Michael Savage knows what it’s like to work hard. As a cross-country athlete for Huron High School, Savage knows that the only way to improve his running is through hard work every day on the track.
“Every Sunday of the season I come to Huron at 7:00 am to work out the day after a tough meet. It’s hard, but it’s the only way to get my times down,”said Savage.
Savage, a junior, recently finished his season at Huron with the regional tournament, and placed 33rd out of hundreds of runners. “I didn’t run a great race at regionals,” said Savage. “My PR (personal record) is 18:31, but I ran regionals in 19:11,” said Savage.
Races for cross-country involve running five kilometers (5K), which is approximately 3.1 miles. For most people, this seems to be a formidable task, but Savage looks at a 5K with a sense of excitement.
“It’s not actually as hard as most people think. You just have to train hard and then running becomes second nature for you. 5K is really not that far; people just think of three miles as a huge distance,” he said.
Savage also said that talking to other runners shows that very few dread running. “Most of us look forward to races, because they’re always the high point of the season. The time that I spend with the team is some of the most fun that I have.”
So what is next for Michael Savage?
“I have track next spring, and hopefully I’ll be able to improve my times then. And obviously I’ll also be running track and cross-country next year,” he said.
Savage’s end goal for high school however, is to get under 17 minutes on his 5K. “It’s going to be difficult to cut my time that much but I think that it’s definitely doable.”
Hopefully Savage can continue to improve his running in order to meet his goals and become one of the elite runners in the state next year. According to Savage’s mentality, it is only a matter of time before he cuts his time to below 17 minutes. And as long as he keeps training, there is no reason that it shouldn’t happen.
For Michael Savage, the opportunities are endless with hard work and discipline, and his goals can certainly be accomplished. Rarely will you find as intense a competitor as Savage, and because of this, his success is just around the corner.
For questions or comments, Jesse Buchsbaum can be reached at jessebu@gmail.com.
