John Martinez - North Rockland High School - Class of 2005
John Martinez was not an immediate success in distance running, taking a few years to develop his endurance and mental approach to training and racing. By his junior year, however, he had transformed into a state-caliber cross country runner and nationally rated steeplechaser, and his senior year became a highlight reel of one marquee performance after another in cross country, indoor and spring track.
John capped his high school career in memorable fashion, winning the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the 2005 Junior National Championships in California in 9:06.60, a Rockland and Section 1 record, ranking No. 3 in state history and No. 7 in U.S. annals at that time. (His Section record was broken in 2016). John missed both his prom and graduation to compete at Junior Nationals, but the trip was well worth it, as he achieved a peak performance while cheered on by his parents, high school coach and future college coach. That effort qualified him for the Junior Pan Am Games in Ontario, Canada, where he finished fourth.
John's senior year kicked into high gear at the State cross country meet, where he finished second in Class AA. He and teammate Carlos Jamieson had been trading victories most of the season, with John capturing the County title and placing second behind Carlos in the Section 1 meet. Martinez rode that momentum into the State Federation championships, where he posted another second-place finish – “a bit of a surprise to me,” he says – and elevated himself to an elite level. He then finished seventh in the Foot Locker Northeast Regionals to qualify for Foot Locker Nationals, at which he placed 14th to become Rockland's first male All-America scholastic harrier.
For his cross country exploits, John was one of seven runners named to the Rockland County All-Decade Cross Country team in 2009.
Distance runners have a three-season window of opportunity each year, and John made the most of his chances in all three. Indoor track brought more Kodak moments, with John securing the State Federation 3,200-meter run title and placing fifth in the two-mile at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships to earn another individual All-America citation. Those races came on the heels of his County 1,600 title, Class A 1,600 and 3,200 crowns and State Qualifier 3,200 victory.
The spring showcased John's prowess in the steeplechase, not an easy event to master with its requirement to maintain pace while scaling 3-foot-high immovable obstacles and clearing a water jump every lap. After sweeping the County, Section and State Qualifier titles, John won the State Large-Schools division in the 3,000 steeple and finished second in the Federation – a disappointment for him. At the Outdoor Nationals 2,000 steeple, he was leading when he tripped over a barrier in the final lap, but recovered enough to finish second in a Rockland and Section 1 record time of 5:51.64, gaining another All-America nod.
John got his start running cross country in seventh grade at Willow Grove Middle School after losing a bet to a friend who was on the team at the time. He was sidelined for track with a broken hand, but came back the following year for cross country and was invited by then-modified coach Barry Baloga to run with the North Rockland varsity team in spring track as an eighth-grader. Baloga continued to mentor John as head cross country coach and assistant track coach, serving as the “most influential” figure in John's high school running career. “It was Barry's coaching, pep talks and mindset training that allowed me to make that leap forward to having more success.”
Baloga's structure of training and overall guidance prepared John well when he enrolled at North Carolina State, where he thrived under the tutelage of Coach Rollie Geiger. “Because running was such an important part of my life through high school and college, a lot of time was spent with Barry and Geiger,” John says. “They challenged me in the sport but also in other ways. They have had a tremendous impact on me while I was going through critical growing stages in my life. So much so that I continue to have close relationships with them to this day.”
John also cherishes the friendships he made with North Rockland teammates, developing bonds especially with fellow distance runners with whom he trained all three seasons and during the summer. His most lasting friendship is with Carlos (CJ) Jamieson, a champion runner in his own right with a state indoor 1,600 title and numerous other quality efforts. “”CJ had success at an earlier age than me so I was always chasing him,” John says. “Once I did catch up we became training partners and helped push each other to new heights.”
John's steeplechasing career got off to a slow start in ninth grade due to a few injuries, but just as he did with cross country and non-barrier distance running, he absorbed the training administered and lessons imparted by Baloga to develop into a transcendent steepler. “It's no secret that Barry was the best distance coach in Section 1 but by far the best steeple coach you can find so he made almost every distance runner attempt the steeplechase,” John says. “This was an event he had great admiration and respect for … Even though we had to try this event, I immediately liked it. It was a new challenge that broke up the monotony of running several laps.”
At North Carolina State, John redshirted his first year but proceeded to have a stellar four-year career with the Wolfpack, earning NCAA All-America honors twice in the steeplechase, winning an Atlantic Coast Conference title in the indoor 3,000 meters, notching All-Conference honors 12 times, and contributing to two ACC cross country team championships. His personal best steeplechase time of 8:43 was run at the 2010 NCAA Championship meet, where he finished ninth. The meet was held at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
After graduating from N.C. State with a bachelor's degree in Spanish language and literature, John was accepted in the Raleigh, N.C., Police Academy and served as a police officer in Raleigh for five-plus years. He currently is head coach of Bear Mountain CrossFit, a strength and conditioning outfit based in Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.
John, 31, moved back to Rockland County in 2016 and resides in Pomona. He paid tribute to his parents, stepfather Harry LeFevre, mother Reina Martinez and father Juan Martinez for supporting him throughout his high school and college careers. “My parents were at every meet regardless of location. People would ask them why they travel to California, Washington, Oregon, North Carolina, Florida for a 4- to 8-minute race. They wouldn't have missed it for anything.”
John Martinez was not an immediate success in distance running, taking a few years to develop his endurance and mental approach to training and racing. By his junior year, however, he had transformed into a state-caliber cross country runner and nationally rated steeplechaser, and his senior year became a highlight reel of one marquee performance after another in cross country, indoor and spring track.
John capped his high school career in memorable fashion, winning the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the 2005 Junior National Championships in California in 9:06.60, a Rockland and Section 1 record, ranking No. 3 in state history and No. 7 in U.S. annals at that time. (His Section record was broken in 2016). John missed both his prom and graduation to compete at Junior Nationals, but the trip was well worth it, as he achieved a peak performance while cheered on by his parents, high school coach and future college coach. That effort qualified him for the Junior Pan Am Games in Ontario, Canada, where he finished fourth.
John's senior year kicked into high gear at the State cross country meet, where he finished second in Class AA. He and teammate Carlos Jamieson had been trading victories most of the season, with John capturing the County title and placing second behind Carlos in the Section 1 meet. Martinez rode that momentum into the State Federation championships, where he posted another second-place finish – “a bit of a surprise to me,” he says – and elevated himself to an elite level. He then finished seventh in the Foot Locker Northeast Regionals to qualify for Foot Locker Nationals, at which he placed 14th to become Rockland's first male All-America scholastic harrier.
For his cross country exploits, John was one of seven runners named to the Rockland County All-Decade Cross Country team in 2009.
Distance runners have a three-season window of opportunity each year, and John made the most of his chances in all three. Indoor track brought more Kodak moments, with John securing the State Federation 3,200-meter run title and placing fifth in the two-mile at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships to earn another individual All-America citation. Those races came on the heels of his County 1,600 title, Class A 1,600 and 3,200 crowns and State Qualifier 3,200 victory.
The spring showcased John's prowess in the steeplechase, not an easy event to master with its requirement to maintain pace while scaling 3-foot-high immovable obstacles and clearing a water jump every lap. After sweeping the County, Section and State Qualifier titles, John won the State Large-Schools division in the 3,000 steeple and finished second in the Federation – a disappointment for him. At the Outdoor Nationals 2,000 steeple, he was leading when he tripped over a barrier in the final lap, but recovered enough to finish second in a Rockland and Section 1 record time of 5:51.64, gaining another All-America nod.
John got his start running cross country in seventh grade at Willow Grove Middle School after losing a bet to a friend who was on the team at the time. He was sidelined for track with a broken hand, but came back the following year for cross country and was invited by then-modified coach Barry Baloga to run with the North Rockland varsity team in spring track as an eighth-grader. Baloga continued to mentor John as head cross country coach and assistant track coach, serving as the “most influential” figure in John's high school running career. “It was Barry's coaching, pep talks and mindset training that allowed me to make that leap forward to having more success.”
Baloga's structure of training and overall guidance prepared John well when he enrolled at North Carolina State, where he thrived under the tutelage of Coach Rollie Geiger. “Because running was such an important part of my life through high school and college, a lot of time was spent with Barry and Geiger,” John says. “They challenged me in the sport but also in other ways. They have had a tremendous impact on me while I was going through critical growing stages in my life. So much so that I continue to have close relationships with them to this day.”
John also cherishes the friendships he made with North Rockland teammates, developing bonds especially with fellow distance runners with whom he trained all three seasons and during the summer. His most lasting friendship is with Carlos (CJ) Jamieson, a champion runner in his own right with a state indoor 1,600 title and numerous other quality efforts. “”CJ had success at an earlier age than me so I was always chasing him,” John says. “Once I did catch up we became training partners and helped push each other to new heights.”
John's steeplechasing career got off to a slow start in ninth grade due to a few injuries, but just as he did with cross country and non-barrier distance running, he absorbed the training administered and lessons imparted by Baloga to develop into a transcendent steepler. “It's no secret that Barry was the best distance coach in Section 1 but by far the best steeple coach you can find so he made almost every distance runner attempt the steeplechase,” John says. “This was an event he had great admiration and respect for … Even though we had to try this event, I immediately liked it. It was a new challenge that broke up the monotony of running several laps.”
At North Carolina State, John redshirted his first year but proceeded to have a stellar four-year career with the Wolfpack, earning NCAA All-America honors twice in the steeplechase, winning an Atlantic Coast Conference title in the indoor 3,000 meters, notching All-Conference honors 12 times, and contributing to two ACC cross country team championships. His personal best steeplechase time of 8:43 was run at the 2010 NCAA Championship meet, where he finished ninth. The meet was held at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
After graduating from N.C. State with a bachelor's degree in Spanish language and literature, John was accepted in the Raleigh, N.C., Police Academy and served as a police officer in Raleigh for five-plus years. He currently is head coach of Bear Mountain CrossFit, a strength and conditioning outfit based in Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.
John, 31, moved back to Rockland County in 2016 and resides in Pomona. He paid tribute to his parents, stepfather Harry LeFevre, mother Reina Martinez and father Juan Martinez for supporting him throughout his high school and college careers. “My parents were at every meet regardless of location. People would ask them why they travel to California, Washington, Oregon, North Carolina, Florida for a 4- to 8-minute race. They wouldn't have missed it for anything.”