Name: Jayde Charlton
School: North Canyon High School
Q: What does your training look like right now given the current situation?
A: Due to the virus going around and everyone needing to practice social distancing, most of my training has been alone instead of with my team. However, I am still going at it. Because of the season being postponed I have focused more on my strength and conditioning and making sure I stay in shape in hopes of me getting to run in at least one more high school track meet before heading off to college.
Q: What are you doing to stay busy other than run right now?
A: If you are a runner you know how time consuming track can be and how it can really use up all your free time. So I decided to take this time out to really focus on self-care and family time with my loved ones. I also rediscovered and my love for singing and dance.
Q: What was your most memorable race/moment?
A: My most memorable race moment has definitely got to be Junior year state when my 4x4 team broke the state record for the second year in a row. Seeing how all of our hard work finally paid off and how happy the team and my coach were when they saw the time on the board is hands down one of my favorite moments to remember.
Q: What was the funniest thing that happened during your running career?
A: There are so many funny stories I could share but really anytime that I went to practice was a humorous time. My coach (Airabin Justin) along with the rest of my teammates are all true comedians. Every day there was something new to joke about or in Coach AJ's case someone new to make fun of lol.
Q: Who would you consider your biggest competition over your four years?
A: My sophomore through senior year I was honestly lucky to actually be training with my biggest competitors. Jadyn Mays and Dominique Mustin are two super talented girls that pushed me every day in practice and crazily turned out to be two of my best friends.
Q: What was your greatest accomplishment?
A: My biggest accomplishment throughout high school was definitely being apart of a back to back to back state champion team. Although we had a small team we all put 100% into every event we had to run at the state meet. For me, it was the 100, 200, 400, and the 4x400 which I am also proud to say I placed in every year. We'd all be exhausted afterward, but each year it paid off.
2019 4x400 Div 2 Girls State Champions - North Canyon
Q: If you could do it all over again what would you change about your running career in high school?
A: I don't think I would change anything about my running career in high school. I started out my freshman year at Chandler High school and I, of course, had a fun-loving team. But my sophomore year when I moved to North Canyon I would definitely say my coaches and my teammates made a positive impact on my entire track career and life in general and I wouldn't change that for anything.
Q: What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome?
A: Throughout high school, I definitely battled with some mental struggles. When you've run track since you were 5 years old, you grow and some things may begin to change which can bring on some self-doubt. However, I was continuously smothered in positive thoughts and kind words from my coaches and teammates that really kept my spirits up and made me keep pushing.
Q: What will you miss the most?
A: The community. I've been running track since I was 5 years old and I've basically grown up with all of these runners, parents, and coaches. From youth track to high school I really have gotten to know and love everyone in our Arizona track bubble and I am truly going to miss seeing them in the stands or on the track every Saturday meet.