Ryen Hughes, a junior at Shadow Ridge High School, has been a part of the cross-country team since freshman year. After being forced to join by her siblings, Hughes now enjoys running and how her training continues to make her better.
Running seemed to run in Hughes’ family so her parents heavily encouraged her to try it too. She reluctantly listened to them and went to the cross country intramurals her freshman year.
“I ended up falling in love with it,” Hughes said. “I liked the challenge and the feeling of being part of something bigger. Ever since then, I’ve been hooked.”
Even with this fantastic new feeling, training would become increasingly difficult without a different motivation. So, Hughes had to find something else to keep her going and it ended up being discipline.
“Some days I don’t feel like running, but I remind myself that the hard days are what make me better,” explains Hughes. “I just push through it and trust that the work will pay off later. It’s all about staying consistent.”
Not only was Hughes good at pushing herself, she also had people she looked up to that helped inspire her journey to keep improving. These were people like Parker Valby and Faith Kipyegon, two highly accomplished middle and long-distance runners, who she admired for their natural talent; she also admires local runners.
“Aislin McMahon [Prestigious runner at Sky Pointe High School] is one of my role models because she proves that if you work hard, you can be amazing,” Hughes says.
With all of these motivators, Hughes is able to get through her intense training which includes running around 45 miles a week, crossfit class in school, and weight training. This all helps keep her strong and prepared for racing while also reducing injury risk.
Cross country is an individual sport but the team Hughes is on loves to stay close. They all are friends and consistently push each other to become better.
“One of my favorite memories was when our bus broke down in Barstow and we were stuck there for like 7 hours,” states Hughes. “Instead of being annoyed, we all hung out and made the best of it. Stuff like that just makes the team feel like a family.”
Having such a close team makes being on the cross country team more enjoyable for Hughes so that even when she’s not running, she’s having a good time.
Throughout Hughes’ whole cross country career so far, her proudest moment was when the freshmen on her team told her how much they looked up to her.
“It honestly meant so much because I remember being a freshman and looking up to the older kids. It made me realize how far I’ve come since then,” Hughes said.
Hughes has come a long way since her freshman year and continues to work hard to keep getting better at the sport she loves so much.
