Delaware Sports Blitz Interview: Delaware Tech’s Tim Hammack

Photo: Delaware Technical Community College

The Delaware Technical Community College student-athletes interviews are back!

The student-athlete we are featuring this week comes from Delaware Tech’s men’s cross-country team, which is Tim Hammack.

Hammack talks about everything from his favorite places to run and some of his pregame rituals before a race.

Check out it below!

Related:

Delaware Sports Blitz Interview: Delaware Tech’s Kat Henretty

How did you start playing sports?

“I started on a whim, honestly. I was looking to become more active after COVID restrictions eased up my sophomore year, and my old cross-country coach swayed me into running at the beginning of my junior year. I had no intention of joining before I met him, so I guess his encouragement was effective.”

What adjustments did you have to make from the jump from high school to college, regarding the sport you play?

“I found that aftercare and effective recuperation became much more important than in high school. While both helped, running in college is predictably more strenuous, making how I cared for myself more necessary to consider than not.”

Other than sports and school, what are some things you like to do in your free time?

I enjoy reading a lot. I really enjoy classic literature and romance, but I personally can’t get into fantasy or anything that makes you understand and remember an entire universe. That’s too much work.

Where is your favorite place to run?

“I like empty roads and trails with a lot of foliage, not a lot of bugs, and a cool temperature. I have to run in neighborhoods and next to roads so often that seeing just green is really relaxing. I kind of just like anywhere that doesn’t kill my legs and offers interesting visual stimuli.”

What has a former or current coach taught you, that you still use today on or off the playing field?

“A piece of sage advice that helps me a lot is to remember my scale. I’m not in the Olympics nor am I on a full ride at an Ivy League college for my running. I am running to better myself, and I don’t need to place tremendous expectations on myself to be the best in the competition. It’s enough to feel that I did a good job, regardless of where I place.”

Do you have any pre-game rituals before a match?

“I’ve come to enjoy walking the race course alone. It lets me plan the best way for me to run, I don’t have to talk to anyone, and it offers a respite before the stress of the race.”

What do you feel is your greatest strength?

“I think my ability to pace helps me a lot. I don’t go out crazy, and I am able to remain consistent throughout the race.”

What do you feel you are weakest at and what do you work on to improve it?

“My mental endurance is always a battle. Even if I know my body can go further, I’m fighting with my brain to not stop pretty much the entire race. What helps me is to just overwhelm myself with positive, encouraging thoughts. Even if I don’t actually believe them, I get so tired during the race that I forget to be skeptical, and I’m left with assurances only. I suppose I just fake it ’til I make it.”

Describe some of the highlights of your athletic career.

“I’m proud of the run I did for my senior night in high school. It was my overall personal record, and I was celebrated for being old afterward; what a time! I also am proud of the speech I gave during the cross-country banquet. I was the first student to speak, I made people laugh, and I set the tone of the night pretty well, I think.”

What are your goals for this season?

“My primary goal is to stay in shape. I don’t have any race goals, but I know that I want to improve on my single-mile time. As of right now, I just intend to go with the flow and ensure that I don’t collapse during a race.”

What motivates you to run and compete?

“My goal of getting into the Air Force Academy motivates me. I don’t consider myself a very competitive person when it comes to athletics, so I rely on my plans for the future to push me to be better today. Even if I’m not great at running, being a part of cross country was too good an opportunity to pass up when it came to consistent physical upkeep.”

Who are your role models both in and out of the sport?

“I don’t really have any role models within the sport; I don’t really intend to make running my life goal, so there isn’t anyone I can quite relate to in the world of running. Outside of running, I find my junior English teacher and online personality, Brittany Broski, to be big role models. Both are apologetically themselves, crazy funny, and unafraid to speak about issues that are important to them.”

What advice would you give a new runner?

“Don’t drive yourself crazy trying to be the best runner on the team. No good comes out of basing your value on other runners. First and foremost, running is an independent sport, so making yourself the priority will do more good than making it anyone else.”

If you could run anywhere in the world, where would it be?

“I would run in a Redwood National Park. I think it would be a beautiful setting, and the ground would be enjoyable.”

How would you like to be remembered by your teammates and coaches?

“I honestly don’t put too much emphasis on remembrance. Everyone on the team has their own lives and people that are more important to them than me, so I’m okay with not making a crazy impact on them. If I had to choose though, I would want to be the funny one. I may not have been crazy fast, but I had personality, and that’s enough.”

What is the best part of being on the Delaware Tech Cross Country team?

“I enjoy that it lets me explore more running courses. Even outside of competitions, I have practiced in more courses than I ever did in high school, and I find that exciting. I also enjoy that people tell me how to work out, and I don’t have to think about it myself; it’s always nice when I don’t have to choose everything.”