University of Minnesota Athletics
Players Mentioned
Mid-Distance
/ Women's Track & Field
Meet the Newcomers: Erin Reidy
8/19/2020 2:22:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Men's Track & Field, Women's Cross Country, Women's Track & Field
Get to know Gophers freshman Erin Reidy, a mid-distance runner from Downers Grove, Ill.
MINNEAPOLIS -- Freshman Erin Reidy joins the Golden Gopher cross country and track & field program as a mid-distance runner from Downers Grove, Ill. A 2020 graduate of Downers Grove South High School, Reidy reflects on her early days in running, her proudest moment of her running career so far, her academic and professional goals, and more.
Gopher Sports: What sports or activities were you involved in growing up, in addition to track & field and cross country?
Erin Reidy: I think I tried pretty much everything but softball and basketball. I used to be a dancer. I was a ballerina, and I did a lot of the more delicate sports. My dad was actually an Iron Man runner, so he got me into running.
Gopher Sports: You mentioned that your dad helped get you into running, but what was it about running that hooked you when you were involved in all these other activities?
ER: My sister and I are very, very competitive, so we would always race each other and eventually I started beating her. It would always be right at the end, and that's when I started falling in love with running.
GS: What is your earliest memory of running or racing?
ER: I know every year we would go to a Mother's Day 5K, and there was a little kid race that me and my sister were always in it. It was just an 800 and I loved running with her, and eventually out-kicking her. It sounds awful, but she's a great volleyball player now.
GS: Do you consider yourself more of a cross country runner or a track runner?
ER: Track runner, easily. I love the track. I love the distances in track. I'm more of a mid-distance runner myself. I like the camaraderie of cross country, but I'm definitely more of a shorter distance runner -- not too short though! The middle distances are perfect for me.
GS: What's your favorite distance to race?
ER: 800 meters and 1,600 meters.
GS: What is your family like?
ER: My mother, growing up, she was actually a band geek, which I think is so funny because my sister and I did not get athletic genes from her. They're awesome people, and they're super supportive. They come to all my races even if I'm not running. They've got a big heart. They wear their heart on their shoulders. I love them to pieces. And then I also have a horse and a dog.
GS: Did you always have animals in the family growing up?
ER: Yes and no. My mother is super allergic to anything with fur, so we got a hypoallergenic dog and then the horse is mine, so I take care of her. She was a rescue from a really bad barn.
GS: How did you get into horses?
ER: I've always liked horses. I think that also helped me with running a little bit. I started riding about 10 or 11 years ago.
GS: Do you know what you want to major in or what career field you want to explore?
ER: I will be going to the 'U' for Kinesiology. I believe I want to do physical therapy. I got a really bad injury my freshman year that took me out for majority of cross country season, and my physical therapists were amazing. I want to do that so that I can help people like me get back to doing stuff they love.
GS: In terms of your training running racing, what's one thing you're really confident in and what's one thing that you want to work on?
ER: Honestly this is a pro and a con, but I would say my stubbornness. Once I set a goal, I'm going to go get that goal, even if it kills me. In high school, my biggest goal that I wanted to do when I was a freshman was sub five in the mile. It had never been done in my school, so I thought, 'Oh, I'm going to be the first one to do it.' It definitely gotten my head the first two years of high school, but I finally did it.
GS: What is the weirdest thing that's happened to you at a track or cross country meet?
ER: In the beginning of a race one time, someone barked at me. I guess it was their way of telling me to get out of the way? Someone else in the race just started barking. I have too many weird memories of running, but that's the first one off the top of my head. I know there are so many other ones, too.
GS: What's the proudest moment of your running career so far?
ER: That one's hard, but it would probably be the time I sub-fived in the mile when I was a sophomore, just because a lot of people told me I couldn't do it. At my school if you complete a goal that you've set, my coach Doug Plunkett would give the athletes a t-shirt if they hit certain times. If you hit 2:30, you get a t-shirt, hit 6:00 and get a t-shirt. I really wanted to make a t-shirt for sub-five. That's what drove me for two years!
GS: What do you remember about that race? How did it play out for you?
ER: Honestly, I didn't even win. I think I got dead last. I just really wanted to do it. I know is a night race, and the temperature was perfect. It was awesome conditions. I remember thinking, all right, if you're not going to do it tonight, you're not going to do it at all.
GS: Do you have any pre-race superstitions or rituals or things that you stick to before competing?
ER: I have so many! I wear the same socks, and I race with a big fat white bow in my hair. Before every race, no matter how hot or how cold, day or night, I pour ice water all over myself, even in indoor track so the janitor hates me. I always have to do jumps before I go.
GS: What advice would you give to a young runner who is just getting into running?
ER: Patience. Have patience. It takes a while, but one day it will just click. It's so hard to explain, but have patience in your race, with your training. If you have an injury, it'll come to pass. It will be good.
Favorite show to binge watch: Parks and Rec.
Favorite dessert or candy or treat: Chocolate covered strawberries or funnel cake.
Dream vacation: I really want to go to Australia.
Dream car: It's between a pickup truck for the horse and be practical or a Lamborghini.
Nickname: Speedy Reidy or Shayser-taser
Superpower of choice: I would love to fly.
Favorite animal: Horse
Hidden talent: I can lick my nose.
Road or trail: Trail, easily
City or country: That's really hard! Probably city.
Dog or cat: Dog
Winter or summer: Winter
Race-day playlist: Remember the Name by Fort Minor and Kanye West All the Lights.
Describe yourself in one word: Goof
Describe yourself in one emoji: The hugging one
Name one food that you could never live without: Probably granola bars.
Favorite holiday: Christmas
Running mantra: You've got this.
Favorite pizza topping: Pineapple
Favorite cartoon character: Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb.
Favorite workout: Mile repeats
Pet peeve: I hate when people rip paper.
Running role model: Probably my dad.
First thing that you do when you wake up in the morning: Go back to bed for five more minutes.
Fill in the blank: Runners should always _______. Runners should always have toilet paper.
Favorite superhero: Captain America
###
Gopher Sports: What sports or activities were you involved in growing up, in addition to track & field and cross country?
Erin Reidy: I think I tried pretty much everything but softball and basketball. I used to be a dancer. I was a ballerina, and I did a lot of the more delicate sports. My dad was actually an Iron Man runner, so he got me into running.
Gopher Sports: You mentioned that your dad helped get you into running, but what was it about running that hooked you when you were involved in all these other activities?
ER: My sister and I are very, very competitive, so we would always race each other and eventually I started beating her. It would always be right at the end, and that's when I started falling in love with running.
GS: What is your earliest memory of running or racing?
ER: I know every year we would go to a Mother's Day 5K, and there was a little kid race that me and my sister were always in it. It was just an 800 and I loved running with her, and eventually out-kicking her. It sounds awful, but she's a great volleyball player now.
GS: Do you consider yourself more of a cross country runner or a track runner?
ER: Track runner, easily. I love the track. I love the distances in track. I'm more of a mid-distance runner myself. I like the camaraderie of cross country, but I'm definitely more of a shorter distance runner -- not too short though! The middle distances are perfect for me.
GS: What's your favorite distance to race?
ER: 800 meters and 1,600 meters.
GS: What is your family like?
ER: My mother, growing up, she was actually a band geek, which I think is so funny because my sister and I did not get athletic genes from her. They're awesome people, and they're super supportive. They come to all my races even if I'm not running. They've got a big heart. They wear their heart on their shoulders. I love them to pieces. And then I also have a horse and a dog.
GS: Did you always have animals in the family growing up?
ER: Yes and no. My mother is super allergic to anything with fur, so we got a hypoallergenic dog and then the horse is mine, so I take care of her. She was a rescue from a really bad barn.
GS: How did you get into horses?
ER: I've always liked horses. I think that also helped me with running a little bit. I started riding about 10 or 11 years ago.
GS: Do you know what you want to major in or what career field you want to explore?
ER: I will be going to the 'U' for Kinesiology. I believe I want to do physical therapy. I got a really bad injury my freshman year that took me out for majority of cross country season, and my physical therapists were amazing. I want to do that so that I can help people like me get back to doing stuff they love.
GS: In terms of your training running racing, what's one thing you're really confident in and what's one thing that you want to work on?
ER: Honestly this is a pro and a con, but I would say my stubbornness. Once I set a goal, I'm going to go get that goal, even if it kills me. In high school, my biggest goal that I wanted to do when I was a freshman was sub five in the mile. It had never been done in my school, so I thought, 'Oh, I'm going to be the first one to do it.' It definitely gotten my head the first two years of high school, but I finally did it.
GS: What is the weirdest thing that's happened to you at a track or cross country meet?
ER: In the beginning of a race one time, someone barked at me. I guess it was their way of telling me to get out of the way? Someone else in the race just started barking. I have too many weird memories of running, but that's the first one off the top of my head. I know there are so many other ones, too.
GS: What's the proudest moment of your running career so far?
ER: That one's hard, but it would probably be the time I sub-fived in the mile when I was a sophomore, just because a lot of people told me I couldn't do it. At my school if you complete a goal that you've set, my coach Doug Plunkett would give the athletes a t-shirt if they hit certain times. If you hit 2:30, you get a t-shirt, hit 6:00 and get a t-shirt. I really wanted to make a t-shirt for sub-five. That's what drove me for two years!
GS: What do you remember about that race? How did it play out for you?
ER: Honestly, I didn't even win. I think I got dead last. I just really wanted to do it. I know is a night race, and the temperature was perfect. It was awesome conditions. I remember thinking, all right, if you're not going to do it tonight, you're not going to do it at all.
GS: Do you have any pre-race superstitions or rituals or things that you stick to before competing?
ER: I have so many! I wear the same socks, and I race with a big fat white bow in my hair. Before every race, no matter how hot or how cold, day or night, I pour ice water all over myself, even in indoor track so the janitor hates me. I always have to do jumps before I go.
GS: What advice would you give to a young runner who is just getting into running?
ER: Patience. Have patience. It takes a while, but one day it will just click. It's so hard to explain, but have patience in your race, with your training. If you have an injury, it'll come to pass. It will be good.
Favorite show to binge watch: Parks and Rec.
Favorite dessert or candy or treat: Chocolate covered strawberries or funnel cake.
Dream vacation: I really want to go to Australia.
Dream car: It's between a pickup truck for the horse and be practical or a Lamborghini.
Nickname: Speedy Reidy or Shayser-taser
Superpower of choice: I would love to fly.
Favorite animal: Horse
Hidden talent: I can lick my nose.
Road or trail: Trail, easily
City or country: That's really hard! Probably city.
Dog or cat: Dog
Winter or summer: Winter
Race-day playlist: Remember the Name by Fort Minor and Kanye West All the Lights.
Describe yourself in one word: Goof
Describe yourself in one emoji: The hugging one
Name one food that you could never live without: Probably granola bars.
Favorite holiday: Christmas
Running mantra: You've got this.
Favorite pizza topping: Pineapple
Favorite cartoon character: Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb.
Favorite workout: Mile repeats
Pet peeve: I hate when people rip paper.
Running role model: Probably my dad.
First thing that you do when you wake up in the morning: Go back to bed for five more minutes.
Fill in the blank: Runners should always _______. Runners should always have toilet paper.
Favorite superhero: Captain America
###
Follow Track & Field
Support Track & Field
Support the University of Minnesota Track & Field program. Your support helps our student-athletes succeed athletically, academically, and socially. It takes just seconds to make a monthly or one-time donation. Thank you for your support! Give Now
Dyandra Gray | 2025 All-American
Sunday, June 15
Ali Weimer Breaks School Record at NCAAs
Sunday, June 15
Ali Weimer Qualifies for NCAAs
Thursday, June 05
Dyandra Gray Qualifies for NCAAs
Thursday, June 05