The Manhattan Running Company hosted “Nike Spike Night” on Friday evening where Nike representatives and college athletes met with local youth ahead of cross county season.
Kansas Wesleyan University seniors Julian Avila and Josie Koppes spoke to young runners about their own running journeys and experiences.
Avila said his favorite part about being a student athlete is competing across the country.
“You get to meet some really cool people, he said. “My freshman year I went to Cloud (Kansas), where I got to meet people from Egypt, Ethiopia, Great Britain, and just people from all around the world. And I think that’s one of the pros about that you get to meet a bunch of really cool people.”
Koppes initially went to KU but transferred because the school was too big, and she missed running and being a part of a team.
She also gave encouragement to those who are also unsure about running collegiately…
“I’d say go for it because you wouldn’t you don’t want to look back and be like ‘oh, I should have ran in college.’ So definitely jump on the opportunity if it comes up, and if you end up not liking it then at least you tried.”
David Targett, with Nike, helped provide free Kona Ice to customers and attendees, along with creating custom cross country flags for local schools.
Manhattan Running Company also teamed up with Nike for Saturday’s corresponding Dragonfly Duel, which was a 2-mile race that had over 30 participants.
“The Dragonfly” are Nike’s most well-renowned long distance running spikes.
16-year-old Isaac Ibendahll, of Wamego, won the 2-mile race with a time of 11:25.
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