Juggling track and field, rock climbing, percussion, school, and having time for fun is no easy feat. Not to mention for a freshman, who has to deal with the extra adaptations to high school. For freshman Josh Kim, however, he finds a way to do it all.

Kim is on the track and field team at Arcadia High School (AHS). Track and field is a unique sport, where there are many events such as sprinting, throwing, and jumping.

“I competed in my first competition in 2nd grade. Since then, I’ve only grown to love track and field even more,” said Kim.

How did he start track and field? The answer was humble and genuine.

“My friends told me that I would be good at running in races, so I followed their advice. I guess I owe my thanks to them.”

For those who are not familiar with AHS’ track and field team, there is a competition team and a training team. The training team consists of members who are not yet ready for competition, but they still practice. Due to COVID, the training team has been canceled for now.

Kim is on the competition team, and he does running and jumping. He plans on doing the 100-meter sprint, high jump, and long jump, once the season starts on Feb. 19.

Besides track and field, Josh has a passion for music.

“I always liked music but I was unbelievably bad at wind instruments,” explained Kim. “I tried out for percussion in middle school; I was good at it and it was fun. My current elective is intermediate percussion.”

He also loves to rock climb and watch funny YouTube videos to relieve stress.

If he wasn’t able to do track and field, his next choice would be badminton; after rock climbing, of course.

“I would try out for badminton just because I’ve always been decent at it,” said Kim. “The way the players move so quickly is pretty cool to me, and I like having a racket in my hand.”

When asked how he truly felt managing so many things at once, he confessed that it isn’t always so picture-perfect.

‘I’m honestly not managing as well as I could be,” said Kim with a chuckle. “I come home at 4:30pm every day, and I have percussion rehearsals on Wednesday and Friday for three hours, so I stay up late for my homework.”

However, his piece of advice to people who may feel overwhelmed:

“Don’t ever lose focus on your priorities and don’t procrastinate. I’ve learned this the hard way.”

Photo courtesy of Josh Kim