FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302
(article posted by Jeremy Rushing, Student Sports Information Assistant)

Oct. 30, 2012 - Many people struggle to even complete running a mile.  John Crain, on the other hand, can do so in less than four minutes.  At a road race during the summer, John posted a time of 3 minutes, 58.47 seconds!.  John's brain moves just about as fast as his feet.  John has an Academic All-College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) award to go along with the accolades he has received on the track.
               
John placed 15th at the CCIW Championships and earned Academic All-CCIW honors in his freshman season at North Central. The sociology major really turned it on as a sophomore, finishing fifth at the CCIW Championships, 24th at the NCAA Midwest Regional, and 48th at the NCAA Division III National Championships. He earned All-CCIW and All-Midwest Region honors.
               
In his junior campaign, John has continued to step up his game, earning a pair of CCIW Runner of the Week Awards and placing second at Saturday's CCIW Championships to help the Cardinals win their 39th consecutive team title. He and the North Central harriers will be looking to win their fifth straight Midwest Region Championship and their third NCAA Division III national title in four years in November.

Q: How long have you been running competitively?
A: I've been running competitively since eighth grade so it's been quite a bit of time.

Q: What do you like most about running?
A: There's a lot of things I like about it.  One of my favorite parts of it is you completely control every aspect of your run.  You control how fast you go, where you go, and there's nobody there telling you to speed up or slow down. 
There's a lot of freedom.

Q: What events do you compete in during the track season?
A: I compete in the 1500 meters, which is basically the metric mile.  I also run the 5,000 ,meters. 

Q: Did you ever participate in any other sports outside of cross country or track?
A: I played football my freshman year of high school. Surprisingly enough, I was a lineman.

Q: What was it like to compete at the NCAA Division III National Championships last season?
A: It was awesome to be there with the nation's top athletes. Just getting out there and competing was amazing.  I didn't have a good race but it was still a lot of fun and it's experience I'll be able to use a lot in the coming years.

Q: How did it feel to earn both All-Conference and All-Region Honors last year as only a sophomore?
A: That was really cool.  I had a goal in mind to do the best I could for the team, and I guess on that day that meant becoming All-Conference and All-Region.

Q: Has anyone else in your family run competitively?
A: No, I'm actually the first person.  My dad runs to stay in shape but besides that he was a basketball player and my mom was a cheerleader.  I'm kind of breaking the mold.

Q: What is your favorite part about running for coach Al Carius?
A: My favorite part is how positive he is around the team each day.  Even if you're having a bad day, he teaches life lessons about treating things in a positive manner.  You learn so many life-lessons being a part of this program and it's awesome.

Q: You ran a sub-4 minute mile in a road race this summer, what was that feeling like? 
A: Well it was downhill, definitely aided.  It was a really cool experience.  I got to compete against an Olympic Trial athlete there and I still ended up winning.  It was a cool experience, but I hope one day I can actually do it on a flat surface.

Q: What's your favorite class you have taken so far at North Central?
A: Criminology.  I like learning about the social justice system and its flaws.  The class makes me look at it in a new way that I never thought about before.

Q: What are your plans after graduation?
A: I would like to run somewhat competitively for as long as I can.  I just want to keep competing and having fun.  I don't think I'm ready to stop competing, I love it too much.

Q: Who are your role models?
A: Al Carius would have to be my #1 role model just because of everything he teaches us day in and day out.