Christian Groendyk, a senior at Fort Collins High in Colorado and an all-state competitor in cross country and track, joins DyeStat editor Erik Boal to discuss his pursuit of the Class 5A state title Oct. 29 at Norris-Penrose Events Center in Colorado Springs, as well as preparing to represent the United States on Nov. 6 in the Under-20 6.4-kilometer Up/Down Mountain Race at the inaugural World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Groendyk will be joined on the American Under-20 roster by Portland freshman and former Rocky Mountain High standout Dalton Kaines, as well as Gonzaga freshman and South Medford High in Oregon graduate Michael Maiorano, in addition to Hellgate High of Montana graduate Ignatius Fitzgerald. He speaks about how meaningful the collaboration has been with Fort Collins coach Tom Ruthven and how beneficial the communication has been throughout his career. Groendyk shares how he has recovered from iron deficiency and low ferritin levels and how that has led to remarkable gains in training and competition. He explans how much experience he has gained from competing at the RunningLane Championships in Alabama, along with the Arcadia Invitational in California and the Nike Outdoor Nationals in Oregon, and how instrumental that has been in his preparation for elite meets this fall such as the Liberty Bell Invitational on Sept. 10 and the Desert Twilight Festival on Sept. 30. Groendyk also analyzes his development the past two years on the Norris-Penrose course and learning a mature tactical racing strategy that can place him in contention to capture the title after placing ninth last year. He reflects on the prestigious history Fort Collins has established in cross country and shares how significant it would be to become the first boys state champion for the Lambkins since Josh Lybarger triumphed in Class 5A in 1995 and the sixth male athlete to win in program history. Groendyk also examines how profound it would be to follow athletes like Tanner Brown from Chaparral, Parker Wolfe of Cherry Creek and Valor Christian graduate Cole Sprout as the 5A state champion, in addition to enjoying the postseason success of friend and Stanford freshman Zane Bergen, who secured the 4A title at Niwot along with earning All-America honors at both the RunningLane Championships and Eastbay National Championships (known this year as the CHAMPS Sports Championships). He also emphasizes how important meditation and visualization have been in his career, both competing in cross country and track, along with at the national level in the Science Bowl and Knowledge Bowl. Groendyk is scheduled to compete Oct. 20 in the Class 5A Region 4 meet at Margaret Carpenter Recreation Center in Thornton, with Fort Collins looking to win the team title after placing second to Rocky Mountain last year.