Kevin James of Cardinal O'Hara finished 4th at the NXN Northeast Regional Championship race on Saturday to earn his 3rd consecutive trip to the NXN Finals in Portland, Oregon! The performance was the 8th finish in the top five for James. He has finished in the top 100 in his first two NXN appearances, finishing 88th in 2012 and 55th in 2013. Before James flies to the other side of the country to run his final high school cross country race, he talked with PennTrack about the special occassion.
How was your training following the state meet?
My training after the state meet went really well! My mileage went back up to where it normally is during the season, and I was getting some very quality workouts in that really helped my confidence before regionals. So overall I was happy with how it went!
Did you alter your preparations for this year’s NXN regional meet compared to the past two years?
I really didn't change much to prepare for regionals from the last 2 years. I think I just felt so much better in training this year compared to the last two years just because I felt so much stronger and more confident after the state meet than I have in the past.
What were your thoughts on the course? Having run it in the past, is it a course you are a fan of?
The course was definitely more difficult this year than in years past because of the snow and the mud, but it made the race a lot more interesting than usual. And personally I am a fan of this course, I couldn't tell you why but I just am.
What was the strategy heading into the race on Saturday? With your team looking to advance to the NXN Finals, was your strategy set up to help the team or to help you win individually?
My strategy going into the race was to try winning the easiest way I could. I could have went right to the front and pushed the pace and grinded it out, but I wanted to just qualify and save that hard effort for NXN next Saturday. My strategy was set up just to make sure I made it, while my teams strategy (even though it didn't work out as well as we’d hope) was to just go for it and see what happened because we felt that we had nothing to lose.
Was this the best race you have run all season? Why did it go so well?
This wasn't the best race I've had this season because I made some tactical mistakes towards the end but then again the goal was just to qualify and really go for it at NXN.
What does it mean to the win the race and make your 3rd straight appearance at the NXN Finals?
It means a lot to me to qualify for NXN three years in a row because it's such a big meet that only a certain amount of people can go to every year. So to be able to go three times is really a blessing and I'm happy to be able to have this opportunity!
How much did the training and the meet schedule you had prepare you for success this season?
My training this year went as good as it could have gone during my high school career. With our meet schedule we train through majority of the meets we run at because we understand that States and on are the big meets that we want to be ready for. So my training during September and October really set me up for great racing in the month of November.
What are you most looking forward to about the trip to Portland?
I am most looking forward to the new course this year, because personally I wasn't a fan of the old course. So I am definitely ready for a new course with new challenges.
Having gone to this meet twice, what have you learned from those experiences that can help you have a good performance this season?
Since I've been through all of this twice already, I have learned that you can't get distracted and caught up in all the hype going on before the race. The last two years I haven't ran well because I wasn't really focused on the race because of all this. So this year I will defiantly be all business and ready to go on Saturday.
What is your goal for the NXN Finals?
My ultimate goal for NXN is to go all-American, because that has been a goal of mine all year. But my reach goal is to get top 10! So hopefully I can get out there and compete to the best of my ability and represent my team and PA the best that I can.
