Sept. 22, 2015
Every Tuesday, the Nevada athletic communications department will post a feature story as part of its Wolf Pack Weekly series. These stories will provide fans with an inside look at the Wolf Pack, and will focus on athletes on the field, in the classroom or in the community.
By Nick Beaton
Athletic Communications Assistant
RENO, Nev. - Nevada cross country runner Meagan Wood discovered just how good a runner she was by complete accident. Growing up, Meagan watched her dad train in karate. He never focused on just one discipline, learning three different types just enough to where he felt he could move onto the next. It immediately peaked her interest.
"I wanted to be like my dad so much," she said. "What he did was just so cool."
So, at the young age of seven and in just first grade, Meagan and her dad headed down to a martial arts school to begin her training in Taekwondo. The training for Taekwondo involved a lot of conditioning. Meagan did pushups every day while she trained. In fact, she had such good form she became the example for the class. And according to teammate Emily Myers, that persistence has stuck with Meagan.
"She outdoes all of us by a ton in pushups and pull ups," she said.
Meagan's conditioning also included a lot of distance running, with endless laps around the gym on what she called Special Training Saturdays. They would even include trips to the Wolf Pack's home course at Shadow Mountain, where she was able to get a taste of running in terrain - which seems to have helped, by the way, as the sophomore took eighth in this year's Nature's Bakery Nevada Twilight Classic.
By the time she was in third grade, Meagan was running at the front of the group, even ahead of the trainers. Meagan was, undoubtedly, one of the top runners in the whole school. The distance running didn't bother her at all, and it was from this that the idea to run competitively sparked.
"That's where I really found I was a good runner was conditioning for Taekwondo," the Reno native chuckled.
By the time she was 12 and just barely entering middle school, Meagan had earned her black belt in Taekwondo. However, when she got into middle school, she decided to hang up all the belts and pursue her love of running, which martial arts helped her find, at a competitive level. She said the discipline of grueling conditioning daily and showing up to practice, as well as all the hard work, has helped her become a successful cross country runner.
"You had to be willing to work hard toward that next belt, or else you wouldn't get it," she said.
In just her sophomore season, Meagan is making an impact on Nevada's cross country team. Her eighth place finish in the Nature's Bakery Twilight Classic helped put the Pack in first place and placed Meagan 11th all-time in the school's 4000 meter record book. She also claimed the seventh-fastest 6000 meter ran by a freshman last year.
Just like in her martial arts training, Meagan is keeping up with the best. While she isn't currently competing or practicing her Taekwondo, Meagan said going back to martial arts is a post-college goal.
"I definitely want to get back into it," she said. "Feeling strong is just awesome. I'd love to teach in a school."
As far as her Taekwondo battle stories, she said she never competed outside of the school, but does have two that she can remember.
"I accidentally knocked a kid's tooth out," Wood said. "It wasn't my fault though! He wasn't blocking," noting she may have thrown the knee just a little harder than normal and his arms weren't together like they should have been.
The Wolf Pack cross country runner also received a black eye from a training stick doing combos, ironically enough, during her Taekwondo black belt test.
Wolf Pack Weekly Archives
Aug. 25 - The Wolf of Wall Street
Sept. 1 - Germany's Wuensche welcomes new adventure in Silver State
Sept. 8 - Anderson continues family legacy at Nevada
Sept. 15 - Fully-recovered Melcher takes the field
