Bartlesville’s Preston Shoesmith
Preston Shoesmith, a sophomore at Bartlesville High School, runs cross country for the Bruins. He is also involved in club soccer, KLife, and his church youth group.
Shoesmith loves learning about aviation and cites some great teachers as some of his favorites – Ms. Hightower, Mrs. Brown, and Mrs. Workman. He gives his coaches credit as well.
“BHS is a great place as a student-athlete because we have some great coaches that make it really challenging but also fun at the same time,” he said. “They push us to do our best at every meet.”
Looking back on previous meets, Shoesmith says that Holland Hall hosts his favorite compeition because of the hills and the great memories made at that meet. When it comes to specific moments in his sport, he can recall a few favorites.
“My favorite memory as a runner would be when I got fifth place in the 800m at regionals in track this past spring with a time of 2:06, and also when I broke 4:58 in the mile at regionals,” he said. “I also had fun running cross country last year with my sister Lauren when she was a senior and I was a freshman.”
Shoesmith enjoys the comradery among his fellow runners.
“We have a lot of kids on the team who make people laugh. We like to have fun together,” he said. “Kate Manley is probably one of our most serious runners. She’s really focused during practice.”
Shoesmith holds onto this advice he received: “no matter what the outcome is, if I tried my hardest that is what counts!”