Race Stories: Austin Pondel

When people looked down the list of returning medalists before the 2012 XC season, not many were picking Austin Pondel as the potential state champion in PA. But that didn't mean Austin wasn't ready to have a break out year on the trails this fall. Pondel stepped up his mileage over the summer and worked on his strength to help carry him through the difficult state course. He also injected some speed into his workouts: it was something he felt he could improve on and would need to improve on in order to achieve his goals.

Pondel realized his hard work had paid off early in the season when he exploded onto the scene at the McDowell invitational, winning big (21 seconds) and scaring the course record. Then Pondel waited for his next chance to prove himself, crushing his competition at a series of meets before finally getting his battle with D10 rival Dan Jaskowak. Pondel and Jaskowak pushed together all the way to the line in an impressive display of mud running and guts. It also proved to Pondel that he had more speed than he thought, holding off a guy like Jaskowak for as long as he did. Everything was coming together for a fantastic state meet.

However, the state meet almost never goes perfect. At the narrow start things were hectic for Pondel as he came extremely close to being knocked down in the crowd. Eventually, Pondel was able to navigate the stormy waters and climb to the lead. He pushed the pace from just before the two mile mark and kept things fast, a gutsy move on the state course that may have helped pull Tony Russell to the CR. Pondel held on strong over the final mile of the race and was just barely edged by Kennedy for 2nd at the finish. It was a truly impressive performance, especially coming off the mud run the weekend before.

Pondel was the top Senior in the race for the state of PA. It is an even more impressive feat when you consider all the individuals who bested him a year earlier at the state meet that returned, including the state champion Conner Quinn. Austin proved that hard work and strong will power can help you achieve your goals. He also kept the respect up for D10 giving the district another top 5 finish to boast.