Kale Heino is a third-year student completing a double major in paleontology and anthropology. He has been a member of the cross country team since his first year at UTM. He was an avid runner before coming to university, and was a member of his high school’s cross country team. During his years of running, Heino claims to never have been seriously injured during any of his races.
Heino says he no longer struggles with running as “it has almost become a lifestyle; it’s not even you have to run because you have to do well but rather it’s become a part of you.” Heino plans to keep running even after graduation to keep a habit of it.
Heino’s pre-race routine consists of not “drinking too much water” and eating “no more than 3 hours before the race.” His normal practice routine consists of alternating training—intense some days and easier the others. He says he runs smaller distance and lightly before a race just as he does for his exams— “you would study less the day before an exam to keep yourself easy.” Heino says all his races have been successful, and the most exhilarating moment is when he reaches the finish line. He says “It is not a feeling that can be described, it is something you have to experience to know it.”
Heino has not only been running in high school, university, and provincial races, but he has also ran in a national race twice. His partner was Haseeb Malik, another third-year cross country runner who has been running since high school. The two were a strong team and Heino was excited to be a part of it. He claims that it was not just about running in nationals, it was the fact that they were running for their university and the other racers in their group.
Heino points out that, unfortunately, this year the team has been smaller compared to the past few years. He says the reason may be due to bigger workloads, or the stress of graduation as most of the team consists of upper-year students.
Heino also praises the women’s cross country team this year and applauds them for doing so well. He says that at their first meet, the women placed third overall as a team, which is amazing. Heino hopes that the men’s team will continue to do well despite the decrease in number of teammates.
