Bradi Hutchison breaks records and tape
Bradi Hutchison may be the best athlete on campus, yet a majority of fans have never seen her compete.
Hutchison is looking to qualify for the USA Track and Field Championships this summer. The event takes place in Des Moines, Iowa, on June 19.
The standard time to qualify for the event in the 5K is 15:50.
Her personal best in the 5K is 15:55.
Hutchison knows that she has to at least shed ten seconds off of her personal best.
“Even though a 15:50 is the standard it will probably take a 15:45 to qualify, so by the end of the season my goal is to consistently run a 15:40,” said Hutchison.
Hutchison prepared for the outdoor season by taking a long break from running over the summer. She used the fall as her base training. Her main focus has been working on her endurance and she has done that by increasing the amount of miles she can run.
The hard has work paid off. On Dec. 2 she ran in the Zappos.com Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon. She finished the 13.1-mile run with a time of 1:19.34.
Hutchison admitted that her expectations going into the race were low. She finished a couple of minutes slower than she was aiming for but given the circumstances it was understandable. This was Hutchison’s first competitive race outside the collegiate and high school atmospheres. It was also her first time competing in a half-marathon. She had never competed in anything longer than a 10K. The weather was bad and she had the flu during the race.
She beat everybody by over a minute.
Winning the marathon has opened Hutchison’s eyes to the possibility of running after college. The thought of competing in races beyond college had never occurred to Hutchison before winning this marathon. She had always planned to finish her degree and toyed with the idea of becoming a physician’s assistant.
“I’ve always been skeptical about running after college,” said Hutchison. “It’s really hard to do. But generally those that run in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon are really good. They are professional runners that all have sponsorships, so winning that marathon really made me rethink whether or not I could run professionally after college,” said Hutchison.
Making a living as a professional long-distance runner is different than making a living as an NFL or NBA athlete, where there is a concrete professional league to participate in with a structured salary for the athletes. There are also no “minor leagues” for professional long distance runners after college.
A runner’s main goal is to have somebody sponsor them. Once runners are sponsored they are paid by their sponsor to participate in various races rather than getting paid only if they win the race.
Since Hutchison was a college athlete she couldn’t accept the prize money for winning the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon.
“I never thought that running could be a career but the opportunities are starting to get better for me,” said Hutchison.
She has run cross-country and track and field at ISU for the past four years. In her career at ISU, Hutchison has set school records in the 3000m (9:23.28) and 5000m (16:11.33). During the 2010-11 season, she finished first in the women’s 5K at the Big Sky Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Hutchison’s bread-and-butter race is the 5K, which takes a combination of speed and endurance. She is looking to add the 10K and the half-marathon to her arsenal.
This will be her last semester competing for ISU.
“It’s sad and it’s exciting at the same time. Last year was my last cross-country season and indoor season and now I just have outdoors left,” said Hutchison.
If the outdoor track season goes well she said she would start looking for sponsorships.
“Our girls team is really good and I think we can win a couple conference championships,” said Hutchison.
Last year Hutchison redshirted during the outdoor track season but was running at a pace fast enough to qualify for nationals.
“Obviously nationals is a big goal for me. It’s not going to be easy but its something that is definitely in my realm,” said Hutchison.
