Many senior athletes are focused on winning and perfection for their senior season. However, for senior Damon Ingle, running cross country is more than that.
Ingle has been a loyal member of the Paoli cross country team for four years now and has participated since his freshman year. By lettering all four years, Ingle has only experienced improvement.
“Getting impressive times is always something a runner strives for, but I feel that improvement is more important,” said Ingle.
When joining cross country almost over four years ago, the motive for Ingle was not a passion for long distance running. He joined to stay in shape for track, his priority sport at the time. The transition from being a sprinter to running over 3 miles every meet was a difficult one for Ingle. However, he now considers cross country a main sport in his life due to the great experiences he had. These experiences have become his favorite part of running cross country.
“My favorite part of running cross country is definitely my teammates. The bonds we create throughout the season is something I love,” said Ingle.
Ingle has made goals at the beginning of the season that he is hoping to accomplish by the end. These goals are not only personal, but also goals he hopes to accomplish as a team.
“Personally, I hope I get as many PRs as I can throughout the season. As a team, I believe we plan on winning conference and starting there,” said Ingle.
Ingle believes that his senior season has definitely had a bigger impact on him than any prior seasons.
“I feel like this cross country season means a little bit more to me than other ones have. Maybe because it’s my last season or maybe it’s because of what we’ve gone through together. Whatever it is, it’s very special to me,” said Ingle.
Due to experiences and adversity the team has encountered, stronger bonds and connections have been made along the way. To Ingle, this is what makes running long distances in unbearable weather bearable.
His expectations for the season are pretty simple. Ingle’s priority is making memories and having fun doing it.
“I expect great memories and even faster times.”
Story by Jace Ingle
