need to do a better job of "advertising" for our sport. If more athletes participate in it, then naturally more parents and spectators will show up at meets. It's all about the numbers.