Profile of San Francisco Track and Field runner

From Roger Brigham's Bay Area Reporter sports column today, a reminder of the upcoming Pride Meet, and a look at Aaron Castillo, membership and communications director of San Francisco Track and Field, the host of the event. Here's an extract from the column:


Castillo moved to the Bay Area in 2008 and found SF Track and Field the next year. "They train and have meets from January until about October," he said. "I decided it was a great thing to do with what I do at the gym."

Castillo is a sprinter and plans to enter the 800-meter run in this year's championship, but last year at the Gay Games in Cologne he entered the decathlon. That's the same event in which Gay Games founder Dr. Tom Waddell competed in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. Castillo earned a silver medal in the grueling event in Cologne.

"There were 17 decathletes at the Gay Games, which is a lot," he said. "They're all very supportive because you're all feeling the same pain over a few days."

Castillo said that same kind of support is one of the reasons he enjoys SF Track and Field.

"I love the camaraderie," he said. "The team is amazing. The guys and gals are super-supportive. We're very supportive. We train people regardless of what their fitness or experience level is. The more you train, the better you become."

Read in full HERE.