Today we catch up with De La Salle senior Trey Caldwell. Yesterday, at the Serra Invitational, Caldwell broke the long-standing course record for the Crystal Springs course, which dates back to 1973 when Mitch Kingery of San Carlos ran 14:28 on the fairly new course. Caldwell is currently undefeated with three victories in Santa Barbara, the DLS Invitational as well as yesterday's race. He finished in 4th place in the Division 2 state meet race last year and appears to be among the best runners in the state following his great effort yesterday.
1) How did you get your start in running? What other sports did you play before high school? What were your track PRs then and now?When I was in elementary and middle school, I played sports like soccer, basketball, and flag football. I was never the best, but I was almost always the fastest, so I naturally gravitated towards track and cross country around 7th grade. I ran a 5:16 mile in 8th grade, and I got that down to 4:15 junior year along with an 8:53 in the 2 mile.
2) What do you remember about your freshman year at De La Salle in both cross country and track and field? Who were your mentors on the team and what did you learn from them? Highlights from both seasons?
Freshman year was awesome because I came in with no expectations, and ended up making varsity! My highlight from that year was winning the freshman year at Mt. SAC, which is a race to which I attribute much of my motivation and success.
3) What do you feel has contributed the most to the improvement you have made since your freshman year to now?
I think having a great coach, a great team, and a great support staff of friends and family has been the biggest contributor to my success.
4) Going into your race at the Serra Invitational, what was your race plan? Was there any thought about the course record? Tell us a little about the race and how it played out for you. What did you think when you first heard you broke the course record?
I definitely had the course record on my mind, but it wasn’t my main goal. I just wanted to go out and win, because to me, winning is what matters most. The race went super well and I felt comfortable and confident throughout and the record happened to come with it. Having my name go along with that course going forward is really cool to think about after hopefully setting a record that won’t be touched for a little while.
5) What does a typical week look like for you training wise? Any repeatable workouts? Morning runs? Strength work?
I don’t want to reveal too much, but I don’t run too much mileage and I typically get in 2 workouts and a long run on weeks where I don’t have a race. Race weeks are a little less mileage with Fridays being super easy as well as Sundays.
My favorite course and invitational definitely has to go to Mt. SAC. The atmosphere there is unmatched and I love going there every year. My favorite track meet is probably State or West Coast Relays because I love running at Buchanan.
7) Where will you be going to college and how did you end up making that decision?
I will be attending the University of Colorado next fall! I was initially committed to Tennessee, but the coach at Tennessee ended up taking the vacant position at Colorado and I decided to follow him there.
8) Tell us about your coach and how he has helped you develop into the runner you are today.
Coach Pelster is the best coach I could’ve asked for. Instead of running me into the ground after having a good freshman year, he decided to take a true four year approach so that I could thrive and grow as a runner even into my senior year. I owe him an infinite amount of credit and gratitude for his coaching job.
9) Looking back at your high school career in both xc and tf, what would you say you are most proud of as far as accomplishments and times?
I think I am most proud of making it to Footlocker my sophomore year because of how rare that is. I think that is an accomplishment that I will forever cherish as long as I live.
10) What advice would you give to a freshman runner who has hopes of being an elite runner?
I would just advise them to keep at it. Running takes mileage and workouts stacked on top of each other. Greatness doesn’t come quickly. It comes with hours and hours of working hard and doing everything it takes to reach your goals.
11) What races are you most looking forward to the rest of this season? Any goals you would like to share?
I am looking forward to defending my Mt. SAC title in a couple weeks as well as hopefully winning my first state title in November!
Thank you very much for your time Trey!
2 comments:
Great running and interview responses! DLS is lucky to have you as a student athlete. DLS XC parent.
Trey, you are the total package….we are excited for you! Tom & Jan
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