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08/12/2021 12:00 AMCaleb Harris admits that he wasn’t the best runner when he first started competing in his freshman year of high school. However, Caleb was motivated to get the most out of his ability and worked hard to improve in all facets as a mid-distance runner for Guilford.
Caleb went on to have a solid career as a member of Guilford’s boys’ cross country and track programs. A recent graduate, Caleb feels proud about how much progress he made with the Grizzlies.
“I’ve been seriously running for four years,” says Caleb. “I got into running, because it was something that I wasn’t very good at from the start and something I had inspiration to improve in. I was inspired by the seniors my freshman year to get into the sport and by my fellow graduating seniors this year to dedicate myself to it.”
Caleb achieved several personal-record (PR) times in his senior season with the outdoor track team this year. In his individual events, Caleb recorded personal bests in the 400 (57.0), the 800 (2:06.01), the 1,600 (4:58.7), and the 5,000 (17:59). He also ran on a 4x800 relay team that qualified for the State Open after finishing second at East Sectionals, fourth at SCCs, and third in Class MM.
“My season went absolutely incredibly. It was my first track season of my high school career, despite running cross country all four years, so I was very nervous about what events I would be running,” Caleb says. “I quickly found an even greater love for the track than the trails and was setting new PR’s every race and having fun doing it. It was a great contrast to a worrisome cross country season that was tarnished by injury and anxiety.”
Much of Caleb’s anxiety in the cross country season stemmed from the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevented a few sports from being played at all during the recent school year. Even with all of the uncertainties, Caleb still helped the Grizzlies have a stellar season that saw the squad win the SCC Division A title.
When it was time for spring sports, Caleb felt comfortable enough to join the outdoor track team after learning about the safety plan that was put into place for the campaign.
“In the beginning I was concerned, but the manner in which meets were handled was extremely responsible,” says Caleb. “I felt completely safe during every race, and the officials of the CIAC and the SCC, as well as the athletic staff of Guilford and every school we ran against, were vigilant and understanding of the threat of the pandemic. I’m very glad I had the chance to run this year, when people were losing seasons left and right.”
Boys’ outdoor track Head Coach George Cooksey was overjoyed to see all of Caleb’s effort pay off this year. Cooksey says that Caleb immediately became a leader for the Grizzlies, while providing great support and sage advice for his teammates.
“Caleb’s full commitment to his own training and racing, coupled with his team-first attitude, made him a remarkable leader on the team,” Cooksey says. “Caleb was driven to make the most of his talents and to help others do the same. He constantly reminded his teammates to get their rest—especially the night before the night before a big race—stretch well, and support one another. His positive attitude served to glue the team together.”
Caleb and senior captain Reese Puchalski adopted the mantra of “Embracing the Process” throughout the 2021 season. The senior duo embraced the process by putting in many miles in order to trim their times as their teammates did so right along with them.
“Both of us struggled with major injuries in our high school careers and, at times, the only thing we could do was put our heads down and work,” says Caleb. “Trusting in our coaching and focusing on improving every day in our form, running, stretching, and strength allowed me and the team to improve at a great rate, even though we dreaded the Saturday hill workouts.”
In addition to his success as a runner, Caleb also excelled in the classroom and came away from his senior year having earned the Scholar Athlete Award for Guilford. Caleb’s academic success led to him receiving a Presidential Scholarship to attend Western Connecticut State University (WCSU), where he will run cross country and study music.
It means a lot to Caleb to have an opportunity to compete in college. Caleb never would have thought that possible when he first suited up for Guilford four years ago.
“I’ll be attending and running at WCSU next year on the Presidential Scholarship,” Caleb says. “My greatest accomplishment is coming from the scrawny freshman who couldn’t run a mile to the collegiate runner I am today.”