PEABODY — Born to run — it looks great on a T-shirt, but the truth is great runners aren't simply born. They're built.
Take Peabody High distance ace Nick Christensen. He did not roll out of bed, smooth out his long, bushy hair and simply run one of the fastest mile times by a high school boy in the United States this year.
That time, 4:12 at an open meet at Boston University and, now, Peabody's school record, was forged over four years of tireless work.
"His training was a plan from September of his freshman year," said Peabody boys track coach Fernando Braz. "We could tell right away that he had tremendous lungs; that was going to take care of itself. Right off the bat, we needed to work on his speed so that when he was senior, he would have this combination."
A true distance runner, Christensen has excelled at longer races — cross country 5Ks and the 2-mile — throughout his high school career. At 5-foot-7, he doesn't have a huge kick or amazing sprinting speed; his strength is in his lungs and in endurance that turns races into battles of attrition.
"The way I run, speed comes from strength. So freshman and sophomore years, all we worked on was my speed because I didn't have any," said Christensen, a 17-year-old senior.
In building a runner, there are no wasted afternoons. Every lung-burning maximum speed workout and each time the legs turn to jelly after a hard straightaway has a purpose. Braz preached patience, and now his star pupil is reaping the benefits of faith.
"Coach Braz told me dozens of times, 'Nick, relax. This is for four years from now, three years from now. It's not for the race this Saturday, but it will make sense down the road.' I had to believe in him," Christensen said.
Taking the long view wasn't easy. After finishing third in the Division 1 All-State cross country meet as a junior, Christensen had some setbacks. He didn't finish in the top 10 in an individual event in indoor or outdoor track last year, and wasn't hitting the goals he set for himself on the stopwatch.
"He was frustrated, but the thing is sometimes you have to take a small step backwards to go two steps forward," said Braz.
Healthy after battling injuries as a junior, Christensen had a relaxed, yet focused, summer building strength for a cross country season in which he won the Eastern Mass. Division 1 title and finished fourth at All-States.
Christensen said his record-setting mile time surprised him because he hasn't done a lot of speed work this winter: "It's all strength right now, and the idea was to see if I could hit maybe 4:18. To come out at 4:12 felt great."
"(Cross country coach) Joe Rocha is one of the best coaches in the state, and everything we're doing now is from the base they set this fall," Braz agreed.
New York (4) Minutes
Christensen's performance at BU on Jan. 1 earned him an invitation to USA Track & Field's US Open boys high school invitational mile, run at New York's Madison Square Garden this past weekend.
"At the hotel I was a little nervous, and I haven't been nervous for a race in a long time," Christensen said.
By the time the race began, Christensen was feeling proud and confident in front of 6,000 fans. The first lap went off in 69 seconds, much slower than the pace that would have favored the pride of Peabody. Boldly, he took off and seized the lead while pushing the pace.
"You have to know you can run with these guys," said Christensen. "I'm not the kind of runner that can blow everybody away at the end; I want to set a fast pace and see who has the guts to keep up."
Christensen led for better than two laps before Zavon Watkins of Liverpool, N.Y. passed him during the fourth lap. Peabody's senior was nosed out at the line and finished third with a time of 4:20.23, 1.23 seconds from winning.
"I would have benefitted from a faster pace, and I know that," Christensen said. "If I had a better strategy, seven out of 10 times, I can win that race. That's not how it worked out."
The thing that sets Christensen apart is his off-the-charts endurance — and he knows it. He attacks races with intensity and dares the competition to endure what he's willing to endure.
"That brashness he had as a freshman is what he had going for him," said Braz. "And as he's matured and grown, he's never lost that edge."
The US Open was broadcast on tape delay on ESPN2, and Christensen received countless messages from teammates and rivals congratulating him for running on such a big stage.
"Nick runs with a lot of pride — pride in himself, his culture and his teammates," said Braz. "He runs with a chip on his shoulder and he harnesses that immeasurable stuff."
'It's for everyone'
Christensen's quote of choice on his Facebook profile comes from a Kenny Chesney song, and reads in part, 'I might be the one the spotlight's on; But I didn't get here alone.'
In a sport many see as individual, it illustrates the immense gratitude that Christensen has for the people that helped build him into an elite runner.
"It's a perfect song — I didn't do this alone, no way," he said. "It's been everyone — my mom, my dad, teammates, my grandfather. The support of the whole school; Everything in my past has translated into my running and made me who I am."
Christensen is especially appreciative of his mother, who never misses a race, and Braz and Rocha, who took him under their wings when he was a brash and talented 14-year-old kid.
"They've done everything for me," said Christensen. "Coach Braz, he doesn't just teach you how to run; he teaches you how to get through life, people skills, lessons that help you down the road."
The strength of the Tanner track program is as a team, not as individuals. Christensen's favorite events are relays, and he's as proud of the fact his team has lost just one dual meet in 11 seasons of cross country, indoor and outdoor track as any of his records.
In fact, Christensen was invited to an elite meet in Boston this weekend. He declined and went to New York last weekend instead, because it would have meant he couldn't run in tomorrow's Northeastern Conference championship meet in Roxbury.
"That right there tells you everything you need to know about Nick," said Braz. "He has seen other runners skip league meets to run in elite events and he wasn't about to do that."
Despite his success in the mile, Christensen isn't sure what he'll run at the indoor state meet. Ultimately, he'd love to break Peabody's 5K and 2-mile school records, which are both held by his coach, Tanner Hall of Famer Braz.
He's also undecided on college, though the goal is a Division 1 program. Northeastern, UConn and Clemson, among others, have expressed interest. The key is finding the right fit academically, where he'd like to study physical therapy to stay involved in sports.
Seeing how much the work he's already put in has paid off only makes Christensen train harder, though his motivation does go beyond stop watches and making the medal stand.
"I just get in a zone and I know that this is who I am. That is what's opening the doors for me and this is my future," said Christensen.
A future not given, but earned. Not born, but built.
In the Nick of Time
Here's a look at Peabody senior Nick Christensen's impressive high school resume
*2011 Eastern Mass. Division 1 Cross Country champion
*2010, 2011 NEC Cross Country champion
*2010 NEC indoor 2-mile champion
*2011 NEC indoor mile champion
*2011 NEC outdoor 2-mile champion
*4 school records (mile, indoor/outdoor distance medley, sprint medley)
*Two-time Salem News XC Runner of the year
*Seven-time Salem News track all-star
