nicksymmonds.com/aboutme.htm

Well, first off, I created this site so that family, friends and fans can keep up with my career. I owe my parents and my many friends back in Boise, Idaho a HUGE thanks for keeping everyone updated over the past few years. Hopefully this site will make it even easier to check race schedules and find results and news links. I suppose I'll start at the beginning! I was born in Blytheville, Arkansas on December 30, 1983. My dad, Jeffrey Symmonds was stationed there as a surgeon in the United States Air Force. He, my mom Andrea, and I, left Arkansas shortly after my birth to live in Rochester, Minnesota. When I was 3, my dad found a job in the town I grew up in, Boise. Our ranch there is up against the foothills and is surrounded by running trails, which may have played a large part in my eventual career choice. As a kid I enjoyed playing around the house with my sister, Lauren, and generally anything that got me outdoors. My first love was soccer which I began playing at the age of 8. By 10 I was on a very competitive club team that traveled all around the Northwest. I had a lot of passion for soccer, but that began to change when I went out for the cross country team in 8th grade. Originally, I joined in order to spend more time with a couple of cute girls on the team, but soon found that I had a natural ability for long distance running. I wasn't quite hooked, but I wasn't quite done with running after that first season. I decided to run for Bishop Kelly High School in the fall of '01 instead of going out for the soccer team. It was on the first day of practice that I met Tom Shanahan, the coach that would teach me how to win races, but more importantly, to love running. Tom, a goofy but very intelligent Irishman, had his work cut out for him with me and my teammates who preferred running to the the mall for free cookies or throwing footballs at geese to 1000m repeats. However, he is a very patient man and has made BK distance running one of the finest programs in Idaho. We had a successful season that fall, but I opted to play soccer in the spring rather than run track. As a 5'2, 95 pound sophmore I began to realize that I probably had more of a future in running than I did in soccer and that spring I went out for the track team. Though it was difficult to give up the sport that I had enjoyed for 7 years, I was still able to play my favorite sport or all, ice hockey, in the winters. In my junior year my dedication to running paid off. I finished 2nd in the Idaho State Cross Country Championships and won the Idaho State Titles in the 800m, 1600m, 3200m, and 4x400m. Senior year was similar, winning the Idaho State Titles at 5k cross country, 800m, 1600m, 3200m, and 4x400m. During that year I was largely influenced by Coach Shanahan to look at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. Though I had won many states titles, my times weren't very competitive nationally and this small liberal arts university seemed like a perfect place for me to study and train. My choice to run at a DIII schools seems odd to some and, at this level, makes me stand out from all the D1 phenoms, but it was the place that made me into the runner I am today. I was surrounded by teammates, friends, teachers, coaches, and mentors that all had an enormous amount of love and time to give to me. I progressed from a kid who could win races at the state level to a kid who could win races at the national level. I won my first national titles as a freshman in the 800m and 1500m against some of the best runners to go through DIII. Though my success seemed to be coming very easily, my determination was put to the test sophomore year. After a great summer of training I came to cross county fit and ready to take on anyone at 8k, but a reoccurring knee injury led to a redshirted season. That winter the problem was diagnosed and I went into surgery for a double knee plicectomy. As a result of the 6 months of down time during this injury, I felt unprepared to defend both my 800m and 1500m titles and decided to race only the 800m that spring. My college career progressed and I became stronger and more mature and my times began to come down. As my passion for running increased, so did the difficulty of my classes. While sitting through endless Biochemistry lectures I found myself day dreaming of races in Europe. I knew I had the potential to be great, I just needed the opportunity to prove it to myself and to the rest of the world. As it would turn out, the culmination of my college career and this opportunity came at about the same time. In May of '06 I flew out to an 800m race in Nashville, Tennessee to try and get my USA Outdoor qualifying mark. I won that race with an "A" standard and caught a plane the next morning back to Oregon. My parents picked me up in Portland and we raced down I-5 to my graduation. I was still running and putting on my cap and gown as my classmates were walking to their seats. Though it was a hectic weekend, it was the most rewarding of my life. For me, that day marked the end of one part of my life and the beginning of another. I would go onto run 1:45.83 and take 2nd at the USA Outdoor Championships in the 800m. This race secured me a spot on a US team that summer, a contract with Nike, and the recognition I had longed for. Since that day I have been living the life that I spent many class periods dreaming of. I am currently training with Coach Frank Gagliano and the Oregon Track Club in Eugene, OR. It is an honor to train with such an elite club and for such a legendary coach. I hope to make Gags and my team proud by earning a spot on the 2008 USA Track and Field Team to compete at the Olympics in Beijing!
Copyright © 2007 www.nicksymmonds.com All Rights Reserved

Well, first off, I created this site so that family, friends and fans can keep up with my career. I owe my parents and my many friends back in Boise, Idaho a HUGE thanks for keeping everyone updated over the past few years. Hopefully this site will make it even easier to check race schedules and find results and news links.

I suppose I'll start at the beginning! I was born in Blytheville, Arkansas on December 30, 1983. My dad, Jeffrey Symmonds was stationed there as a surgeon in the United States Air Force. He, my mom Andrea, and I, left Arkansas shortly after my birth to live in Rochester, Minnesota. When I was 3, my dad found a job in the town I grew up in, Boise. Our ranch there is up against the foothills and is surrounded by running trails, which may have played a large part in my eventual career choice.

As a kid I enjoyed playing around the house with my sister, Lauren, and generally anything that got me outdoors. My first love was soccer which I began playing at the age of 8. By 10 I was on a very competitive club team that traveled all around the Northwest. I had a lot of passion for soccer, but that began to change when I went out for the cross country team in 8th grade. Originally, I joined in order to spend more time with a couple of cute girls on the team, but soon found that I had a natural ability for long distance running. I wasn't quite hooked, but I wasn't quite done with running after that first season. I decided to run for Bishop Kelly High School in the fall of '01 instead of going out for the soccer team. It was on the first day of practice that I met Tom Shanahan, the coach that would teach me how to win races, but more importantly, to love running. Tom, a goofy but very intelligent Irishman, had his work cut out for him with me and my teammates who preferred running to the the mall for free cookies or throwing footballs at geese to 1000m repeats. However, he is a very patient man and has made BK distance running one of the finest programs in Idaho. We had a successful season that fall, but I opted to play soccer in the spring rather than run track.

As a 5'2, 95 pound sophmore I began to realize that I probably had more of a future in running than I did in soccer and that spring I went out for the track team. Though it was difficult to give up the sport that I had enjoyed for 7 years, I was still able to play my favorite sport or all, ice hockey, in the winters.

In my junior year my dedication to running paid off. I finished 2nd in the Idaho State Cross Country Championships and won the Idaho State Titles in the 800m, 1600m, 3200m, and 4x400m. Senior year was similar, winning the Idaho State Titles at 5k cross country, 800m, 1600m, 3200m, and 4x400m. During that year I was largely influenced by Coach Shanahan to look at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon. Though I had won many states titles, my times weren't very competitive nationally and this small liberal arts university seemed like a perfect place for me to study and train.

My choice to run at a DIII schools seems odd to some and, at this level, makes me stand out from all the D1 phenoms, but it was the place that made me into the runner I am today. I was surrounded by teammates, friends, teachers, coaches, and mentors that all had an enormous amount of love and time to give to me. I progressed from a kid who could win races at the state level to a kid who could win races at the national level. I won my first national titles as a freshman in the 800m and 1500m against some of the best runners to go through DIII.

Though my success seemed to be coming very easily, my determination was put to the test sophomore year. After a great summer of training I came to cross county fit and ready to take on anyone at 8k, but a reoccurring knee injury led to a redshirted season. That winter the problem was diagnosed and I went into surgery for a double knee plicectomy. As a result of the 6 months of down time during this injury, I felt unprepared to defend both my 800m and 1500m titles and decided to race only the 800m that spring.

My college career progressed and I became stronger and more mature and my times began to come down. As my passion for running increased, so did the difficulty of my classes. While sitting through endless Biochemistry lectures I found myself day dreaming of races in Europe. I knew I had the potential to be great, I just needed the opportunity to prove it to myself and to the rest of the world.

As it would turn out, the culmination of my college career and this opportunity came at about the same time. In May of '06 I flew out to an 800m race in Nashville, Tennessee to try and get my USA Outdoor qualifying mark. I won that race with an "A" standard and caught a plane the next morning back to Oregon. My parents picked me up in Portland and we raced down I-5 to my graduation. I was still running and putting on my cap and gown as my classmates were walking to their seats. Though it was a hectic weekend, it was the most rewarding of my life. For me, that day marked the end of one part of my life and the beginning of another. I would go onto run 1:45.83 and take 2nd at the USA Outdoor Championships in the 800m. This race secured me a spot on a US team that summer, a contract with Nike, and the recognition I had longed for.

Since that day I have been living the life that I spent many class periods dreaming of. I am currently training with Coach Frank Gagliano and the Oregon Track Club in Eugene, OR. It is an honor to train with such an elite club and for such a legendary coach. I hope to make Gags and my team proud by earning a spot on the 2008 USA Track and Field Team to compete at the Olympics in Beijing!