Wake Forest Athletics
Cross Country Runners Recount Summer Experiences
8/30/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Aug. 30, 2011
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - As the Wake Forest cross country teams prepare to kick off the 2011 season this Friday afternoon at the Covered Bridge Open, WakeForestSports.com recently caught up with a few of the student-athletes to talk about their busy schedules this past summer. While many used the off-season as a training period, several members of the teams had exciting summer adventures that involved traveling to all parts of the world, conducting research, and spending time with friends and family. Read on to learn more about the summer experiences of Wake Forest cross country runners:
Senior Paul Loeser:
"This summer I had an awesome experience in Ecuador participating in a five-week program studying Chagas disease. I was in rural Ecuador for three weeks, hiking up and down the Andes Mountains to small, isolated houses. With the permission of the people living there, I was able to search the houses for a small insect that transmits the disease. We collected quite a few bugs, and we fumigated all of the houses in three small communities. It definitely opened my eyes to how some people lived down there: almost all of the homes we visited had dirt floors, adobe walls, and two or three small rooms for a full family. Additionally, they had almost no access to healthcare. I'll definitely carry my experiences in Ecuador as extra inspiration in my ambition to become a doctor one day and bring medicine to the underserved. After those memorable three weeks, we traveled to Quito and I was able to work in the lab, analyzing the bugs that we collected. I really enjoyed my time there. I also got in some really good training. Quito is 9,300 feet in altitude, so I felt pretty fit after running there. When I got back to the States, my training picked up a little more, and I've been running 95 miles a week now, which is more than I have ever done."
"I'm really excited for the upcoming cross country season. I know the rest of the guys have been training hard, too, and I'm confident that we're going to have a good year."
Junior Tom Finneran:
"This summer was definitely my best and most consistent training effort. I built into my mileage from May to July and hit 80 miles a week for most of August. Coach Hunt deserves all the credit for structuring an excellent training regimen with mileage expectations and weekly workouts while maintaining flexibility. I only ran one road race this summer, the Hingham 4th of July road race, as a tune-up for the intensity of the second half of summer training. It was an awesome experience, and it felt great to run hard against some competition. I came away with the win, which was something I've always wanted to do."
"Aside from running, I worked an accounting/finance internship at the corporate office of Athletes' Performance just outside of Boston and served as a waiter at Restaurant Oro a few nights a week. Both jobs proved to be great experiences and rewarding on many levels. I am definitely happy to be back at school and eager to get the season underway. The guys and I are anticipating a strong showing this season as we bring in a great freshman class and continue under the phenomenal leadership of Coach Hunt."
Junior Allison Homer:
"I spent the first part of my summer in Wales doing independent research, traveling, and running through the Welsh countryside! When I came home, I worked as a counselor for my high school coaches' running camp, High Performance Distance Academy, along with teammate Laura Rapp. I then spent the remainder of my summer working for a local artist and spending time with my sisters and baby niece. Coach (Brad) Hunt gave each of us individualized summer training plans catered to our running needs. Mine centered on gradually building back up to high mileage weeks as a base for cross country, with the usual tempos, hills, and a tiny bit of track work thrown in! My hometown (Blacksburg, Virginia) is a great, mountainous place to run, but I'm so excited to come back to Wake Forest and train and race with my lovely team!"
Sophomore Alexander Rose:
"I flew home to Brisbane, Australia, and just relaxed and caught up with mates. Initially, I took some time off (from running) to recharge the batteries, and then I started some base training midway through the break. It was the middle of winter when I was home, yet the Australian winters are far milder in comparison to what we have here in North Carolina. The summer for me was all about running when I felt healthy and coming into this semester with a solid base to work from."
Players Mentioned
