Jonny Stevens

YR:  How does it feel to back on the team again for 2007?

Jonny:  It's awesome! I didn't have a great performance in 2005 and last year I didn't go to the race so I'm rally stoked to be on the team and get another chance to have a good showing at a world class event.

YR:  What are your goals for this year’s race that are different from last year?

Jonny:  I definitely want to score for the team again, but this year I'd like to be in the top third of the field. I think I was pretty far back my first year, and I certainly wasn't happy with that. Any improvement in my place would be awesome, but I know that we (the guys on the team) want to try and get the highest finish for the US Junior men ever.

YR:  Did you change up your training at all with Switzerland in mind………..or biz as usual?

Jonny:  Business as usual. I live in Vail, CO at 8150ft and it's not just world class skiing in the winter. In the summer there are a ton of trails and those make up the majority of my mileage. I've upped my mileage this year, but that's the only change. I try and get one super steep run in a week and the rest are pretty much up and down different parts of the mountain. I do a lot of alternative training in the pool and on the bike as well.

YR:  How old were you when did you start running? 

Jonny:   I did the Hershey meets when I was younger, but I was doing the 200 and 400 then. I did track in middle school as well but it wasn't very serious. I didn't start running competitively until my freshman year in high school when the cross country coach got me to go out for the team.

YR:   How did high school track go for you this year?

Jonny:  It went really well. I reset all my school records and competed in the Arcadia 2mile and 4x800. At state I had a pretty good meet. I had the 2nd fastest time in the state going into the 2 mile and Kevin Williams and I were on state record pace for most of the race. We started off a little too fast (a 63 400m split) but it separated the us from the pack so it was just him and me. We came through the mile at 4:37 and I was feeling good but I died on the 6th and 7th laps. I picked it up again a little for the last lap, but I faded to 3rd which was really disappointing. Our 4x800 team did awesome though. I think we were seeded 4th or 5th going into the race but our team ran super consistent. Our 1st leg went 1:59 and we were in 6th or so and our 2nd leg ran another 1:59 and put us in 4th or 5th. Then our 3rd leg ran another 1:59(!) and took the lead! I got the baton about 10 or 12 m ahead of the next two guys and took off. I ran a 1:58 split which was a pr. but I still got caught by the kid who was in 3rd place. He ran a 1:53 split. We got 2nd though and it was the highest finish our team had got in 4a competition so we were stoked about that. We were super stoked about how close we all ran. Normally our team has always been sort of consistent in our times but then there's one stud who will put down times under 1:57 or whatever. So for all of us to run that close, I think we had the best "team" at the meet.

YR:  What are some of the other trail-mountain races you have run in?

Jonny:  I try and do as many of the Teva Series up here in Vail as I can. They are an awesome set of races and there is always some good competition. I've done the Nike Twilight series in Summit County as well and those are really fun too. This year i ran in the USATF Trail Championships in Steamboat and that was an awesome course. I say that it's awesome now, but if you had asked me during or right after the race I would have probably said otherwise. It was pretty brutal.

YR:  Any tips for runners thinking about getting into trail running?

Jonny:  Get out and Do it! Trail running is so much more fun (I think) than running on a road or bike path. Trail running doesn't have the monotony that running on the road does. Even if you are on the same trail a lot there are always new things going on. One of my favorite trail's up here is called Squaw  Creek and it's different everytime i run it. Some days you'll have to cross a big creek and you're running in the mud the whole time and other days you're flying down the trail jumping across tiny creeks and trees that just fell. Getting out on a trail even once a week will get you into it. The biggest thing is to keep track of your feet! Know where you're stepping or you can take some pretty nasty diggers.

YR:  How about your favorites?

Food: Pizza or spaghett
Movie: Departed, Big Lebowski, the Life of Brian
Book: Phantom Tollbooth and the Perfect Mile
School subject: Bio

YR:  What you like to do besides running?

Jonny:  Going to movies, hanging out with my friends, bbqing, camping, frisbee.


YR:  What other sports  have competed in?

Jonny:   I play hockey for my high school.


YR:  What colleges are you looking at?

Jonny:   Cal Poly, CSU, IONA, CU, NAU are my top 5 right now but there are a lot of others.

YR:  Life time goals?

Jonny:  I want to run in college and then I'd like to end up back in Vail. It's an awesome place and I'd like living here a lot.