A trip not taken was time well spent.
Christian Gering chose not to go home to New Mexico last offseason to focus on his training at altitude in Colorado.
That focus put the junior on the All-South Central region team and helped qualify him for the 2013 NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships on Saturday in Spokane, Wash.
Gering finished 23rd at the regional meet Nov. 9 in Canyon, Texas. The top-25 result earned him All-Region honors. Being one of the top three individuals not on a nationals-qualifying team put him on the nationals’ starting line.
“It’s definitely an honor to represent Fort Lewis College and all of Durango,” Gering said during his final week of practice. “The goal, for myself anyway, was to get the recognition of becoming All-Region. It was a bit unexpected when I found out I qualified for nationals.”
The stage won’t overwhelm Gering; he’s been there before.
He ran the second fastest 10-kilometer race in FLC history at last year’s national championships in Joplin, Mo., helping the Skyhawks to a 23rd-place team finish. The 31-minute, 9.2-second 10K, of course, is his personal record.
Gering will run by himself in Spokane, though, as FLC didn’t qualify as a team.
“That will be an aspect he’ll need to try and overcome,” FLC cross country head coach Mark Dutro said. “He’s pretty much been our top guy all season. He knows his teammates are behind him, whatever distance that may be, but he’s not going to have that now. He’s gotta dismiss the team concept and go ‘this is about me.’”
He won’t necessarily be running alone, though.
Five teams from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference qualified, so Gering will have some familiar faces and a few friends at the starting line.
Adams State, Western State, Colorado School of Mines, Metro State and New Mexico Highlands all qualified for nationals, and all are nationally ranked. Adams State is ranked first in the nation, Western State second, Colorado Mines sixth, Metro State 14th and N.M. Highlands 21st.
(Adams State, Metro State, UC-Colorado Springs and Western State qualified in the women’s field.)
“Our conference, overall nationally, is one of the best conferences in the nation,” he said. “It produces a lot of good runners. It pushes me to be one of those runners.”
Gering would love to finish in the top 40 and be recognized as an All-American while running a personal-best time.
“It’s definitely possible given that I’m going down to sea level. As these last few weeks, I know my training is on point.”
Recent training isn’t what’s brought Gering to this point in the season, though; it has been his consistent mileage and improvement all season.
“He progressed in such a way that allowed him to improve,” Dutro said.
And it all started when Gering decided to stay in Durango and run rather than go back home and work in a field with his grandfather.
“It gave me a clear definition of what I wanted to do,” Gering said.
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
