Ava Perez Erickson of Minnehaha Academy Class of 2018
Personal Records:
400m - 1:00.2 (split)
800m - 2:21.38 (split)
1600m - 5:28.29
3200m - 12:06.00
5K (xc) - 19:49.10
XC State 2017 - 102nd place
XC State 2016 - 96th place
XC State 2015 - 106th place
Where were you born? and what is your current height and weight?
I was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota but I my family is from Toledo, Spain.
What sports did you grow up playing?
I grew up playing traveling soccer, starting in 3rd grade and playing until 10th grade, my father being my biggest soccer advocate as he was a semi-professional soccer player in Spain. I also grew up swimming and my mother was my biggest advocate in this sport, as she was a DI swimmer for the U of M.
What sports do you play in high school and how many letters do you have?
I played basketball at the high school level, starting in 8th grade and going to 10th grade, lettering in 10th grade. I started running in kindergarten after my gym teacher said that I could beat all the boys-of which is still an incentive of mine-in my class if I ran my fastest.
I officially started high school track, after years of waiting, in 8th grade and have/will lettered 5 years. I started cross country 10th grade, after an unfulfilling high school soccer season and constant pleading from my track coaches, and have lettered 3 years. I run because its my own sport, not my fathers or my mothers. I did letter one season in soccer. So to this point I have 9 letters total in all sports.
How did the Section 4A race go for you this year?
Every race I have run this year has been better than the last. My conference and section races were the best races I had run this year, the prior being the faster of the two.
I started out really well in this year's section race, but I started to fade during the second mile. With about a mile left I felt one of my teammates coming up on me and I knew I needed to go if I still wanted to finish second for our team. This really allowed me to kick around the 600m mark, in fact I had the biggest kick of the entire season and I caught a lot of people. This has been our second year winning the section title and we have promising young girls behind us to keep the winning going.
According to our database you have won five 800 meter races in high school so far. Is this your favorite race? Why or why not? What is usually your race strategy?
The 800 is my favorite open track race. It is such a fast race, but when you run it, it feels like you're running so fast that the world around you is moving in slow motion. My usual race strategy is to go out with the leaders in the first lap, but draft behind some people. Then, on the second lap I start to kick on the last two hundred and pass the people who I was drafting off of. My best times for the 800m however have been when I have just led the entire race, not being worried if I would have enough left in the tank, and kicked at the beginning of the second lap trying to drop everyone I possibly could.
Give us a description of your training over the years. Have you changed what you have done from year to year?
Our training has been pretty consistent over the past three years, Mondays usually being long runs; Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays being hard workouts; and Wednesdays and Fridays being recovery days. This year we put in less mileage than last year because last year we trained too much and peaked too early. However, we soon noticed that we weren't training enough half way into the season so we upped our long workouts to be distances of 6 or 7k for intervals/reps. We even had a 6k workout before Conference. We knew this year that we were going to make it to state, so we didn't really taper for conference and sections. We only did a cut down in preparation for the state meet.
What mistakes do you see beginning runners make? What would you say to them?
Beginning runners, during their first race, usually either run at the very front of the pack or the very back, because they don't know their ability as runners yet. Sometimes running in the front will benefit them.
I remember my first track race-my first official race in 8th grade. It was an 800m and I ran with the top pack even though I had no idea how to run a race. I ended up getting 3rd place, but as an inexperienced runner I just went out and relied on everyone else and not myself. My advice to beginning runners would be to know yourself as well as possible because in a race you can't expect someone else help you along. You have to trust yourself.
Do you have a favorite workout?
I like to do the Infinite 22x300 meters on the track with 60 seconds in between each interval and an all out on the last 300. This is my favorite because it becomes mechanical and the rest is so little, you don't have time to get tired. This is also the last truly great workout I was able to go before I was diagnosed with compartment syndrome.
Do you ever do sprint or power training for distance running?
We run a lot of sprinting up hills: 200m, 400m, and 600m hills. We also weight train, with high reps low weight, through the summer and half way into the xc season.
Who are your favorite athletes?
My favorite athlete is Mireia Belmonte Garcia. She is the first female Olympic champion in the history of Spanish swimming and is widely considered to be the greatest Spanish swimmer of all time. Belmonte is my favorite athlete because she struggled with being a confident swimmer, as I often struggle to be a confident runner, but overcame it.
What spikes, shoes, apparel, etc. do you wear?
I always wear Nike spikes and trainers. I wear whatever athletic clothes are on sale, but I like to wear very colorful and bright things when in run. I also really like to coordinate the colors of my training outfits because I enjoy matching my bottoms to my tops and my socks!
What is your diet like?
I eat whatever my mom puts on my plate. As a Spanish family, we eat a diet heavily influenced by Mediterranean cuisine: lots of olive oil, fresh greens, lean meat, and dried fruits and nuts. Before important meets - or any meets at all - I will eliminate any excess processed sugar in my diet, which to begin with isn't a lot. My prerace meal consists of grilled salmon and greens. No matter the season, no matter the temperature, it's got to be grilled salmon and a salad. Being hydrated is very important to being a successful athlete - all my coaches have always said that - and I drink a lot of water and electrolytes. It makes it easier to hydrate when you have a colorfully decorated Nalgene water bottle and when all your friends - who happen to be runners - are drinking water constantly too!
Tell us about your race strategy?
I have always had a strong kick at the end of any race, and have often relied on it too heavily in races. However, for me to have a good race I go out conservatively fast and pick a person, often one I have raced against before and know, and stick with them the entirety of the race. Then, I know I have my kick to rely on at the end which often allows me to beat the person I stuck with the entire race.
What else are you involved in besides running?
I am a proud member of the Applied Research in Engineering Team that is sending an experiment to the International Space Station during the spring. I am also one of the heads for the Classics (Latin) club at my school and a member of the Redhawk ambassadors, who work to promote and run our school functions. I also am the co-leader for Homework Helpers internship program, who work to help our fellow peers excel in their homework and studies. I am an honor student and an AP scholar with distinction, as well as the George Eastman young leaders in science award winner.
Do you have any plans for after high school?
I plan on going to college either in Washington state or Minnesota and study Econ/Neuroscience and eventually go to Medical school to become an OBGYN. Through my undergrad I would like to run on the varsity level for cross country and track.
What obstacles have you faced as an athlete or in life?
My junior year track and field season was an injury laden one. I was diagnosed with Acute Compartment Syndrome, after I had trained so hard over the course of the winter. Compartment Syndrome is when the fascia in my shins retain an irregular amount of pressure, this causes a lack of blood and oxygen which results in nerves dying which made my legs feel very numb and causes me to hurt when running and physically not be able to run with much endurance. This pressure is really dangerous and if it is not brought down, your legs could literally explode. I ran an entire track season with this, so I knew I could beat it. My mother massaged and rolled my shins every night and I began to see a sports acupuncturist and chiropractor. Now, I feel no numbness at all and all that I need now is to regain my full confidence as a runner again.
What makes Minnehaha Academy special?
Minnehaha Academy is a place where people can go and immediately find friends. New people who come to our school immediately find that they are accepted and loved in our MA community. MA is also unique because we are a distinctively Christian school, but are fervent believers in dialogue about the world, religion, and life in general. MA is a Christian school but we want to encourage dialogue so that everyone feels welcome and safe in our community.
Does your team do anything goofy?
We (the girls) are very open about our bodily fluids. It's natural for many runners to pee a little during a hard race. But, our girls team isn't particularly quiet about this phenomenon. On the line waiting for the gun to go off, many of us will loudly announce that we are peeing and will just go. A lot of the teams around us think we are crazy (including our boys team and coaches), as we loudly announce this, but we think it's hilarious! This quirk makes every girl on the varsity team immune to a lot of embarrassment and we use it as an initiation of sorts for younger girls running varsity for the first time.
What else do you do besides run that you would like to share with Milesplit?
I am a National Honors society member with a 3.992 unweighted GPA. I have been on a number of mission trips, my last one being to Costa Rice were I was able to unite my ability to speak Spanish with my love for soccer and my love for Christ and helping others to serve in the city of Los Desamparados.
