Indiana University’s outdoor track and field season is young, but already the Hoosiers have competed in several warm-weather destinations.
No longer is junior sprinter Derek Grimmer left wide-eyed by such meets.
“As you get older, it’s more of a business trip,” said Grimmer, a Center Grove graduate. “I love it. We are there to run and to represent IU. It’s just the opportunity to compete for a school people know and respect.”
Long airplane rides provide Grimmer, a finance and operations management major, ample time to maintain his excellent academic standing (3.57 grade-point average). He takes books, a laptop and his iPad with him so that down time is still productive time.
On the track, Grimmer runs the 200-meter dash and 4×400 relay.
Recent finishes include fourth in the 200 and leading off the 4×400 relay at the Pac-12 vs. Big Ten Invitational at Arizona State. Grimmer posted a 200 time of 21.86 seconds.
“It’s not surprising as much as it is a credit to Derek for sticking with it,” IU sprints coach Ed Beathea said. “He’s really developed himself to be much more consistent. Derek always has a positive attitude and is a very hard worker.”
Heady stuff for someone who had barely set foot on an all-weather oval until his senior year of high school.
Grimmer grew up playing baseball, a sport he stuck with through his junior season. Up to that point, he earned a reputation for beating out infield hits and adding drama to what at first looked like routine outs.
With one spring sports season remaining in high school, Grimmer traded bats for relay batons. He won the 100 and 200 at the Columbus North Sectional before going on to place fourth at the state meet in the latter.
Grimmer joined IU’s program in 2015 as a preferred walk-on. This season he’s been joined by two other Trojan track alums in freshmen Christian Goines (hurdles) and Josh Hall (pole vault).
Standing 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, Grimmer benefits from a long stride. It’s put to use as the Hoosiers’ leadoff runner in the 4×400 relay.
The rest of Indiana’s relay effort is carried out by, in order, senior Daniel Kuhn, sophomore Cooper Williams and Singapore native Zubin Muncherji, a freshman.
“The one thing I like about being leadoff runner is you really set the tone for the rest of the guys,” Grimmer said. “I like the pressure. That’s the best part. I just try to envision the race I want to run and try not to slow down the last 50 meters.
“But you see your teammates cheering you on. You don’t want to let them down.”
Grimmer’s productive indoor track season prepared him for the outdoor season. One of his best indoor performances took place at the conference meet when he clocked a split of 47.6 seconds in the Hoosiers’ 10th-place finish.
Others highlights were knocking a quarter of a second off his 200 time from his sophomore indoor season and running the 300 in 34.71 seconds.
While most college track athletes have been in the sport for approximately half their lives, it’s only Grimmer’s fourth year. There are times he marvels at his own journey, one that began roaming the outfield grass and now involves competing at prestigious venues such as the Penn Relays at historic Franklin Field in Philadelphia.
“It’s still a surreal feeling,” he said. “Sometimes I’m like, ‘Wow, I’m running track at a Big Ten university.’”
And running faster than ever before.
