Things have never come easy for Wood River High School senior Pedro Morales, so you can't underestimate what the slim and easy-going 5-6, 130-pound distance runner from Mexico has done for the Wood River cross country team this fall.
He has shown up for every practice and every race and battled through sickness and weariness. Working until midnight many nights to help support his family, Morales has kept his energy at a high level and enjoyed being part of a team.
Most of all, he has matured into a fine young man and contributor.
"This year has been phenomenal for Pedro," said Wood River boys' cross country coach James Foster. "He has had some challenges here as a high school student, but this year Pedro has focused on having success. When I look back on what he's done in the last three years, I'm amazed.
"He has a passion and love for running."
The results of his hard work and training have showed this year, all the way from the arduous, season-opening Targhee Challenge footrace Aug. 24 in the Grand Targhee foothills to Saturday's State 4A footrace for 680 prep runners in Idaho Falls.
He competed in all eight Wolverine events and was the leading Hailey boy in six of them. Morales said his main goal was to finish in the top three of each race. He did that four times—three third places and one memorable victory, in the Kimberly Invitational at Magic Mountain Ski Resort south of Twin Falls Sept. 13.
"I remember looking at Pedro on the bus to the Kimberly race and saying to him, you can win this race. He went out and did it," said Foster.
Morales' best race occurred nine days after his 17-second victory at Magic Mountain. He was third overall of 195 Division 1 varsity boys on the 5-kilometer Bob Firman Invitational course with a heady time of 16 minutes and 53 seconds. Morales was the top Idaho runner on the course at Eagle Island State Park, Boise.
Foster said, "Pedro was in second place at the Firman and backed off a bit. Another runner (Twin Falls junior Nick Jacobs) went past Pedro with 70 yards to go. But Pedro found another gear and beat him (Jacobs) by a solid yard. That fight came out in Pedro and I thought, he's here."
Morales said about the Firman, "I started real good and pressed a lot."
Pedro's improvement compared to the 2006 Bob Firman was remarkable. Last September he finished 70th overall in 18:23. Running with more confidence and stamina this year, Morales was 67 places better and 90 seconds faster than last year's race.
After the Firman, Morales also finished third in the Twin Falls Kleinkopf Classic Oct. 3 at Canyon Springs Golf Course and at one point was ranked sixth statewide in the Idahoxc.com prep rankings. That's when Morales started getting sick.
"I got sick and my temperature got high," said Morales, who cut back on his training for a week.
Foster added, "Pedro works nights (at a restaurant) and often doesn't get off until 11 p.m. or midnight. I know we asked him at one point, is there anyway you can get eight hours of sleep? He laughed and said he usually got five or six hours and that was the best he could do."
His teammates recognize what Morales has accomplished, however, and they go the extra mile to help. Foster said, "Lacie (Anderson) helps him on the bus with his Economics and Zack Lowry brings him lunches. Different people look out for him. He gets positive feedback from his teammates, but that's because that natural respect exists with his team.
"Pedro has been a quiet leader this year and the kids picked him as a co-captain. He's not vocal. He leads by putting out. He's been a big influence on (sophomore) Chase Caulkins. When we do challenging workouts they push each other all the way."
When Morales got sick and saw his meet finishing times dip 30 or 40 seconds and his finishing places drop to 11th at Gooding Oct. 9 and 16th in the Great Basin Conference meet Oct. 18, Caulkins picked up the slack.
By Saturday's state meet in Idaho Falls they ran side-by-side at the end.
Morales wanted to finish in the top five at Saturday's state race. He didn't achieve that goal, but in his first-ever state competition Pedro finished a strong 11th of 93 4A boys in 17 minutes and 17 seconds, just 46 seconds off the winning time—and only 17 seconds out of fifth place.
Only one second behind in 12th was his teammate, Chase Caulkins. Both earned medals for finishing in the top 20 at state cross country.
Morales, 18 in December, has gone the extra mile in training this fall. Besides weekday workouts with the Hailey team, he will run for an hour on Saturday along the bike path or up the canyons, and he'll do 20 minutes of long distance and four 400-meter sprints on Sunday.
"Anytime kids make the decision to do training of their own, it will impact what they do on the cross country team," said Foster.
Morales has been a Wood River student and cross country team participant for all four years he has lived here, since moving from Mexico with father Valentin Morales and mother Maria Lopez. His mother still lives here and works as a housecleaner supporting Pedro and younger brother Andres, an eighth grader.
Increasingly Pedro picked up the pace in his running, many times going out on runs with former Wood River runner Gerardo Garcia. In the spring, Morales does the 1600-meter, 3200m and 800m distance runs for the Wood River track and field team.
Morales has run up to 16 miles in his training and could do more long distance running in the future.
He placed 11th, second in his age class to Garcia, in the inaugural Sun Valley/US Half Marathon 13.1-mile race over Memorial Day 2006. Pedro's time in that race was 1.36:07. This past May, running in the same half marathon, Morales was 11th again, won his class and improved his time by 1:35 with a 1.34:32 finish.
"For me, running gives me a distraction so I can have a healthier life," said Morales, who has worked in landscaping, housecleaning and as a chef's assistant, and wants to be a chef or personal trainer in the future.
About his running coaches Foster and Joel Zellers, Morales said, "The coaches have given me a lot of attention. Mr. Foster has helped me with a lot of things. He's always talking to me, especially if I'm late for practice. He tries to make me more responsible. I thank him for all he's done for me in four years. I've learned a lot."
Pedro Morales gets ready to take another after-school training run at Hailey?s Wood River High School.Express photo by Jeff Cordes
