‘White noise’ helps propel South Eugene runner toward a big future

If you could hear inside Yosuke Shibata’s head during one of his cross-country races, you’d hear the sound of white noise.

That’s what the South Eugene High School junior cross-country runner heard when he won the Oregon School Activities Association cross-country 6A title Nov. 8, with a time of 15:01.01 over the 5-kilometer course.

It’s what he heard again during a muddy Nike Cross Nationals final in Portland earlier this month, when he finished 23rd in the nation.

It’s also what he hears, more often than not, when he’s backpacking. He sleeps well with the sound of rain, and that’s what nature often sounds like across the Pacific Northwest.

When he’s not in nature, Shibata explodes on the cross-country course. His junior season has been the culmination — to this point — of a career that’s been building toward something his coach believes could take him far beyond the track at South Eugene High School. The OSAA and Nike finals stoked that fire, but what they both see right now is an ambitious runner who understands what it means to be talented.

Getting outside 

Shibata has been in nature with his family since they had to carry him on hikes. In the last couple of years, he’s backpacked Mount Rainier twice, Mount Baker, Copper Ridge in North Cascades National Park and the Trinity Alps in California. His Instagram profile is littered with lakes and mountains.

“I like going outdoors a lot,” said Shibata, who was born and raised in Springfield. “I like walking, seeing nature — it’s definitely a bit different to city-town nature.”

Among his favorite places are Wyoming’s Teton mountains and Rainier’s Wonderland Trail. The full Pacific Crest Trail is on his bucket list — maybe a summer project.

South Eugene High School track and field coach Jeff Hess has only been back in the role for a year since returning from retirement, but he’s already seen Shibata star at the Nike Cross Regionals earlier this year, where he clocked 14:45.00 to finish fourth. When Hess saw Shibata after 800 meters of the Nike Cross Regionals race, it wasn’t what he expected.

“I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, I’ve not seen him look like this in a race,’” Hess said. “But it was just utter determination that he was going to make that team. He’s never grimaced that much. He’s never looked back that much. His form got kind of ragged, but he just absolutely gritted it out and earned that spot.”

Shibata watches himself race, too. The white noise might sound like rain in his head, but mentally, he’s above the clouds. He describes it as a “flow state,” almost like seeing himself in third-person.

“It’s kind of like watching my own race happen,” Shibata said. “Honestly, I haven’t really thought about it, but it’s definitely nothing like anything else.”

The fourth-place finish at NXR qualified Shibata for the annual Nike Cross Nationals race in Portland. He’d never been, but from YouTube, he knew that it could get muddy. It’s OK — he likes nature. He packed rain gear and long spikes.

He crossed the line in 23rd place, two spots off All American status, in 15:34.8. Hess described the performance as “bold” and “confident.” Shibata called it “a blur.”

Setting goals

Shibata came back from a one-week break for his first workout Dec. 17. A couple of days before, he and Hess met to talk goals. Before that, Hess wrote down what he thought would be reasonable, but didn’t show it to Shibata.

They stayed away from numbers for a while at the meeting. Once they got there, Hess let Shibata talk first, and the runner laid out a list that was, “virtually identical,” Hess said, to what he’d written down.

“What that means is that what he’s thinking is realistic and ambitious, and that I see his ambition as being something that is attainable,” Hess said.

It wasn’t supposed to rain until the night of that first workout back, but it started to sprinkle anyway as Shibata stretched on the track at South Eugene High School. He tucked his bag under the bleachers, confirmed the stretches with Hess, and walked to the group.

“He’s totally one of the gang,” Hess said. “First of all, he’s just another guy on the team to everyone else. He’s an incredible leader, but mostly a leader just by doing all the right things.”

The sun emerged, tentatively, as Shibata led off a set of strides. The boys of South Eugene slowed to a walk after 100 meters. Then, around 200 meters, they revved up again. The clouds condensed, and as Shibata bounced around the turn, a rainbow began to peek out. They slowed down, and all laughed at something.

“It’s really quite impressive that, if he were the slowest guy on the team, he’d be a huge asset,” Hess said. “But he’s pretty fast.”

Underneath the rainbow, the boys smiled.

“I know I’m good at this sport, but I try and look at it as just something I enjoy doing,” Shibata said. “And if I can enjoy doing it and be competitive at it as well, that’s the best place to be.”