By Chris Cox
Like many runners, Altus senior Terrance Green enjoys the singular focus that comes with running.
“Most of the time, there’s not much going through my head. I’m just thinking about the race,” he says. “If there’s a person in front of me, I’ll think about catching them and passing them. But for most races, I just like to get in my own head and run.”
For the most part, running has come easy to Green. However, Green doesn’t take that ease for granted. He credits one of friends, former Altus track star Donovan Bradley, for inspiring him to keep working hard.
“Honestly, it’s come fairly easy for me,” he says. “My friend, Donovan, has been a big help. He set a good example for me. He also was usually right ahead of me so he gave me something to catch up to.”
Green will be busy this spring. He is set to compete in the 400, 4×100 relay, 4×200 relay, and 4×400 relay. That schedule might be daunting to some people but Green’s coach, Robert Garrison, believes Terrance is ready for the challenge and ready to push his teammates to new heights.
“Terrance will be depended on in many events during the season,” he says. “Terrance has taken on the role of one of the leaders of the team this year and has shown that leadership so far in this early season.”
That leadership role is not something Green takes lightly.
“It means a lot that Coach Garrison counts on me to lead the guys in practice and push them,” Green says. “I want to encourage them while their running and try to encourage them to run faster. I just want to make sure they don’t give up.”
Outside of running track for Altus, Green runs on the cross country team, something he says helps him when he gets into the shorter races during track season.
“Considering I run mid distances, cross country has really helped me with my stamina,” he says. “It really helps me not burn out at the end of races. Track also helps in cross country because it gives me that final burn I need at the end of long races.”
Following graduation, Green hopes to get the opportunity to run in college. Regardless of where he goes, Terrance plans on studying to become a physical therapist.
