"CATHCHING THEIR BREATH"  at the Lagoon Valley Classsic

 

CHRISTIAN MORINICO – JUNIOR – HIRAM JOHNSON H.S. – 1^ST PLACE - VB

DyeStat: You’ve been having some great races.  Last week you were 3^rd at Granite Bay. Have you ever won an invitational before?

CM: This is my first.  This is the first invitational that I’ve won. 

 

DyeStat: That’s quite a breakthrough for you.  You’ve had some close calls.  When did you think this day would come?

CM: I just started running hard this year.  I got serious and I believe in myself.  I have more confidence this year than last year.

 

DyeStat: Hiram Johnson HS, for Sacramento that’s relatively urban.  Where do you end up doing most of your training?

CM: I do most of my training over at Albert Einstein Middle School in the park, at Rosemont HS on the track, and at American River on the bike trail or horse trails.

 

DyeStat: Who is your coach at Johnson?

CM: Earl Smothers

DyeStat: Thank you.  You did a great job.

 

 

CAPRICE BRADSHAW – JUNIOR – FAIRFIELD H.S. – 1^ST PLACE - VG

DyeStat: Is this your first invitational win

CB: Yes.

DyeStat: So this is a big day in the Bradshaw family.  Where are your parents taking you to eat.

CB: I don’t know. (A little louder toward parents Arthur and Samantha…)  We haven’t talked about dinner yet!

 

DyeStat: You do a lot of track running.  How long have you been running cross country? And what do you like about cross country that’s different from track?

CB: Scenery.  Like track is more boring, you run in circles over and over again.  In cross country you’re on a course and you see different stuff and it’s not boring.  You’re not thinking about the circles, you’re thinking about what you’re going to see next.  I’ve been doing cross country seven years.

 

DyeStat: Which brings up the fact that you are a long-time club runner…

CB: …with the Vallejo PAL Steppers.

 

DyeStat: And this is probably the first time that we’ve seen you in a uniform without the words ‘Vallejo’ on the front of it in many years.  Tell us your new school, the new situation, and how that’s all going.

CB: It’s going good.  I like the trainer better…Coach Monk.  Great coach.  Gets on me a lot.  He’s at every part of the race so he’s the one that keeps me in it - him and his yelling and everything - so I like it.  It’s been better.

 

DyeStat: So there isn’t one course in the Sac Joaquin Section that isn’t “spectator friendly” for Coach Monk?

CB: (Laughs) Yeah.  He’s everywhere.  There’s no getting away from him.

 

DyeStat: You were a busy girl this summer.  What big track meets did you go to?

CB: Oregon! Junior Olympics!  I came in second in the 1500.  I PR’d at 4:45 in the 1500 so that was pretty cool.  And that was the only big meet I did this summer.

 

DyeStat: Well thanks, Caprice. You’re fun to watch, always out there in the front, making things exciting.  You and Fran had a breakthrough day, so congratulations.

CB: Thank you.

 

 

FRANCESCA STONUM – SENIOR – LODI H.S. – 2^ND PLACE VG

DyeStat: You’ve been a 4-year runner and you’ve had a few close calls at the top.  Is this your highest you’ve ever placed at an Invitational?

FS: Yes. Two years ago I got 10^th here and this year I got 2^nd.

 

DyeStat: And second by only 5 yards. And two other top tens this year.  What is motivating to more or less have what could be considered a breakthrough year for you?

FS: All of my friends from varsity, we were all really tight, the top 3 maybe.  We were all about the same speed and they just graduated.  So I’ve been running a lot on my own and trying to stay with the guys.  So I just think it naturally comes from not having anyone to run with.

 

DyeStat: Let us know what some of your plans and goals and big invitationals are for the rest of the season.

FS: I just want to PR every time.  I want to get fast times. Like place doesn’t really matter to me as long as I get times that are better than my PR’s.  I want to really drop my times.

 

DyeStat: So, it sounds like your schedule for this year is repeating several the events you did last year.  What are some of your upcoming invitationals?

FS. Ah, I’m not really sure.

DyeStat: So they just tell you where to be and you just run the race.

FS: (Laughs).  Yeah.  I don’t really stress about it.  I think it’s better that way.