This Kiel boys cross country runner is the fastest freshman in the state
· Yahoo Sports
MISHICOT — There’s making an instant impact and then there’s the start Kiel freshman boys cross country runner Austin Helms has been off to.
Helms broke the Raiders school record of 16 minutes and 11.1 seconds in just his second varsity race, running a 16:06.7 in Mayville.
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Then he broke his own record in the very next race, shaving off six-tenths of a second at the Smiley Invitational in Wausau.
“Was a pretty cool experience to break it back-to-back,” Helms said.
Its not just school records that are an example of his fast start, he has the best time among any freshman boys runner in the state in any division by almost 40 seconds.
Kiel coach Tony Grybush isn’t too surprised of how well Helms has done given his pedigree.
“Austin is running awesome,” Grybush said. “He came in having run well in middle school so we had good expectations coming in.”
Added the coach:
“Good genes, first off,” Grybush laughed as to what makes Helms so successful. “I think he mentally knows what he’s doing and can challenge himself.”
The key according to Helms has been consistency.
“Running hard and staying consistent,” Helms said are his biggest strengths.
Grybush thinks Helms is almost underselling his talents.
“He understands training,” Grybush said. “His dad was a good runner so he has background in that. He’s also been a crazy good runner. He has that talent and knows how to use it to the best of his abilities.”
Accomplishing what he has so early makes it hard to figure out just how good Helms has the chance to be.
“You tell me,” Grybush said with a smile. “He’s super talented, one of the fastest freshman in the state. Just how well he trains to get better instead of just training to train.
“I don’t know where his ceiling or limit is. He’s got the guts to go for records and win races.”
Some runners, especially young runners, talk about goals but don’t put in the effort to accomplish them. That’s not Helms.
“If you have goals and don’t apply yourself you’re just talking but he’s not just talking,” Grybush said. “He’s been getting it done all summer and now early in the season.”
No matter what happens, both runner and coach can’t wait to see what the future holds.
“I’m excited to see what happens,” Helms said.
“Going to be fun seeing someone that talented run,” Grybush said.
Contact Tom Dombeck at 920-686-2965 or [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Tom_Dombeck.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: This Kiel boys cross country runner is the fastest freshman in the state