Athlete: Hugo Gonzalez
School: Houston Strake Jesuit
1. What was your most memorable race/moment?
The 800m at the Rice Victor Lopez Classic in 2015. I only got 5th, but that I ran a huge PR after having a rough season. That race gave me the confidence I needed to really improve. I probably won't forget getting 5th at XC districts this year anytime soon either.
2. Who would you consider your biggest competition over your four years?
My teammates for sure. Freshman year I always trying to catch up to Andrew Hebert with many of the other freshman all being around the same level. Sophomore year I was chasing upperclassmen for a varsity spot, and junior and senior year, my junior teammates Jeff and Jason came along and pushed me. I am grateful to have had great teammates to push me and help me get better.
3. What was your greatest accomplishment?I would say being 1/4 of one of the best 4x800m teams in the country and one of the best ever in Texas. Finishing the races at Regionals, State, and NXR this year through the mud during XC is definitely up there though.
4. If you could do it all over again what would you change about your running career in high school?
I would run a lot more in the summers to pick up some more base that would carry me through XC season. I would probably have opted to be more of a miler as opposed to a half miler since I lack natural speed. I would also try to have a lot more fun with running because it went by so quickly.
5. What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome?
Confidence for the most part. Lack of it caused me to unravel during championship season of XC junior year. You keep running mediocre race after mediocre race, it starts to get to you.
6. What will you miss the most?
I'm going to miss the rush you get from competing, working together with a team, but most of all I'm going to miss my track/XC family. I've made so many great friends from running and things are going to be really weird without them.
7. What advice would you give to younger athletes?
Believe in yourself
work hard
enjoy the sport
always poop before racing
bring your own toilet paper for meets....just in case
8. What influence has your coach had with respect to your performance and overall life goals?
My coaches have always been really tough on me, but they've always believed in me too. They taught me the discipline I have needed to succeed in the sport and in life.
9. What are your college plans?
I'm going to attend Stanford University next year majoring in Biomechanical Engineering. Walking on to their track team seems a little unlikely, so I'll probably transition into club XC and club track.
10. Who would you like to say 'thank you' to?
I want to thanks my coaches for pushing me, my parents for supporting me, and all my teammates past and present. special s/o to Hebert, Jeff, Bugg, Matt Solcher, Max, Braxton, Blake, Luke and Sam for putting up with me for four years and making my time at Strake unforgettable. I also really want to thank TX MilSplit for everything it has done for the sport. High school running in Texas has changed and improved because of y'all.
11. Is there anything else you'd like to add?
I think the UIL should add 4x800m or DMR or some sort of distance relay to the state meet lineup. Distance kids are underrepresented in track in Texas. Also we have some of the fastest distance relays in the country. A lot more distance runners would get the opportunity to compete at the sprint dominated state meet if a distance relay was added.
12. What was the funniest thing that happened during your running career?
When I was a freshman competing on the freshman XC team, we went to the Nike South Invitational and ran against some good teams including the Woodlands freshmen. Our coach had made it a point that we had to beat the Woodlands at some point to prove we were good. Anyway it was a close race. At the podium when they announced we got second at the meet I somehow thought we had beat the Woodlands so I took the plaque and yelled we beat the Woodlands. It was kind of embarrassing when the Woodlands went up to receive their first place plaque. Anyway, when I looked back at the results for the meet, I realized that our #3 guy that day wasn't on the results. His shoe chip must have not worked or something, so I asked him what place his medal said and recalculated the result, which is more difficult than it sounds because everyone moves down a place, and we ended up winning by a point or two. My coach refused to acknowledge we won that meet for years. He would tell the story a banquets to get some good laughs out of parents, but before the XC banquet this year, I recalculated the results and gave them to my coach. He laughed and finally accepted that we did win that day.
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