On a crisp winter day, a student makes his mile-long journey. Resisting the harsh wind, a young man hustles through the snow, chugging school-produced milk. Nothing like a cold box of lactose to fuel the one and only Milk Mile! This annual tradition will reign on with the support of fellow students, and just maybe the challenge will expand along to other districts.
The Milk Mile is an unstoppable trend performed by senior student, Noah Alcaraz. It is a task that involves no prior training up until the day it is performed. Alacraz sets apart a time during school hours to get a camera crew to follow him outside, where he will begin chugging. In past experiences, Alcaraz has chosen to down eight whole school milks which fueled him for the hard mile to come. He has done his sprint in numerous seasons, including the dead of winter where two feet of snow blanketed the track.
“To me, the Milk Mile means absolutely nothing, but I had this idea that it was possible, and I wanted to push the human limits,” claims the one and only Alcaraz.
As a previous track athlete, Alcaraz had spent time in the past running. He notes that creating the challenge was a spur-of-the-moment thing, and he would film all of the completed runs. Posting them on social media, Alcaraz got minimal views, but he was still motivated to keep on hustling.
Running this exotic sprint has typically been done solo by Mr. Alcaraz, but there is hope that it will spread to the student body here at Triton. After speaking to class officer Cam Neary, he is in full support of widening the awareness of the Milk Mile, sharing, “I have been pushing for the Milk Mile to become part of the track and field experience. Forget running, jumping, and throwing, I want to see the best and brightest chuggers that Triton has to offer.”
The Milk Mile is a unique style of motivation, not only for the runner but for its viewers. Senior student Nate Reily, who had watched Alcaraz run firsthand, was able to rekindle his excitement and passion for photography and the recurring Milk Mile, sharing that just the look on Alcaraz’s face was enough to gain anticipation for the next one to come.
You may be wondering, why milk? Alcaraz claims that milk is the ideal beverage as it “is the most readily available on the Triton campus.” As much as Alcaraz enjoys chugging lactose-based beverages, he has also been fueled by a dozen apple cider donuts, claiming, “I also dabbled in the donut mile, twelve donuts vs. one mile.” Being one of the hardest runs that he has completed, Alcaraz is eager to challenge himself.
While Neary has never been granted the chance to witness the Milk Mile in person, he still feels honored to have seen it through Tik-Toks that Alcaraz has posted. He patiently waits for the day that Alcaraz performs his jog stating, “I enjoy seeing the milk mile as a bi-yearly event, once in the winter and once in late spring.” As much as Neary wants to see the Mile be brought to life, he feels as if it’s unethical for him, as a class officer, to endorse “the physical toll that the Milk Mile takes on the human body.”
Other students at the high school have had the privilege of seeing the mile completed in real-time. One of these students is Reily. As the man responsible for recording the winter run, Reily was able to capture the moment when Alcaraz crossed the finish line. While the camera quality was not up to standards due to the cold temperatures, aspiring photographer, Reily, still found it to be “a wonderful experience.” While Reily would not participate in the challenge, he would still support all those who would, as he realizes how impressive it is that Alcaraz can “drink all that milk and still run farther than the average person”.
The future of the Milk Mile is continuously evolving and Alcaraz expects a new one to be run this year. He writes a message to the student body stating, “There might be a new milk mile dropping this year, stay tuned.”
Completing the mile is not for the weak. Neary wants to emphasize the strength that it takes to be motivated by dairy, going on record claiming, “Noah Matthew Alcaraz is god’s strongest soldier.”
