Rebel runner working to break 5K record

Rebel cross-country runner Theron Claridge wants to knock 9 seconds off his 5K time to set a new school record. (Photo by Jeff Whitten/Effingham Herald.)

By Jeff Whitten

Special to the Herald

SPRINGFIELD –Effingham County junior cross country runner Theron Claridge has expectations this season.

First up is breaking the school’s 5K record of 16 minutes and 54 seconds, which was set in 2022 by Levi Thomas. Claridge, whose personal best at the moment is 17:03, aims to bridge that nine-second gap in Statesboro at the Frazier-Hite Invitational Aug. 29 in the first meet of the season.

From there, the goal is to continue to get faster while also helping the team improve enough to get to the state meet.

“I think we’re looking pretty good,” Claridge said, without sounding the least bit cocky. “We’ve been going after each other and getting better each day. By the end of the season if things are looking good, I think we can make it past region to state.”

That would be an improvement on last fall, when Claridge was the only Rebel to qualify for the state Class 6A boys’ meet – his time of 17:17 put him 32nd in a field of 215. That positive mindset is also testament to the sort of runner Claridge is, according to Rebels coach, P.J. Richards.

In addition to his work ethic and dedication to improving, “he’s not a selfish runner,” Richards said. “He does not let his success define the worth of our team. He leads by example, encourages and challenges his teammates, and shares his enthusiasm for improvement.”

Claridge, the son of Brandon and Tammy Claridge, said his love of running started as an eight-year-old when his mother, also a distance runner, entered him into a 10K. Now he logs between 30 to 35 miles a week and pushes to get better each run while also running track in the spring.

“You hear it all the time, ‘work ethic beats talent,’ and that’s true,” Claridge said. “You have to have a very strong mental side. It can determine how fast you go. If you go in thinking ‘I got this, I can PR (set a personal record), I can have a good race,’ you’re far more likely to succeed."

An aspiring environmental engineer -- Claridge is taking an engineering class at Effingham College and Career Academy – he’s already mapped out his immediate future. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Claridge will spend two years on a mission after high school before attending college, where he plans to continue to run competitively.

In the meantime, he's quick to note the improvement of teammate Joseph Esco, who’s “gotten a lot faster since last year,” Claridge said, and is now turning in times under 18 minutes.

Cross country is a team sport, after all.

“As a high school cross country coach, I cherish the inclusive nature of the sport and the supportive culture it creates,” Richards said. “Unlike other sports, sportsmanship does not suffer from the drive of competition, so runners at every level can find success even in the toughest regions and areas.”

An already “incredibly competitive region” is about to get tougher, she said, with the Georgia High School Association’s most recent reclassification and elimination of the largest classification, 7A, which put the Rebels into Class 5A for the next two years. But Richards expects her boys’ and girls’ teams to make strides this fall.

“We will be competitive, we will have runners on both the boys’ and girls’ teams qualify for State, and we will continue to develop our depth,” she said.

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