Barker dominates cross country again this year
Sophomore wins four meets
By Jeri Lyn Billings
October 19, 2007
Cross country is a challenging sport. It takes much dedication, determination, and of course, running numerous miles in practice. While most people would gasp, groan, and pout at the idea of running more than just a few miles every day, sophomore Jerod Barker uses these trying opportunities to improve his times and strives to become an even greater runner. His efforts have proven positive with four meet wins and seven medals this season.
Barker has been running both cross country and track since the age of 10 and was encouraged by a previous coach.
"I think the person who influenced me the most to run was David Ramsey. He's one of my coaches from Olathe. He saw me at an AAU track meet and convinced me to try cross country, and I ended up liking that even more. Also, the Presidential Fitness testing in grade school showed me that I was pretty good at the mile, and I wanted to pursue that," Barker shared.
After realizing running was definitely his calling, it came as no surprise when Barker joined the Silver Lake High School cross country team his freshman year and returned this year to improve on last season's achievements and to set higher goals.
"My ultimate goal [for this season] was to get a boys' team to state competition, and to win as many races as I could, and place in the top five at state," Barker stated.
Coach Kevin Brokaw's expectations for Barker include hard work, improvement in times, and finishing in the top 10 at state. Barker took 20th place last year, medaling with a time of 18:09.
Not only has Barker shown great improvements this season versus last, but he also displays a better understanding of running.
"I think I've developed a better mindset toward running. I just concentrate more on strategy instead of just trying to keep a pace or trying to not pass out during a race. This season I'm working harder on strategy and deciding on when I want to speed up or when I want to finish with a kick.
"I think about how I want to do at state, and how I want this to affect me for the next years of high school, and then college, and how I want to get other kids to go out for cross country and help them be better. I want to constantly beat my own time," Barker said.
Coach Brokaw also noticed a difference in Barker's running this year.
"I think that as he's starting to mature, he runs more smoothly. And as he's maturing, he's turning into a stronger runner.
"I was not surprised by Jerod's successes [this season]. I know he's been working hard for a long time, and it's paying off," Brokaw said.
Winning four of the meets this year wasn't an easy feat, and Barker faced challenging obstacles along the way.
"My most difficult meet would probably be the one at Eudora because we ran probably at least half of the race against a strong head wind, and the ground was terrible. It was basically like running on a bad gravel road," Barker shared.
However, Brokaw believes Barker's success at the meets comes from his goals, sticking with running at and outside of school, and the time Barker commits to the sport.
"It's fun coaching an athlete like Jerod. He's a competitor, which makes my job easier. As a coach, it's nice to have an athlete with his qualities," Brokaw said.
Barker plans on continuing to run through high school, in college, and after college, although he hasn't made any solid decisions on what he will do after college for running. Barker recommends people give running a shot and realize running has its benefits.
"I think running is just a good, lifetime sport. It keeps me active and fit, and it's a sport that doesn't require much instruction, and you can kind of teach yourself.
"I'd advise anyone who might try running to not necessarily concentrate on having to have the same success as someone who has been doing it longer than they have or someone who they think is better than them. It's more important to try to beat themselves, and it's okay to start slow. If you are thinking about running, I would tell them it is a good sport and again, it doesn't take much instruction, and it's something you can do for the rest of your life," Barker said.
Barker dominates cross country again this year
| Date | Subject | Posted by: |
|---|---|---|
| 10/22/2007 | Congrats on all those that made it to state! |
Steph
|
| 10/22/2007 | I can't wait to watch the team run on Saturday. Way to go! |
Julie
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| 10/22/2007 | Great article JeriLyn. Congrats to Jerod and all the Cross Country team members. It's great seeing the team grow in numbers. Keep it up!!! | Karen Kelley kkelley68@yahoo.com |
