Interview wth Katelyn Bastert
by Shannon Martin

Bastert running in the Amboy [Illinois] Invitational on October 9, 2006, where she ran a 16:37. Of the three times she has run this race, she has broken the course record twice and tied her course record once. Photo Courtesy of: Andy Bastert

Katelyn Bastert, 17, of Cartharage, Illinois, has impressed many with her extraordinary achievements in cross country. Several people recommended that fast-women.com interview Bastert as a preview to the Foot Locker National Cross Country Championships. One running enthusiast claimed “Never in my life have I witnessed such a dominant force in cross country and track. The closest in recent memory would be Tim Broe.” Teens have Katelyn Bastert listed as one of their heroes on their MySpace pages. Bastert certainly dominates; she won her fourth straight high school state cross country title. She is only the second female in Illinois state history to have accomplished this feat.

The most unique factor about Bastert is that she plays two sports in the fall: cross country and volleyball. Furthermore, she does not have a cross country team at her high school; she runs as an individual. She does not have a coach to provide her with a training program; she determines her own training.

Bastert’s weekly mileage total rarely exceeds 20, yet she has produced amazing results. She has set several records in both track and cross country. She has an undefeated cross country career. She has already broken the 5:00 mile mark in track. She has won state titles in the 1600 meters and 3200 meters. Bastert is a successful anomaly to say the least.

Fast-women.com caught up with Bastert a week before the Foot Locker National Cross Country Championships. She admits to extreme nervousness prior to big meets, but you would never guess that, as she speaks with enthusiasm and confidence. And her records demonstrate that just maybe those nerves are beneficial.

Fast-Women.com: First of all I want to say congratulations on qualifying for Nationals! Are you excited to head out to San Diego?
Katelyn Bastert: I am very excited. I have never run on a team; I went to the Mid-East meet and I had a team, and I had a blast! I think a lot of people take it for granted when they have a team, but when I have a chance to be on a team, I find it to be so much more fun.

FW: Tell me how you became involved in running. I find your story so interesting, the fact that you run as an individual in cross country. You started out with track and field and ran as part of a team, right?
KB: Right. Cartharage has never really been a big running town. They [her high school] had a cross country team a long time ago. The first time I ever ran [track and field] was in seventh grade and I just did it because it was something to do and all of my friends did it.

I guess I was a little too easy-going because they stuck me in the mile because they couldn’t get anybody else to do it. I ended up running a 5:24 my first mile ever and I got second in state or something. It meant nothing to me, but people were making a lot of hubbub about it. So, I mean, that was the first time I ever ran.

I kept running track and then when I got to high school, my dad really wanted me to try out cross country. We didn’t have a team, but he had contacted the school and asked if it would be okay for me to run individually and they said it would be okay. He had run cross country. He had never been any good, but he did it and knew what it was about, and so he asked me if I’d try it. I was really busy as it was and at first, it just sounded like something else to put on my plate. He eventually talked me into it though and we agreed that if I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t do it the next year. He took me to my meets and we have just done it that way every year. Every year, we try to get the school to make a team, but they have never had enough interest, so I have just done it individually.

FW: And you have won the cross country state title every year since you have started. That must feel very encouraging!
KB: It’s really crazy. I don’t know, it seemed outlandish at first. Four years ago, I never even thought I would get one, so it’s been a big surprise for me.