Ruth Senior is finding her pace, even though it’s 100 miles per hour slower than it used to be.
Growing up in Norwich, England, she ran a lot at an early age, but only to keep in shape for a different sport.
“I actually used to race cars, and I was a race-car driver,” she said. “I started running and training with my friend to keep fit, and it just went from there.”
Senior raced go-karts, saloon cars, and even did some Formula Ford racing.
But racing costs halted that interest. In place, Senior took up running, and so far, it’s turned out to be a good decision. In 2006, Senior made it to the World Junior Championships in Beijing, but a recurring stress fracture injury plagued her.
“I struggled for a few years at home,” she said. “It took me a long time to recover. It was moving out here that saved my running.”
She moved to New Mexico and enrolled at UNM a year and a half ago, mainly because of head coach Joe Franklin and the people on the team, Senior said.
“There are a lot of Brits on the team, and Coach Joe looks to England a lot,” she said. “I liked this place. I liked Joe, and this is where I decided to come.”
In her first season with the Lobos, Senior broke two school records: one in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and the 5,000-meter run.
“I couldn’t stop smiling for two weeks after it,” she said.
Senior earned a spot in the NCAA Finals but experienced the most disappointing moment of her life: She fell jumping out of the first water pit and finished in ninth place.
“I bummed in the race,” Senior said.
Now a senior, she knows this is her last chance to make things right. This time around, Senior said she is determined to reach nationals in the 5,000- and 10,000-meter runs.
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Head coach Joe Franklin said Senior is tenacious and an asset to the Lobos.
“She’s a bright young woman, has outstanding grades, (is a) helpful teammate and works really hard,” he said. “She’s had a lot of success, even at a young age, had some rough spots, but had a lot of potential.”
In her first meet of the indoor season, Senior placed first in the mile run with a time of 4:54.66.
In addition to track, she is an All-American for the the UNM cross-country team and helped it win its second-straight Mountain West Conference championship.
Senior said running changed her life for the better and she doesn’t know what type of person she’d be without it.
“I wouldn’t be here,” she said. “I’ve been able to go all over the world because of running.”
