Flame on the Hot Seat: Ezekiel Harless
photo courtesy of Ezekiel Harless
Our next Flame on the Hot Seat is cross-country runner Ezekiel Harless. A sophomore health science major from Harrisburg, Kentucky, Harless was a high school state champion in the 3200 meter run before joining the Flames last fall. As a freshman, Harless placed 19th at the 2019 GSC Cross Country Championships, earning him his first all-conference honors.
When did you start running cross country?
“I started official cross country in middle school, but I started distance running in the fourth grade.”
What brought you to Lee?
“A lot of different things … I looked around at a lot of other schools. But, coach basically told me that I could run here. This is the school that was the best for running and academics, so it was kind of an all-around good thing for me.”
What is your best memory of your time on the Lee cross country team?
“I think the one memory that had the most impact on me would be after the Royals XC Challenge last year, when I had a huge PR [personal record], and people were congratulating me and stuff. I just felt like, you know, really important and uplifted. I think that that’s super good in a team, and that’s kind of when I knew 100% I really belonged on the team.”
What is your favorite thing about running?
“It keeps me busy. Just kind of a distraction from the ‘every day,’ and it’s also good for me. So it’s just something that I can get out of the house to do and find a rhythm in. Honestly, sometimes it’s good for prayer. I can talk to God when I run, on like a super chill, easy run. But, yeah, it’s a good all-around activity for my body and spirit.”
If you could sit down with anyone — dead or alive — and have a conversation with them, who would it be?
“Oh my gosh, I don’t know. Definitely, somebody who’s really interesting. I guess it’d be Martin Luther King. I mean, the history behind the stuff that I learned in school is pretty basic. I’ve kind of delved into his history, and it’s so interesting. He’s not nearly as one dimensional as a lot of people make him out to be, so I think that sitting down and having a good conversation with him, especially about the things that are going on right now, I think would be really, really cool.”
What is your favorite thing about your teammates?
“Running to us isn’t all one dimensional. I know some teams tend to just kind of goof off and not really take anything seriously, and then I know a lot of other teams tend just to be really, really serious and not let loose or have very much fun at all. But I think that our team has a nice balance, and we kind of know when to take things seriously, but we also know when to kind of let things go because I mean that’s okay sometimes.”
What is the worst part of running?
“I really enjoy running. For me, it’s definitely the pre-race nerves, and honestly, the pre-workout nerves because I actually get really nervous before any hard effort. That’s the thing that probably bugs me the most about running, just the pre-hard effort nerves, but after that it’s fine.”
photo courtesy of Lee Athletic Communications
What is the worst cross country course you’ve ever run on?
“I’ve run on quite a few pretty gross courses. Probably the worst one I’ve ever run on was this horrible one back in high school. The meet was called Fairground Frenzy because it took place in this fairground area. It was so bad. Nobody had any idea where they were going. I’m pretty sure the course ended up being cut short, and it was so hilly and slow, and the footing was just garbage. I was destroyed after that. I hated that course so much.
What would you do if you were given $5 million right now?
“Five million. That’s a lot. I would give roughly half of it to charity, maybe even more because I don’t really know what I would do with all of that. So, I would give a bunch of it to charity. And then I would use some of it to just help my family, and then I would probably just use the rest to save for like a rainy day or something.”
You get a basketball and 25 shots from half-court, if you make one you get 25 million dollars, if you miss them all you go to jail for 25 years. Are you taking the shots?
“No. I’m so bad at basketball. I know I would go to jail if I tried that. No. I’m not risky. I don’t even trust myself.”
What is your favorite restaurant in Cleveland?
“I really like Hibachi Express. I think Little Diner on 1st takes it though. It’s just so good, but Hibachi is definitely a close second.”
