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02/22/2017 11:00 PMAddie Byars is a runner in every sense of the word. The Deep River native just loves to run and she encourages her peers to do the same. It’s no surprise that the three sports Addie competes in at Valley Regional are cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track.
“Running has become a huge part of my life because it makes me feel good and I want others to try, so they can feel that way, too,” says Addie. “Everybody thinks running is really hard and it is when you first start, but if you keep doing it, you start to become better at it. Then what used to be too hard becomes easier and you find it makes you feel better and happier.”
Addie, a junior at Valley, stuck with running even when it was difficult, and her perseverance has paid off. In the recent indoor track season, Addie recorded her personal-best time of 12:15.94 for the 3,200-meter run. Addie recently ran the 3,200 on the big stage at the Shoreline Conference and Class S State championships, where she finished in fourth and eighth place, respectively.
Addie’s accomplishments come as no surprise to her coaches. In a short span, first-year girls’ indoor track Head Coach Jean Maignan has seen how much Addie contributes to the Warriors.
“Her attitude and work ethic shows on the track. You can see she’s a leader, so others follow in her footsteps,” says Maignan. “She doesn’t have to be a vocal leader because the way she works and interacts inspires other athletes to follow her lead.”
Addie’s work ethic has been a constant throughout her career and not just on the track, but also on the cross country trails. Last fall, Addie earned All-Shoreline First Team honors with her seventh-place finish behind a time of 20:46.80 at the Conference Championship. Cross country head coach Chris Allegretti sees Addie throughout the year since he’s also the head coach for boys’ indoor track, and the boys and girls practice together. Allegretti is well acquainted with the vigor that Addie brings to her athletic endeavors.
“Addie is a talented runner for us. In the past few years, she’s developed as a tremendous athlete,” Allegretti says. “Her numbers have dramatically gotten better over the years. She was All-Shoreline cross country runner and she placed eighth in the state meet. She had her best time this year in the 3,200. It shows how much she’s developed as a runner.”
One thing that Addie has plenty of is passion. If you speak to her coaches, they’ll tell you that she approaches everything with tremendous zeal. In addition to coaching Addie, Allegretti is also her calculus teacher and so he sees firsthand how well Addie interacts with her fellow Valley students.
“In the classroom, she’s hardworking and quick to help other kids out,” says Allegretti. “Calculus is a very difficult course and she’s always very conscientious. She puts her best effort no matter what she does. Plus, she’s always trying to get other kids to run.”
Encouraging people to run is a hobby for Addie. She gets so much joy from running that she wants to share that joy with others. Part of Addie’s motivation to get people to join her is because she wasn’t sure she could stick with running when she started. The fact that she did is a point of pride for Addie and so she wants other new runners to follow in her footsteps.
“When I first started, I was running with people who were ranked top in the nation and it was really intimidating when I was younger, but I stuck with it,” says Addie. “Now, I love to compete and try to get better.”
While Addie has a great passion for long-distance running, she derives even more motivation by grinding it out among some of the best athletes in the state.
“My competitors help encourage me,” Addie says. “Long-distance running is such an ordeal. You compete with people for a long time, over a long race, and everyone’s in pain. So there’s a camaraderie even among competitors for putting ourselves through this struggle. Having those people to run against helped me just by watching how they dealt with it physically and mentally.”
Although Addie knows how grueling running can be, she also knows that it’s often beneficial for people to get out of their comfort zone and take a chance on something they think might be too difficult.
“Just to try something out and do a bit more,” she says. “People tend to think they can’t do something because it’s too hard, but then they do, and, even if they don’t like it, they can feel good that they tried something different.”