McNary’s track and field preseason has athletes running like never before.

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Mr. Josh Christensen is the Track and Field/Cross Country Coach and a math teacher at McNary. He expressed his constant excitement for this upcoming season. “I'm excited, I think we are going to mess up people's plans” Christensen said, “People from other schools, I think we are going to catch some folks off guard and do some really cool things in competition”.

 Christensen specifically coaches the distance runners on the track team. His training agenda for the athletes has been straightforward. 

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"Most of the distance runners also run cross country with me all summer and all fall," Christensen said. "When cross country ended, we kept training throughout the winter."

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Their main goal is to run 48 weeks a year and take four weeks off: Two weeks after cross country and two weeks after track and field. Christensen said, "Individual goals vary dramatically," He said that there are many different types of players on the teams: those who play for scholarships or medals, those who are new, and everything in between. Everyone's goals are different.

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Paisley Kenitzer is a junior at McNary. This will be her third year on the track team. 

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“I’m super excited, I feel like this year will be so much better,” Kenitzer said. “The last two years, my freshman and sophomore year, we had new track coaches. So this year, instead of just introducing all the coaches, we are actually getting started.”

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Kenitzer’s biggest inspiration to join was playing soccer at a young age. “It was rec soccer so it wasn't crazy but I was always fast and the first one to the ball, I was an offensive player. I don't remember the position,” she said.

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Her main goal is to join the varsity track team again and get personal records. “I just kind of want to be better than the last day I practiced or the last time I participated in a meet,” she said.

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Kenitzer expresses a growing sense of optimism and confidence for this upcoming season. “I feel like we are going to be so much better this year and I feel more confident,” she said. 

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During practices, music is often played to help brighten up the mood and motivate athletes. This gives Kenitzer a chance to bring light and fun to the team. “During track practices, sometimes I kind of break out into dancing especially when we have music going on during spring,” she said. “My coaches say I'm pretty fast and a lot of people say I've brought happiness and smiles to the team”.

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