School: Council Rock North
Cross Country, Winter Track, Spring Track
Favorite athlete: Steve Prefontaine
Favorite team: “Who doesn’t love the Philadelphia Eagles?”
Favorite memory competing in sports: Winning the Steel City Invitational
Funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: “The funniest thing I can remember in my running career happened during our tri-meet against William Tennent and Abington this year at Tennent. After the two-mile mark, I took the lead in the race and started booking it home. Probably close to the 2.5 mile mark, I was running up a slight hill, and right by the course was a couple with their dog, a German Shepherd, I believe! I figured I was far enough away not to disturb them as they were walking with their backs toward me, and I assumed that they would realize if their dog started to lunge at me. It turns out that I underestimated the length of the leash and the guy’s awareness. So as I ran by the dog, the dog took a bite at me. He nipped me in the butt. I proceeded to win the race, which made it all the more intense.”
Music on my iPod: “Mostly British rock and 80’s New Wave. The Killers, the Bravery, and the Strokes are a must before a race.”
Favorite motto/words to live by: “Slow running makes slow runners.”
One goal before turning 30: “Break four minutes in the mile.”
One thing people don’t know about me: “I like to sing. I can’t really sing well, but generally, I am very quiet, so I think it would be fairly surprising to know.”
Coach Dave Marrington spends a lot of time talking to his cross country squad about the four virtues of being an Indian Warrior as espoused by Olympic gold medalist Billy Mills - the first Native American to ever win gold in the 10,000 meters.
“Since we’re the Council Rock Indians, we felt we should try and live by the four Indian virtues,” he said of a list that also includes fortitude, wisdom and humility.
The Council Rock North coach points to senior Dan Wallace as an athlete who epitomizes the bravery Mills is referring to when he speaks of the four virtues.
“The way Billy Mills defined bravery is having a willingness to put your body and your own mental well being on the line against overwhelming odds - even when nobody gives you a chance,” Marrington said. “Danny does that. He’s not afraid to risk his own image and physical well being to try and reach goals. He goes against kids that are far more talented, but Danny would never use the fact that someone was more talented than him as an excuse for not beating them.
“He’s a great kind of kid to have on your team.”
Bravery is one of a long list of attributes that sets Wallace apart. His drive to succeed has led him to the top on the cross country course and in the classroom – the senior harrier is ranked first in a senior class of 545 and received a 1,590 on his SATs.
“He’s a great kid,” Marrington said. “One of the other coaches said, ‘I want to buy stock in that kid.’”
Wallace sets goals, and then he goes out and attains them. The first weekend in October, he finished first in the prestigious Steel City Invitational.
“It’s the first invitational he’s ever won, and from then on, he never looked back,” Marrington said. “The whole month of October he just got better every weekend and more confident.”
Wallace went on to finish fifth at districts - the top finish of any SOL runner with a time of 15:30. At states, he finished 13th.
“Danny set high goals for himself, and he wasn’t afraid to work toward them,” Marrington said. “He’s one of the most determined and hard working kids we have had in a program that’s full of hard working, determined kids.”
Wallace played soccer and baseball as a youngster, and it was a soccer injury - a broken toe - that ultimately paved the way for an outstanding cross country career.
“I tried out for the freshman (soccer) team, and I got cut because I was injured,” he said. “I was hesitant to really play, so I got cut.”
Wallace ended up on the cross country course with the goal of preparing for winter and spring track.
“I did like running,” he said. “I ran track in middle school, and I always ran distance. I wasn’t all that fast, but I had endurance, so I went with that.”
Wallace ran third or fourth on the freshman team. His second place finish in the 1600 at the freshman championships suggested he had a future as a distance runner.
“Danny kind of worked his way past everybody,” Marrington said. “This year he has been the unquestioned number one among the senior group since day one.
“He was the one leading the workouts – always doing a little extra, always making sure he did everything the right way and did the little things that he felt were going to make him better at the end of the year, and they did.”
Wallace earned his spot at the top of his class because of a work ethic that surfaced the moment he took to the cross country course.
“It was really a progression,” he said. “You could tell you were getting better as the year went by.
“After a couple of my first runs, I thought about going longer distances than I had previously. We usually ran four miles, and I thought, ‘Maybe I’ll go five miles this time.’”
The summer after his freshman year Wallace made a commitment to running.
“I ran a lot, and I trained,” he said. “I went to running camp with Matt Wikler, who was a senior that year.
“When it came time for the season to start, in our first race, I was second on the team. That was really a breakthrough, and it was because of all the training and running camp.”
This past summer, Wallace did a lot of 10-mile runs to prepare for his final high school cross country season.
“No workouts – I’d just go out and do distance,” he said. “Even though it was the same course every day, I didn’t get bored with it. I did a lot of training, and I think it paid off.”
Wallace points to the Steel City win as a personal highlight.
“It was really great,” he said. “It’s a lot different being in the front of a race. It feels like you have some kind of energy you didn’t have before – knowing you’re ahead of everyone, and you’re thinking, ‘I don’t want to lose this.’
“The year before I ran fourth in that race, and the only people ahead of me were seniors. So I went into it thinking I should win it because I was the top returning runner, but still, you never know until you race.”
Wallace hopes to continue running at the collegiate level although he has not narrowed his college choices down just yet. He is considering majoring in some form of engineering.
“Or I might major in Neuroscience – I think that’s interesting,” he said.
With a heavy academic workload and a grueling running schedule, Wallace doesn’t have a whole lot of spare time.
“It’s tough,” he said. “You don’t get a lot of sleep.”
Wallace says he usually calls it a day by 11:30 – an improvement over last year when he routinely was working until midnight.
Despite the late hours, Wallace would not want to give up running – a sport that has become his passion.
“I really like the fitness aspect of running,” he said. “It’s good to know I’m physically fit, and I also get to know a lot of people. The whole team – they’re all my friends.”
This is one student-athlete who seems to have the best of all worlds.
