Junior Kari Hardt won her first collegiate cross-country race last weekend at the Roy Griak Invitational in Minneapolis, Minn.
Hardt is a local product from Queen Creek.
Q: How did you get your start in cross-country?
A: I started on club track when I was little. I thought I was a sprinter and I got my butt kicked. So my dad made me run the mile. It [went] pretty [well], so I took it from there.
Q: What made you come to ASU? Was it because you grew up nearby?
A: Just the team atmosphere and the girls on the team. They have a good balance in their life. And that’s what attracted me – they’re fun and our personalities meshed really well.
Q: What are your goals for the rest of the cross-country season?
A: Most of all, I just want our team to do well. That would be the best reward, better than individual [aspect].
Q: Tell us something unique about yourself.
A: Me and [junior] Ali Kielty have a choreographed car dance that we perform at stoplights. We do it for the people next to us.
Q: What is that like?
A: It involves a lot of air pumps and hip gyrations.
