Iliana Ramon of Fairmont class of 2018
Personal Records:
800 - 2:29.6 (split)
1600m - 5:34.00
3200m - 11:55.81
5K - 19:13.30
State XC 2017 - 12th Place
State XC 2016 - 30th Place
State XC 2014 - 17th Place
State XC 2013 - 100th Place
State T&F 2017 - 3200m 14th; 4x800 5th
State T&F 2014 - Alternate on the 4 x 800 relay (9th place)
What were your sports when you were young?
I was not really involved with any sports until I entered the seventh grade. In middle school I started cross country and track & field. My events were the longer ones usually such as the 400, 800, and 1600.
What events do you usually run in track & field?
In track & field I usually run three events in every meet. I always run the 1600 and 3200. I also usually get involved in one of the longer relays such as the 4 x 800 or 4 x 400.
Who coaches you for distance running?
Bob Bonk has been my main coach through grades 7-12. Bob Bonk, the iconic head coach at Fairmont since before most current coaches were even born, responded to a reporter's question about his longevity coaching the girls and boys teams as follows:
"I have been blessed with a full and rewarding career at Fairmont. I have now coached track & field for 46 years and cross country for 41 years. In regard to state champion teams we have had 5 girls track titles, 2 boys track titles, 2 girls cross country titles, and one boys cross country title."
What did you do to get ready for cross country this year? .
Sunday Off day
*Monday 5 miles
*Tuesday Track workout 800s/1000s
Wednesday 5miles
*Thursday Longest run + 1 mile
Friday 5 miles on own.
Saturday 5 miles on own.
Coaches are off on the week of the 4th of july and the week before practice.
Coaches attend practices when they can be there otherwise.
We do not do many hill repeats during the summer and do not strides during the summer.
*Monday, Tuesday, and Thursdays are the only days we meet as a team during the summer.
What is a typical first week of practice for cross country?
Sunday: Rest day. The coaches will tell us to take an active rest day which might include biking or other exercises.
Monday: Mile warmup; routine static stretches and core work. 5 x 400, coach sets the time you should run for each repetition. Recovery is walking for the same amount of time as the repetition. We generally do these in ability groups. 800 jog, and static stretching usually follows the hard running.
Tuesday: 20 minute run easy
Wednesday: 4 miles at a good pace
Thursday: Meet or time trial. This is kind of a tryout for varsity. The distance is 5K on our home course and we run in our uniforms.
Friday: 6-8 mile run, longest run of the week.
Saturday: High School required practice. We do a Fartlek run with speed sandwiches.
The captain tells when to put in the speed sandwiches which are usually 30 second bursts over previously marked places on the course. Strides are done about twice a week but this is based on the discretion of the coaches. It is hard to avoid hills in Fairmont and we sometimes do hill repeats as well later in the season.
Have you had any injuries as a runner?
I did have one sprained ankle and missed a meet. I know when to stop. I've had some aches and pains over the years. Bob Bonk has made it a coaching point that runners need to tell him when something hurts, and this has been learnt by the older runners who pass that information on to the younger ones during practices. If I see a runner limping I will make the first move and ask them how they are doing and suggest taking it easy.
You qualified for the state cross country meet in 2013, 2014, and 2016. What happened in 2015?
I moved to Texas for one year because my family moved.
How did you do in Texas?
In cross country I finished in 8th place in the District meet which qualified me as an individual for the regional meet. Our whole team got to attend the regional meet too as we finished in second place. We did not do as well at the regional though. I was in the top 50 at the regional meet. In track I had to run on the junior varsity my first year there because they do not let freshmen run varsity in track. My sophomore year I ran 12:17 in the 3200. Practices were always in the morning for the distance runners for both cross country and track because of the heat.
The Big South Cross Country Meet is a very unique format in that they have eight races and divide up the teams by size. What is it like competing in that conference?
They started the Big South concept in 2014 because other sports do it as well in our area. Marshall, Fairmont, and Waseca probably round out the top three. Marshall is the big favorite. There are two divisions for varsity in this conference based on size. We always run with the Class AA schools although we are a Class A school so it is a tough meet for us.
What meet did you most look forward to this year?
I most look forward to the Milaca Mega Meet. This is an all day affair for us as we leave early in the morning on a coach bus. Then we get to see where we are compared to the rest of the state. I like Milaca as much as the section or state meets.
How do you go about deciding what your race strategy will be?
I try to run even pace because that is what works best for me. For a big meet the coach might tell us to take off fast. He has said to start pretty hard the first 22 seconds and then settle into your pace.
As a three time qualifier for the state cross country meet you must have some strong opinions about that race. What parts of the course do you like best?
At the state meet I prefer the sections where the crowd cheers versus when it's not noisy like around the pond. I like what we call the prairie area which is within about 1.5 miles of the finish and starts after going around the pond. It's that area that I like to get my self pumped up.
Is cross country a team sport?
Yes, it is a team sport because we need everyone to be there and be at their best because it affects all of us. If someone is gone you have to go in with the mentality that someone has to make up for the missing person.
What should your coach tell you the day before an important race?
The coach should tell us most of what he has to say during the week. The day before the race it's great when they can tell us who to pace our race off of during the race and that he knows that we can do it. The day of the race the coach should act confident.
How do you set your goals?
Coach Bonk let's us come up with affirmations. Then I set a goal for how fast I want to run. We do that for every race. We do set time, place and team goals at the beginning of the season. We have a form that we fill out at the beginning of the season for ultimate individual and team goals.
Do your coaches run with the team?
Most of the time the coaches run with the team. Yes, coach Bonk runs with the team when he can but sometimes he bikes. When we do intervals the coaches do not run with the team.
What is your favorite course?
Blue Earth, and we ran our section meet there this year.
What plans do you have for after high school?
I plan to run in college but I do not know which college yet.
What advice would you give to a younger you about running and high school in general?
Enjoy the time that you have to run. Work a bit harder on the easy days because that's where it counts. Do not be afraid to pass the older girls on your team. When I started out and was one of the youngest girls on the team I thought I should let the older girls lead because it was their chance to shine. They also appeared to get mad if I passed them in practices or meets.
Eventually I came to realize that good teammates are for you and want you to get better. In addition I learned that I should run for myself. It's hard to run for everyone else. You are best off running for yourself. You actually help the team more by doing that than holding back your talents.
What else do you do besides run?
I work at Jake's Pizza in Fairmont and belonged to National Honor Society in Texas. My current GPA is 3.672.
