Ashley Brasovan is one of a handful of Florida athletes to qualify for Foot Locker Nationals in San Diego two times while at Wellington High School. Her time of 17:07 set in 2007 as a junior is the fifth fastest ever by a Floridian at Foot Locker South. Brasovan ran in one of the best Foot Locker South races for Floridians when she finished sixth behind Brittany Koziara (4th), Emile Amero (3rd), and Kayla Hale (2nd). As a senior, she was 4th earning her spot among the nation's best. We caught up with her to talk about her experience at Foot Locker South and life since then. (Photo by Brandon Miles)
Flrunners.com: How many times did you run Foot Locker South? How did you place?
Ashley Brasovan: I ran Foot Locker South all four years of high school, but qualified only the last two years (2007 and 2008) for the national meet. I definitely was not prepared for the cold of North Carolina!
FLR: What do you remember most about those races and competing in the postseason??
AB: Some of the best memories were made with the people I met through traveling, roommates, and warmup/cool downs. Even 7-8 years later, I keep in touch with many of the girls I competed with and hope to keep those friendships going for the rest of my life. Footlocker South and Nationals were both intense races and very high pressure, so keeping things fun and exciting with a good group of runners was always what I enjoyed the most. San Diego was also incredible in itself. Footlocker treats their athletes very well with dinners, an awesome hotel, gear, etc. It's something you will never get to experience again, so I would say to enjoy it while you can!
FLR: What do you remember most about those races and competing in the postseason??
AB: Some of the best memories were made with the people I met through traveling, roommates, and warmup/cool downs. Even 7-8 years later, I keep in touch with many of the girls I competed with and hope to keep those friendships going for the rest of my life. Footlocker South and Nationals were both intense races and very high pressure, so keeping things fun and exciting with a good group of runners was always what I enjoyed the most. San Diego was also incredible in itself. Footlocker treats their athletes very well with dinners, an awesome hotel, gear, etc. It's something you will never get to experience again, so I would say to enjoy it while you can!
FLR: I know the course has changed a little since you ran, but what advice do you have for runners that will be competing there this weekend against some of the top competition?
AB: Foot Locker South (McAlpine) can be a hard, but fast course. I always remember having to go out pretty fast in the first 800 meters to not get boxed in. It's really hard to pass people on that course so getting out from the beginning was always critical. Be careful with footing too. I face planted my senior year and think I still have scars on my knees from that race.
FLR: How did this meet help propel your running career after high school?
AB: Being in a high pressure race like Foot Locker South sets you up to run well with high level competition in college. It also teaches you that racing can be more tactical sometimes than just purely running fast or running your race. It's important to challenge yourself and put yourself out there in high school sometimes to be able to step up to that next level in college and be competitive.
FLR: You went onto run at Duke. Talk about your time as a Blue Devil?
AB: I ended up at Duke University in North Carolina (fell in love with that state obviously). I actually had way more ups and downs in college than in high school and didn't really have a great race until probably senior year cross country.
FLR: What are you up to these days?
AB: I moved out to Boulder, Colorado after graduate school this past June and am currently working in energy/sustainability consulting. I just started competing in running again this fall and have been training with the Boulder Track Club a little bit. I am hoping to hit the Olympic Trials standard in the half marathon (sub-1:15) this season and get some new PR's on the road circuit. I am just enjoying having fun with the sport right now and switching to something a little different from what I did in college!
