Friday, July 9, 2010

ESB blurb: Erik Simonson

Poughkeepsie Journal intern Dave Aderson caught up with track athlete Erik Simonson for an upcoming story, and filed the following report for our ESG blog...

Erik Simonson is going into his senior year at New Paltz High School. He’ll be competing in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles at the Empire State Games.

When talking to him about the Games, there was one thing about him that stuck out to me.

This guy sounds really enthusiastic about competing at the Games, I thought to myself while interviewing him.

After all, Erik has traveled an interesting path to get this far. Originally playing baseball for his town league, Erik decided it was time for a change and joined the track and field team in the seventh grade. Soon after he suffered a dislocated patella in his knee from playing football and was sidelined for a year before returning to the track.

I was also able to get a sense of Erik’s competitive nature during his interview. Erik placed second in the 400 intermediate hurdles in the Section 9 championship meet this year. Seeking redemption, Erik then beat the opponent who had placed first in sectionals in the state championship meet by nearly a second.

While Erik is passionate about track and field, he’s also looking forward to taking a break after competition at the Games is over. His time off won’t last very long though. Erik is also a member of the football team and swimming team at his high school, and he will start preparing for those sports after the Games are completed.

Look for Dave's full story on Erik in an upcoming edition of the Journal.

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