2016 Brooks PR InvitationalJun 16, 2016 by Taylor Dutch
A Day in the Life of Gymnastics/Track Star Christina Aragon
A Day in the Life of Gymnastics/Track Star Christina Aragon
When I was assigned a trip to Billings, Montana, to film a Brooks PR video on high school senior Christina Aragon, I knew I was in for a unique experience.
When I was assigned a trip to Billings, Montana, to film a Brooks PR video on high school senior Christina Aragon, I knew I was in for a unique experience. Most elite track and field athletes are laser-focused on their sport, which usually leads to success. But this young athlete has another focus that requires just as much dedication. Aragon is a level 10 gymnast, and we were going to spend a day in her busy life.
We (myself, our camera man and producer) arrived at Aragon's gym at 10 a.m. on Thursday morning--one day before she was scheduled to fly to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for the Great Southwest Classic. We were greeted by Aragon and her mom Kathy, who competed in three Olympic Marathon Trials.
As we set up our equipment, I started to remember my own high school experience as a multi-sport athlete; I played soccer and ran cross country and track until senior year. I understand the difficulties of managing multiple sports and was eager to see how Aragon, a much more talented athlete, handled the load.
She started to warm up by running laps around the gym and doing various strength exercises, including walking hand-stands and stationary jumps followed by a front flip.
Even her warm up blew me away.
If you've ever watched Aragon race, you know she is unbelievably strong. I was at the finish line during her 4:11 1500m at Payton Jordan Invitational, where she already looked like an elite, seasoned athlete among quality professional and collegiate runners. With 100m remaining in the race, Aragon unleashed a kick to the finish line that won by a solid two seconds. It was the fourth-fastest time ever run by a high school athlete and just two seconds shy of the Olympic Trials-qualifying standard.
It wasn't hard to see there was something different about this 18-year-old--there was lethal strength in those legs.
"Teenie," as her family and friends call her, may be small in stature, but big-time in her ability. For two hours in the morning, she jumped from various events-- floor, uneven bars, and eventually vault. I took videos of her routines throughout the practice, and tweeted them from the FloTrack Twitter account. I was in complete awe of her ability to hurl her body in various directions and with perfect precision.
Her strength and maturity on the track made so much sense now. She trained her body to be a powerhouse in the gym, which translated to fast times on the track.
Once gym practice was over, we conducted an interview with Teenie at the local park where she told us about how she got her start in running--a story that holds deep family ties. Her father, Chuck Aragon, finished fourth in the 1500m at the Olympic Trials in 1984 and was the first Notre Dame athlete to break four minutes in the mile. Her sisters Danielle and Alexa both earned All-American honors while competing at their dad's alma mater.
Teenie, the youngest of three girls, has decided to forge a different path. Instead of following in her dad and sisters' footsteps, she chose Stanford University.
Why? She wasn't quite ready to give up gymnastics, her first love, and Coach Chris Miltenberg promised she could work out at the Stanford gym for cross-training.
While talking about her success on the track, which includes nine Montana state titles and numerous invitational wins, Teenie was exceptionally humble. An hour break and a quick lunch later, we met Teenie and her coach, Don Blankenship, at the Billings Senior High School track for a tough track workout of 4x800m with three minutes of rest between each.
Three hours after wrapping up her gymnastics workout, Teenie crushed each interval in 2:18-2:20; around 4:40-mile pace. I know some college All-Americans who wouldn't be able to handle that workout with fresh legs, let alone after a taxing gym session.
For the second time that day, my jaw dropped to the floor.
You could tell it was hard work, but Teenie wouldn't let up an inch. She fought to hit those splits like a mature professional.
After, we met Teenie and Chuck to interview her dad about his daughter's success. Speaking with him off camera, he told me she wasn't really into this media stuff, but he reassured her: "You have a great story to tell."
I couldn't agree more.
Watch the finished feature video of "All Around Christina Aragon All In for Brooks PR:"
Since this trip, Aragon clocked the Olympic Trials-qualifying standard by running 4:09.27 at the Portland Track Festival on Sunday, where she beat pros and collegiate runners once again. She will seek to defend her 800m title at the Brooks PR Invitational live on FloTrack this Saturday, and compete at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in July.
We (myself, our camera man and producer) arrived at Aragon's gym at 10 a.m. on Thursday morning--one day before she was scheduled to fly to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for the Great Southwest Classic. We were greeted by Aragon and her mom Kathy, who competed in three Olympic Marathon Trials.
As we set up our equipment, I started to remember my own high school experience as a multi-sport athlete; I played soccer and ran cross country and track until senior year. I understand the difficulties of managing multiple sports and was eager to see how Aragon, a much more talented athlete, handled the load.
She started to warm up by running laps around the gym and doing various strength exercises, including walking hand-stands and stationary jumps followed by a front flip.
How did Christina Aragon run 4:11 as a high school senior? Crazy gymnastics strength pic.twitter.com/MWvD13fNe7
— FloTrack (@FloTrack) June 1, 2016
How Christina Aragon does #WorkoutWednesday @milesplit pic.twitter.com/4puxNxkLQ5
— FloTrack (@FloTrack) June 1, 2016
Even her warm up blew me away.
If you've ever watched Aragon race, you know she is unbelievably strong. I was at the finish line during her 4:11 1500m at Payton Jordan Invitational, where she already looked like an elite, seasoned athlete among quality professional and collegiate runners. With 100m remaining in the race, Aragon unleashed a kick to the finish line that won by a solid two seconds. It was the fourth-fastest time ever run by a high school athlete and just two seconds shy of the Olympic Trials-qualifying standard.
It wasn't hard to see there was something different about this 18-year-old--there was lethal strength in those legs.
"Teenie," as her family and friends call her, may be small in stature, but big-time in her ability. For two hours in the morning, she jumped from various events-- floor, uneven bars, and eventually vault. I took videos of her routines throughout the practice, and tweeted them from the FloTrack Twitter account. I was in complete awe of her ability to hurl her body in various directions and with perfect precision.
Her strength and maturity on the track made so much sense now. She trained her body to be a powerhouse in the gym, which translated to fast times on the track.
Once gym practice was over, we conducted an interview with Teenie at the local park where she told us about how she got her start in running--a story that holds deep family ties. Her father, Chuck Aragon, finished fourth in the 1500m at the Olympic Trials in 1984 and was the first Notre Dame athlete to break four minutes in the mile. Her sisters Danielle and Alexa both earned All-American honors while competing at their dad's alma mater.
Teenie, the youngest of three girls, has decided to forge a different path. Instead of following in her dad and sisters' footsteps, she chose Stanford University.
Why? She wasn't quite ready to give up gymnastics, her first love, and Coach Chris Miltenberg promised she could work out at the Stanford gym for cross-training.
While talking about her success on the track, which includes nine Montana state titles and numerous invitational wins, Teenie was exceptionally humble. An hour break and a quick lunch later, we met Teenie and her coach, Don Blankenship, at the Billings Senior High School track for a tough track workout of 4x800m with three minutes of rest between each.
Three hours after wrapping up her gymnastics workout, Teenie crushed each interval in 2:18-2:20; around 4:40-mile pace. I know some college All-Americans who wouldn't be able to handle that workout with fresh legs, let alone after a taxing gym session.
For the second time that day, my jaw dropped to the floor.
You could tell it was hard work, but Teenie wouldn't let up an inch. She fought to hit those splits like a mature professional.
After, we met Teenie and Chuck to interview her dad about his daughter's success. Speaking with him off camera, he told me she wasn't really into this media stuff, but he reassured her: "You have a great story to tell."
I couldn't agree more.
Watch the finished feature video of "All Around Christina Aragon All In for Brooks PR:"
Since this trip, Aragon clocked the Olympic Trials-qualifying standard by running 4:09.27 at the Portland Track Festival on Sunday, where she beat pros and collegiate runners once again. She will seek to defend her 800m title at the Brooks PR Invitational live on FloTrack this Saturday, and compete at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in July.