by Brandon Call
Daily Lobo
Track and field head coach Matt Henry has no idea why Ariel Burr is such a talented runner.
"If I could answer that, I'd be a millionaire," Henry said. "It's not any one thing I can put my finger on."
The junior sprinter won the 400-meter dash in a time of 55.23 seconds at the TCR Invitational at the Albuquerque Convention Center on Saturday.
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Burr possesses many traits that make her successful and are the
reason for her achievements, he said.
"Ariel works very hard in practice," Henry said. "She is extremely dedicated."
Motivation isn't the only thing Burr has going for her, Henry said.
"Ariel is also very smart," he said. "She really studies the event. She really gets to know her opponents."
Saturday's win was not Burr's first of the season. She has an additional three first-place finishes in the 400-meter dash.
Burr is also the opening leg of the 4x400-meter relay and has clocked a personal best time of 24.55 in the 200-meter sprint, one of the fastest of Henry's seven-year tenure
at UNM.
Burr's refusal to lose keeps those first-place finishes coming in,
Henry said.
"Ariel's a natural competitor," he said. "There is something built inside her that wants to win. I don't know if we can teach that, but Ariel has it."
Last season, Burr shattered the 16-year-old school record in the 400 and became the first UNM woman to win All-Mountain West Conference honors in the event. She also finished second at the MWC Championships and qualified for the NCAA Midwest Regional Championships in Austin, Texas.
Burr first began running in her hometown of El Paso, Texas.
Burr said running has been her passion since childhood.
"I've been running ever since I could walk," she said. "I've been running competitively since
seventh grade."
Burr moved to the tiny town of Carrizozo, N.M., population 1,063, when she was 7.
While in high school, Burr lettered in track and field five years for the class 1A Carrizozo Grizzlies. She captured 14 individual state titles and an additional four relay titles. She also led the Grizzlies to three consecutive team titles from
2001-03.
Burr was one of 14 graduates at Carrizozo High School in 2004.
Burr is as focused on school as she is on running. The junior - who is a two-time MWC All-Academic honoree - is a 2005 MWC Scholar-Athlete award winner.
Burr is majoring in psychology and wants to pursue a career in the field when she is done with school.
"In the future, I'd like to become a clinical psychologist," she said. "After I graduate, I want to attend
grad school."
Burr said she has high expectations for the MWC Championships from Feb. 22-24 at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
"If I work hard enough, I think I can get first in the 400," she said. "That's what I'm hoping for."
Henry also expects great things from Burr.
"I'm looking for the best," he said. "If she has the day like I think she can have, she'll be the next conference champ."
