Going the Distance

Riley Dowd

[Riley Dowd is a gifted athlete who came to running in the summer before his Junior year at Peabody HS. Riley made the transition through hard training. By his Senior year, and 2nd XC season, he also knew the mental toughness required to run with the lead pack and win as a key runner on his team.]

GTD: Riley, what was your goal for this xc season?
Riley: My goal for this xc season was simply to compete. Last year had been my first cross country season and I felt I had spent a lot of that season adjusting and learning how to run a 5k. This season, I went in with some experience and wanted to use it to push myself harder than last season. I knew my team was strong and I wanted to help them as much as I could.

GTD: Tell us about your summer training program.
Riley: My summer was spent training with Coach Braz at his cross country program at Fenwick. On the off days of camp, I would be running with my team at captain's practice. The mileage increased a little from last summer and I was pushing myself harder than before. I really felt I built up a strong base heading into the season.

GTD: What was your best race this fall, and what was the one you'd like to forget? What was the difference?
Riley: In my opinion, my best race was the Easter Mass Division 1 meet. I ran 16:07, which was a 30 second PR, and placed 12th overall. The one race I would like to forget was the first race of the season, Clippers Relay. I ran a 2 mile leg of a 3x2 mile race and although my relay team finished 3rd, I was not happy at all with my performance. The difference between that race and Eastern Mass was my mentality. At Clippers I was very nervous and did not stay mentally sharp during the race. In the divisional meet, I went into the race with a clearer head, and stayed mentally sharp the entire race. Throughout the season, I had learned to not be intimated by fast paces or fast opponents and to just trust my training.

GTD: What are your running plans for this winter and spring?
Riley: This winter and spring I will be running track under Coach Braz's coaching. I hope to improve my mile and 800 meter times and qualify for states.