Interviews: Nick Hird of North Central College
2006 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships
(Photo courtesy of Prettysporty.com, photographer Cheryl Treworgy)
Hird recently competed in his last season of collegiate eligibility this past cross country season for North Central College. He placed 15th at the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional. At the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships he led North Central College to a 13th place team finish by placing eighth individually. He garnered All-American status in cross country for the first time after becoming a two-time All-American in track.
By: Derick Lawrence (12/14/2006)
Tell us a little bit about yourself (where you’re from, what high school you went to, how you got started running)?
I am from Rock Island, Illinois. It’s a part of the Quad-Cities right on the border of the Mississippi River. I attended Rock Island Alleman, a small Catholic high school. I got started running a little bit when I was a young kid with my dad but didn’t pick it up as a sport until 8th grade when I finally gave up on being big enough to play football.
What were your PR's in high school (cross country and track)?
My cross-country best was 14:57 for a 3-mile on a very flat course my senior year. My track pr’s include 9:17 for the 3200m, 4:24 for the 1600m, and a 2:01 800m split as part of our 4x800m.
What are your current PR's (cross country and track)?
My 8k pr for cross-country came my junior year, sophomore year of eligibility with a 24:56 on Credit Island at regionals. My track bests all came as a freshman or sophomore except my 1500m. My 10k best is 30:33; my 5k best is 14:29. My 1500m pr is 4:04 from last year and my indoor 3k best is 8:42 as a freshman.
What was your training like this past summer (mileage, workouts, etc.)? Did you train with any of the guys on the team this past summer?
This past summer was the first time I’ve actually stayed up on campus over a break so that I could train with the few guys that also stayed on campus and the numerous guys that live very near school. My mileage was 80’s and 90’s the first half of the summer with long tempo runs on Mondays and long runs on Saturday. There were always quite a few guys out for at least those workouts, as well as many morning runs or other workouts in between. The last half of the summer involved mostly just biking for pool-workouts due to some serious pain in the arch of my foot involving my extra-navicular. It didn’t go quite as well as hoped but at least I was able to run again by the first day of practice.
How has your training progressed over the years from high school to now (cross country and track)?
My training has progressed just slightly from high school to now. The intensity has drastically increased throughout college but the quantity has remained pretty close, being 80 miles a week or more mostly since my junior year of high school. The reason training has increased dramatically is due to a lot of injuries throughout college that kept me from doing the mileage I’d like to have been doing and I kept having to restart, despite all the cross-training. My maturity in my training has progressed rapidly my last year and a half of school in being able to learn more when to hold back and when to really push.
What did your training consist of over the last two weeks prior to nationals?
The week of regionals was pretty similar to any other week I had run all season, with our Monday and Wednesday workouts being cut slightly in quantity but keeping the quality of the workouts up. My mileage was still mid-70s while maintaining strength on our days between workouts. My last week didn’t involve much of anything because I was sick from regionals through the day before nationals with some flu-like symptoms and was able to keep food in or have the energy to get more than a few miles a day. It definitely wasn’t what I had planned but I guess it worked out for the better.
How much of an emphasis does the team place on supplemental training (i.e., strength training, core, plyometrics, etc.)? Could you describe what you do?
The biggest focus of our team is definitely on the running aspect and the more mileage you can handle, the stronger you’ll be. However, the other major elements we emphasize include core work every morning and strides after every run. All of these as well as form-drills a few times a week help to have kept most of us healthier than seasons past. Most of the strength training I’ve done is typically done in the off-seasons to help with my explosiveness making up for my lack of natural foot-speed. The strength training I do most involves lots of abdominal work as well as squats and single-leg drills to increase balance and cut down on injuries.
You recently finished eighth at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, helping North Central College place 13th as a team. Tell us about this race and your thoughts looking back at your performance. What was your mentality like prior to nationals?
The race was definitely nothing like I honestly expected out there. The first half-mile seemed more like a crap-shoot in trying to get position and hope you hit the right patches of mud. After that it was very relaxed for the next 3 ½ miles while there wasn’t much position changing up front but no one had tried to break away. The last mile thinned us out a bit, but at that point I just wanted to stay as close as possible and really use the last 600 to kick down as many guys as possibly because I knew that’s where the footing would be at its best. Heading into nationals, I was very confident I’d be able to float around the very back of the main pack the first few miles and kick in ideally in the 20s or so. I had some doubts about that the last few days before nationals as I was still sick but tried to just focus on what I could and still plan on being up there for the team. I think the mud definitely benefited my race because I’m not necessarily as fast as a lot of guys up front but my strength allowed me to stay in it since no big moves were made until late in the race.
With cross country being your last season of collegiate eligibility, what are your plans for the indoor/outdoor track and field season? Do you plan on running competitively post-collegiately?
I happen to work at a running store right near school and my boss has decided to sponsor me to run for a year or two. My plans then for the time being are to only run maybe 2 indoor meets or so, possibly a 3k and a 5k. Then the outdoor season I’d like to run the 10k out at the Hillsdale Relays Meet and both of our Last Chance Meet 5ks. Once I do that, I’ll be heading out for road races off and on throughout the summer with the focus being on the Bix 7 near the end of July. That will give me a lot of time to build my base and get my speed work in on the track so that I can get back to making big improvements and get closer to some of those times I had planned on running in college.
What are the dining options like at North Central College? Does most of the team eat together?
The dining options at North Central are interesting to say the least. The main cafeteria is more of a buffet style with a separate spot (the Cage) being more of a served to order style-place. The food is much better than it was my first year here but still leaves something to be desired after heading out to places like St. Olaf for indoor nationals and seeing the options they had. Most of the team eats together just about every day with the few not joining being some of those guys who commute or live off of campus.
Who has been the biggest influence in your life and/or running?
I’d say there obviously have been a few. My parents would probably be the biggest influences in regards to my life and lifestyle, which kept me athletic, focused, disciplined, and always concentrated spiritual life. My running has been most influenced by my high school coach, Mike Ethington, and college coach, Al Carius. They both were great leaders who always wanted to help me get better in any way they could. They were also very easy to talk to about anything and helped me to keep my priorities in the right spots along the way.
Do you have a pre-race routine (certain foods you eat, songs you listen to, warmup routine, etc.)? If so, could you describe it for us?
My pre-race routine is pretty basic, nothing too special. I typically eat cereal for breakfast after an early-morning blowout with the team. I tend to listen to some more relaxing music on the bus-rides to give me some time to visualize. Once we get to the meet site, I’ll eat my banana about a half hour before our warm-up and listen to some Rage Against The Machine so I can loosen the legs and get a bit more excited. Our warm-up involves a 2 ½ to 3 mile building run with stretching and strides before the race. During that stretching period, I put back in some more relaxing music to calm me down before the races.
Tell us about the tradition at North Central College. Do alumni regularly stop by to run with the team and/or attend meets to cheer on the team?
1993 Men's Cross Country National Champions led by senior captain Dan Mayer's third individual national championship and sophomore John Weigel's second place finish. The 1993 North Central College cross country team had five All-American finishers, winning in the smallest team score record of 32 points.
(Photo courtesy of the North Central College athletics website)
The tradition at North Central is just amazing. The number of people that are constantly around to support us, give us advice, and encourage us is almost unbelievable. There are alumni that stop by or call just about every day of the week. One of the best learning tools around is to be able to just stop and listen to some of the advice from everyone that stops by. Those alumni have been very beneficial to my ability to learn how to really be successful in this program and have even given tips on other aspects of life as well.
What do you like the most about North Central College Cross Country?
North Central College pack at Parkside
(Photo courtesy of the North Central College cross country team)
The tradition is definitely my favorite aspect of North Central College Cross Country. The team here is much bigger than any one individual can ever be and the ability to work well with one-another has been one of Al’s greatest gifts that he will emphasize day-in and day-out. It has taken years to build this program and I was just proud to have been a part of the history that is continuing to build. I am very glad to get an extra year to enjoy what North Central Cross Country is all about and am looking forward to see the guys from this year’s team mature and bring North Central back to the levels of success that this school is most known for.
What's the running environment like at North Central College? Where does the team train?
Blackwell Hill workout
(Photo courtesy of the North Central College cross country team)
The running environment at North Central is very positive and always highly encouraged from the faculty and staff on campus as well as the city of Naperville. It’s a great running community around here and the area gives us plenty of success stories to learn from. The team typically trains on the roads and forest preserves near campus. The main places not right near campus where we work out include Lincoln Park, Blackwell’s hill workout, and stints in the McDowell Grove Forest Preserve.
Does the men’s team have any unusual traditions during the postseason (i.e., mustaches, beards, etc.)?
The men’s team typically grows out our facial hair starting after the Notre Dame Invite. Most of the guys will participate and then some will trim down to just a mustache or some other interesting type of facial hair as it comes to the racing season.
Any parting words for readers?
Just make the most of your time in school while training with teammates, try to stay as consistent as possible and you never know just what may be in store for you if you put your mind to it.
Thanks to Nick for a great interview.
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