SMA cross-country junior no longer a 'lone wolf'

The first mile nearly killed him.

Alan Romero, then 8 years old, was running alongside his mother, Karina Romero, from their house near downtown Sarasota to the John Ringling Bridge. He had never run like that before, but he was already awake (it was early, though he doesn’t remember the exact time) and she asked him to come. “Might as well,” he remembers thinking. He regretted the decision almost immediately, but his mom persuaded him to continue. The sooner they finished, the sooner they could get back for breakfast. Romero did not want to miss breakfast, so he listened. It’s the most important meal of the day, after all.

He pushed through that first mile, legs feeling like jelly, and learned some things about himself, namely that he liked the feeling of pushing through an obstacle. He liked the challenge and the feeling running gave him. Romero, now a junior at the Sarasota Military Academy, didn’t dive into the running world right away, but he kept it in mind.

It would have been hard to ignore his talent. He lapped people in gym class, and consistently performed well in school jog-a-thons. In sixth grade, he hopped onto the competitive side of the running aisle, with cross country.

He’s often competed in that endeavor alone. SMA never had a full squad before this season. At meets, sometimes Romero would be the single Eagles cross-country representative. He first got a real team experience his ninth-grade year, when he ran track and field at Sarasota High (SMA does not field a track team). He found a running partner in now-junior Ben Hartvigsen, and found that it’s easier to challenge yourself with the support of teammates, he said. After two years of solitary cross-country meets and lively track and field ones, Romero decided he wanted to bring the full experience to SMA, and began asking fellow Eagles to join. His pleas were heard, and the school now consistently has enough runners (seven) to score at meets.

“Last year, I was kind of like a lone wolf,” Romero said. “It’s nice to have my teammates around. I get to push other people besides myself, and they are there to support me as well when it comes to races, or even practices.”

He still handles the heavy-lifting, though. It’s what you would expect from a guy who finished 48th overall at last season’s Class 2A state championships.

SMA first-year cross-country coach Sumiko Chipman has learned a lot from Romero. She ran track and field in high school, but never cross country. Before the season, she and Romero sat down and discussed plans for the team, and she was delighted to find out the plans were similar. Romero acts as team captain and leads his teammates for the meat of practice, including stretches, warmups, long-distance training and cool-down jogs. Chipman watches over this in case Romero or anyone else needs guidance.

“He’s really been leading the team this year, and it’s been fantastic,” Chipman said. “Half of our athletes are freshmen and have never run cross country before. Alan’s done a great job of stepping into that captain’s role, leading them before practices, during warmups, during meets.

“He instructs them. ‘Fix your form, work on this.’ He counts times. He does everything, and he does a great job of it.”

Romero also gives his teammates advice on things tangentially related to running, like the best brand of shorts to wear. He is partial to Best of Athlete (BOA), which he gets at Running Warehouse. Their shorts feature “funny” designs, like smiley faces, flamingos and outer space. Romero’s favorites, naturally, are the American flag ones.

The captain's role is unfamiliar to Romero, and he was not entirely comfortable with it at first, not unlike wearing a new pair of BOA. shorts for the first time. It felt a bit “odd” on him, he said. Over time, that feeling has subsided. It is now his new normal. In times of stress, Romero remembers that he runs first and foremost to stay in shape, and to win second.

He also hasn’t forgotten his roots. He still runs with his mom on the weekends, though they also add variety and cycle together.

He’s able to go at a faster pace now, which is good, because he still doesn’t want to miss breakfast.