This week on “20 Questions” we catch up with senior distance runner Nate Peterson. Already UND's outdoor record-holder in the 5K and the mile, so far during the 2016 indoor season Peterson has run the second-best mile and 3K times in school history.
20Q: How did you get started in track & field?
NP: I had been competing in cross country since seventh grade, but I had been competing in baseball during the spring. As I started moving up the ranks in cross country, my teammates started to hint that I should join the track team. That, combined with some favoritism going on in the baseball program, brought me into track and running year-round starting my junior year of high school. I believe my first race ever was at Concordia-Moorhead and we ran the 4x800-meter relay. I can't remember my exact time, but I do know that it was exciting!
20Q: Describe your event and what you love about it?
NP: For the previous four years I have been racing the mile. I love the mile because it's the iconic racing distance in America, something that each person can relate to on some level.
This year I'm experimenting with some longer distances like the 5K. Explaining why I love running distance races is almost impossible, because I'm not so sure myself. What I do know is that throwing on the spikes and toeing the line with competitors makes me feel this tightening in my stomach that I have yet to replicate in any other situation. Flying around the track and chasing down people in front of you -- it's the best feeling. Seeing your training begin to produce results is such a satisfactory feeling that you can't help but come right back to the race again.
20Q: What is your goal for the season?
NP: I guess I have two over-arching goals that are covered by some intermediate goals. My first true goal is to qualify for the NCAA preliminary round in the 5000 meters. I've done some research, and the time I'll need is somewhere around 14:00-14:10. My intermediate goals to get there include racing a 3K solo at that pace (done), running under 4:10 in the mile, qualifying for the Mt. SAC Relays in the %K, and running under 14 at Mt. SAC.
My other goal is to be all-conference in an individual event at one of the Big Sky Conference meets. We are in an incredibly tough conference for distance running, so I would be overjoyed to accomplish that.
20Q: What does a typical day in your life look like?
NP: During the school/work week, I'll roll out of bed and do a 30-minute easy run, followed by a bowl of my infamous oatmeal (oats, milk, pumpkin from our garden at home, and honey nut cheerios all mixed together). Then this semester I'll either have class, homework, or some volunteering.
In the afternoon I'll either have another easy run or a workout, depending on the day. Then I'll have supper, do some homework, and then ALWAYS finish off the day with a granny smith apple and banana with peanut butter.
Before I go to bed, I'll read a book for fun. Currently I'm reading a book called Black Elk Speaks, a story by John G. Neihardt about an Oglala Sioux medicine man. On the weekends I have either a race or workout on Saturday, and on Sunday I'll have a long run, usually 14-16 miles.
20Q: Which athlete inspires you the most?
NP: Ryan Hall. He's the American record-holder in the half marathon and fastest American ever in the marathon. He recently retired, and here's an excerpt from an interview he had with Runner's World:
"My goal with all of this and my goal when I wake up each morning is to love God and love people. If I can help people do that, their life will be meaningful. I want to lead people into that through running.
I also think just being fearless. Fearlessness comes from being rooted in who you are and feeling like you can handle your worst day and still look in the mirror and be happy with what you see. That, to me, was a big lesson I had to learn. I went through depression at Stanford and had to drop out for a quarter because my whole identity was based on what I did and how I was performing. When I shook that, it was the biggest breakthrough that led to everything that followed. If I didn't have that fearlessness, I would have never experienced the things I did. That's what we need in American distance running. If we're going to compete [internationally], we've got to try. And you've got to be okay with blowing up. You can't have that shake you or destroy your confidence."
20Q: What would you like to be remembered for?
NP: My passion and love for the sport. My teammates know me as the one who can't shut up on any run ever, and my competitors may know me as someone willing to cross team lines and converse with 'the enemy'. I want to be remembered as a runner who loved running and wanted others to enjoy running more as a result. If someone enjoyed their sport more because of something I did, that would make me happy. I'd also like to be remembered as someone who wanted to inspire runners in North Dakota to chase their dreams.
20Q: What is your pre-competition ritual, if you have one?
NP: I think the only thing that all my races have in common is that around 20 minutes before race time it finally dawns on me that I am going to race, usually followed by worry and a trip to the restroom.
20Q: What are your hobbies outside of athletics?
NP: I love learning about North Dakota and running. I have tried to visit as many state parks and drive as many roads as I can in this state, and I've tried to meet as many runners as I can. I spend a lot of time blogging (self-promotion: www.northdakotarunner.blogspot.com) and have recently started a project to compile top-10 lists related to North Dakota running. In a nutshell, I love this state and these people.
20Q: What is the best thing about living where you do?
NP: I live right across the street from the Greenway. In Grand Forks, the flood of 1997 devastated the area, and one of the many amazingly good results of the tragedy was this almost 20-mile trail without the hindrance of stop signs, traffic lights, or intersections. There are ski trails that when there is no snow function as soft dirt trails through woods, and every morning on my run I come across this friendly little band of deer. I sometimes try talking to them, but they never respond.
20Q: Name one thing most people would be surprised to know about you?
NP: Sometimes I stay up past 10 p.m. and don't feel bad about it.
20Q: The worst or most challenging part of being an athlete?
NP: Not letting the sport consume you. It's easy to set your identity as 'athlete', but there is so much more to life than that. I want to be able to, when I'm 60-years old, sit in my rocking chair and say that I was able to positively impact people with my time here, not simply chase times and records.
20Q: The best part of being an athlete?
NP: Facility access. I know it sounds entitled, but having a weight room, training room, coaches, an amazing indoor track, and travel to races, is something I try to never become complacent about. It's truly a blessing.
20Q: If you weren't an athlete, what would you be doing?
NP: Probably giving Weight Watchers a try (kidding).
If I wasn't an athlete, I would probably look for things to do outside like hiking, skiing, camping, and things I sometimes don't have time to do. There's always places to explore in North Dakota, despite what many people say. You just have to be willing to see them.
20Q: If you could do any event in track & field, what would it be and why?
NP: Decathlon. Those athletes have to be able to jump far and high, run fast, and throw far. They don't get as much attention as some other events, and often they compete so early in meets that most other team members don't even get to see much of the competition, but those decathletes are real and tough. I don't think I'd be good at it, but it'd be fun to try!
20Q: Who has made the biggest impact in your life?
NP: I'm going to pick two, because I can't/don't want to narrow it down. The first I'll mention are my parents. Their support for me in all my endeavors has astounded me, from coming and watching me perform at the All-State Music Festival in Bismarck in high school, to coming to far away races in college. They've always been there. A few winters back, we were having a pretty nasty blizzard with pretty much white-out conditions. My dad drove me nine miles north of Garrison (N.D.) on this gravel road, and drove behind me for the whole run so I would be safe. He still comments on how crazy I am for doing stuff like that, but it means a lot to me.
The other I'll mention is my Pastor/boss, Janis. I've worked the past five (soon to be six) summers at a Bible Camp on Lake Sakakawea, and Janis has really helped me grow as a person. He has taught me to always try to see other's stories while at the same time always striving for improvement in my life. I love what he says about all of us being an Easter people: it's all about love and forgiveness.
20Q: What is your goal after you graduate?
NP: My current plan is to teach in a rural school district in North Dakota. I'll be qualified to teach math grades 7-12, and coaching would also be fun!
20Q: How would your teammates describe you?
NP: They'd likely offer that I talk far too often about things that far too few people actually care about. They may even afford me the luxury of being an interesting person. They would also say that -- in the interest of their health and wellness -- I should eat less fruits and vegetables.
20Q: What is your favorite movie of all time? Why?
NP: Inside Out. The movie has me laughing one second and almost crying (not actually crying!!!) the next. I've had to watch the movie multiple times because the number of ways the movie can be extended to our lives can be almost endless.
20Q: Which road trip are you most looking forward to this season and why?
NP: The drive to Bozeman, Mont., for indoor conference. I love watching the landscape change as you transition from Red River Valley to drift prairie to Missouri plateau to Montana buttes to mountains. I mean, we get to drive through the best state in the country and then go through a lot of Montana too! Oh, and I'm excited to race also.
20Q: What makes UND special to you?
NP: UND has been a part of my life since the beginning. Both of my parents are UND alumni, and they lived in Grand Forks for a while after school as well.
I remember growing up we would try to make it up for a men's hockey game every year, and when the football team was in the Division II playoffs we got to come up a few times and watch them trounce schools we've never heard of from down south.
Additionally, I remember looking at box scores in the sports section of the paper and marveling at how the women's basketball team could have such a good record season after season. For me, UND was always something to be proud of. It was founded as a sort of enclave for education and study in the middle of the nothingness of the northern prairie, and in a sense it maintains that status as a space for a land known for farming, ranching, coal, and oil production to produce students ready to take on the world.
My world may be North Dakota, but who knows? Maybe I'll end up in a foreign country like Norway, Australia, or Nevada. If so, I'll be ready!
