Senior Parker Blakeslee announced on Halloween this year that he will take his running talents to Ripon College. He will run cross country at the non-profit four year college in Ripon, Wisconsin. 

  Ripon College is the running hub for talented young runners. The college claims to have some of the most improved athletes at the collegiate level. With over 50 acres of running trails and a great indoor facility, they put their athletes in the best position to succeed. 

  Blakeslee is excited to attend this school and hopefully bring his times down. He does plan on keeping his college career in Ripon. 

  He has been involved with cross country all four years of high school and has excelled at the high school level. 

  Blakeslee placed 12th of 142 at the conference meet at Galesburg earning his second consecutive all-conference recognition. At regionals, Parker ran a lifetime personal record of 16 minutes and 26 seconds in the three mile and individually qualified for sectionals.

  “But sectionals were not too great for me because it would end up being the last race of my high school career,” says Blakeslee. He looks at this race as a learning experience and hopes the knowledge he gained from this race transfers to the next level.

  Even with the longer races and increased workout load, Blakeslee is confident in his ability to transfer to the collegiate level. 

  Although Blakeslee is a very talented runner, he credits his running ability to his coaches. Blakeslee statesd, “My coaches played a role in my improvement because they always believed that I could be better and they always encouraged me to put in the work when I was being lazy.” 

  Blakeslee is still selecting his interests for his major in college but he plans to pursue a career involving sports. 

  Blakeslee loves running and advises young runners to do what they love and to not give up when they fail. These simple guidelines have been a very important reason for Blakeslee’s running success.