Senior and cross country runner Chloe Tedder sat down with The Red Ledger’s Katie Curry who got to know her in the following Q&A:

The Red Ledger: How did you get into running?

Tedder:  “I got into running because everyone was in a sport in 7th grade and I was bad at soccer and softball and didn’t like volleyball, so I joined XC and I didn’t even know what it was until then.”

The Red Ledger: On a day-to-day basis, how much do you run? Does it change according to whatever season you are in?

Tedder: “When building up for a season I do a lot more base miles. Like right now i’m doing 80 miles a week so about 10 miles per day plus 15 on sunday for a long run. It seems like a lot but it makes me faster when I start cutting the mileage down closer to the meets like district and regionals and state.”

The Red Ledger: What’re your college plans?

Tedder: “I have no idea where I’m going to college yet and I wish I did but I do know I am going to run in college I just have to figure out where.”

The Red Ledger: How does running affect your personal life?

Tedder: “I have to watch what I eat when it gets close to a race. With running so much I also have freedom to eat some random stuff because of the calories I burn off. Sometimes its hard to get a lot of sleep with the amount of running I do but I make it work. You make time for what you love. And sometimes I have to sacrifice because I want to hang out with people but I have to say, ‘Well I have to run.’ And sometimes I don’t see people while running because I do a lot more than a lot of people on the team, so I wish that I could spend more time with my team but it will all pay off. I do make time to hang out with people, and my friends understand how much it means to me.”

The Red Ledger: Have you ever played another sport? If so which ones?

Tedder: “I played softball for a short period but I just liked playing in the red dirt. I went to a soccer camp and my mom was like ‘I put you in it because you liked to run (hint hint), but too much aggression.”

The Red Ledger: What’s the biggest misconception on runners?

Tedder: “People think you don’t have to try hard but every sport is difficult in their own way. No way I could ever get through a volleyball workout because my arms are weak and I basically cry when the ball hits my arms. Also, to be a runner you have to get out there and run everyday whether you want to or not and it just takes mental toughness to get through a workout. Runners are awesome.”