Best Of The West Athlete Spotlight

Mar 04, 2009

His best sport is cross country but Mingus Union senior Tim Freriks is hoping his track season will give him some big PR's. Tim is one of Arizona's top cross country runners and his incredible run at the Nike Jim Danner Invitational, in Oregon last fall, put him in the National Spotlight. He has placed first or second in every Arizona meet including the State Meet. He finished 10th at the Nike SW Regionals and 13th at Foot Locker West Regionals, making the Foot Locker All West 2nd Team.

This hard working dedicated athlete will now turn his focus onto his final prep track season.

Tim spent some time with Arizona Milesplit to talk about his cross country season, training, college choice and upcoming track season.

PR's

5000 Meter Run - 15:18.60 (Jim Danner- Oregon)

3200 Meter Run - 9:36.88

1600 Meter Run - 4:31.07

AZTrackXC: Tim, you had a great cross country season and now hold the record on the Jim Danner course in Oregon. Can you tell us what the race was like and what it felt like to break a long standing record by 8 seconds.

Tim Frerks: It was a lot of fun to compete out of state! Going to a state where I wasn’t all that aware of the competition and vice versa was a really cool experience. I felt like I was kind of “running under the radar” again. Elliot Jantzer from Oregon took the race out really hard and I just focused on getting in the pack and getting through the first mile quick but comfortable. The field was deeper than what I’m used to and it was really nice to not think and just go with the leaders. The course really didn’t have any hills (at least not what we in AZ call hills), so it was tougher to make a big move on the course. Right before the two mile mark there was a pretty slow patch of sand that I was able to gap the other couple of guys leading, and concentrated on keeping the same pace I had been running through that last mile. I’m all about putting things into perspective during the cross country season, and the previous course record was held by Jonothan Lafler. I remembered him taking that 10^th spot at Footlocker West the previous year, which definitely gave me a confidence boost that carried me through the rest of the season to state!

AZTrackXC: It must have been difficult for you to just miss making the Foot Locker National team after coming so close at the Foot Locker Regional race. Can you tell us a little about the race.

Tim Frerks: It really was tough missing the team this year, one of the toughest shortcomings I’ve had in my running career thus far. That’s been a goal of mine since my sophomore year, but as my coach says, anyone can handle the “ups.” This sport is definitely about how you handle the “downs” and you just have to move on to other goals. Even in July I find ways to get myself motivated and after running a good amount of miles since then I just felt stale and not as sharp in the few weeks after my state meet. It would’ve been great if I were racing like I was early in November at NXN SW and Footlocker West, but it just means you have the knowledge to fine tune your training for the next time! During the Footlocker West race I got out pretty close to the leaders in the first mile and set myself up exactly the way I had wanted to, but just didn’t have it on the hills. In one of the best representations by Arizona in recent years I would’ve loved to have been in that top ten, but the past three years at Footlocker has been a great linear progression of improvements for me and I’ve definitely enjoyed it!

AZTrackXC: When did you first get involved with track and field.

Tim Frerks: My dad was training for and racing marathons when I was really young, unfortunately by the time I was running competitively he was only running recreationally. Both my parents have been running for as long as I can remember, and I guess this all started with the bike rides around the local lake with my parents while they ran. Eventually I took an interest in the sport myself and started going out running with them instead of riding my bike. In the 6^th grade I went out for cross country at Cottonwood Middle School and it was all downhill from there! I’ve been running ever since.

AZTrackXC: What is a typical training week like for you?

Tim Frerks: Typically I do more strength based training, so last week’s training is a pretty accurate representation of what I’m doing during the season, although as the season progresses the workouts do get faster and a bit less in volume.

Week 2/15/09 – 2/21/09:
Su: 6 mile easy recovery run, slow and steady.  Core work after.
M: Easy 9 mi. training run, afterwards drills and 8 x 100m strides.  Core and upper body work in evening.
T: One mile warmup, 8.75 mi. progression tempo run ending strong and steady.  Cool down back to park.  (11.5 mi. on the day).  Core work in the evening.
W: 9.1 mi. easy run.  Afterwards extra drills and no strides.  Core work in the evening.
Th: 1.5 mi. warmup to CMS hill.  14 x quarter mile hill repeats with equal recovery back to start.  Tempo back to park, then cool down.  (10.5 mi on the day).  Core and upper body work in the evening.
F: 9.1 mi. easy training run.  10 strides afterwards, no drills.  Day off from core and upper body work.
Sa: 16 mi. long run at good steady pace.  Core and upper body work afterwards.

71.2 miles on the week.

AZTrackXC: What are the climate conditions like where you train?

Tim Frerks: In the early fall and late in the spring it gets pretty hot and we’ll move practice to later in the evening. Other than that Cottonwood’s been a pretty great place to train.

AZTrackXC: What are your goals for the upcoming track season?

Tim Frerks: Simply put, my main goal for this track season is to have a solid season and run some PRs! I’d like to be competitive in a race like the Arcadia 3200 and develop a better finish to my races. A state title would have to be on the top of my goal list. The goals on the clock are a bit optimistic, but I definitely want to put together a fast 3200 this season.

AZTrackXC: How do you prepare yourself mentally for a race?

Tim Frerks: I try to remain consistent in what I do before a race and that helps calm the nerves for me. I try not to get too wrapped up in what specifically will happen during the race, every time you go in with a specific plan, the exact opposite happens. I just go in with the idea that I’m going to run my own race, and decide what I need to do to accomplish that.

AZTrackXC: Many younger runners look up to top athletes like yourself. What message would you tell younger runners who aspire to be at the top?

Tim Frerks: Be consistent! Running isn’t going to be one improvement after another, there are always going to be those plateaus. If you consistently put in the work, find something to get yourself motivated, and continue to log the miles, you’re setting yourself up for success and that’s the most you can do when trying to achieve any kind of goal.

AZTrackXC: If you had to attribute your success to one thing, what would that be?

Tim Frerks: Just like the last question, it’d have to be getting more consistent over the years with my training. All of the support I’ve had from my family, coach, and team is what has allowed me to be continually more consistent.

AZTrackXC: Do you have any role models or mentors in track and field or cross country?
Tim Frerks: For some reason since I started to get more competitive in high school running I’ve looked up to Dathan Ritzenhein, just because of what he accomplished in high school (not that he isn’t still making a name for himself on the next level!). Watching his high school Footlocker performances still inspires me and motivates me to get out the door and train hard. As for a mentor, my coach has always been a great influence on me and has helped

me through so much. He’s a family friend, and I’ve known him for 16 years now… it’s definitely been one of the most rewarding experiences training with him.

AZTrackXC: Will you be running in college next year?

Tim Frerks: I have signed with a school, after narrowing down my choices throughout my cross country season, the three schools I was looking at were ASU, NAU, and University of Portland. I liked different aspects of all three, but chose NAU and signed with them in February.

After my visits, NAU definitely felt like the best fit for me. I love it here in northern Arizona, and eventually decided I would like to stay in state which narrowed my choices down even further. I felt that the transition to Phoenix would've been really tough for me, and in my opinion part of staying motivated to train and go to school is being happy with WHERE you're training and going to school. I really didn't feel that training in Phoenix would have kept the sport fun for me. On my visit at NAU all the guys were really friendly and helpful and I could easily see myself running and going to school there. I am undecided on what I would like to major in, but many of the programs I am interested in were great programs at NAU and the atmosphere in Flagstaff is great! I'm very excited to be going to school there in the fall!

AZTrackXC: What does your season look like? When is your first race and will you be competing in any out of state track meets during the season or post high school season?

Tim Frerks: I have my first meet on March 2^nd in the dome in Flag. Right now the plan is just to run the open 16 and open 8. It’s still really early in the season though, and as of now my first 3200 will be at Chandler at the end of March. I am also hoping to get into the 3200 at Arcadia and want to run well there. Other than that, I’m still undecided on what I’ll be doing post season. I really wanted to experience the track post season last year, but after off and on injuries I was ready to take a break after the state meet. With college it’s a little bit different this year and I don’t know if I want to extend my season all that much. Playing it by year with the post season at this point.

AZTrackXC: Person you look forward to running against?

Tim Frerks: Either of the Arizona Footlocker Finalists! I think it brings out the best when I’m racing those guys.

AZTrackXC: Most of us only know you as a runner. What is one thing you would like us to know about you outside of running?

Tim Frerks: I really like to be outdoors, hiking, mountain biking, road biking up Mingus mountain, or backpacking with my dad in the summer.

AZTrackXC: Do you have any superstitions?

Tim Frerks: I’m not a very superstitious person, I’ve always had a phobia of my shoes coming untied if that counts? They’re always knotted 3 or 4 times.

AZTrackXC: Looking back on your cross country high school career, what was your favorite cross country moment.

Tim Frerks: When we won state in ’07. I’d been running with those guys since grade school and our coach really made us believe in what we were doing and showed as what we could accomplish. The team experiences like that are definitely what I will remember best in later years.