Rayla Castillo loves running. But what she loves even more is her teammates. Being able to hang out and go places with them. She also loves winning. And medals.She’s won a lot of those.

In fact, Castillo is our cross-country champion. She placed among the top 50 runners in the state. That’s 2 percent of all 6A runners. “We call her Big Race Rayla,” said WHS cross-country coach Tyrone Comstock. “She always comes up with a great race when it counts. But she is even a better person. She is kind and considerate to everyone no matter who they are.” Castillo has been running since seventh grade when she moved to Weatherford.

“I thought it’d be cool, and I was decent at running in elementary school,” Castillo said. “So I thought I’d be good at it.” Good – and notice-able. If you’ve ever gone to one of Castillo’s meets, you know it is easy to spot her. She stands out from the rest of the team with her bright red hair. She likes to keep her hair that way and has had it redone for that reason.

“It’s so coach can see me, and my parents and especially my older family, my grandma can easily spot me when she goes to see me run,” she said. Castillo has always been a good runner but didn’t start to see herself as a team leader until two years ago. “Our number one (runner) back then graduated, and It was kind of my role to fill her shoes,” she said. “So, I just stepped up and tried my best to be her in any way. I think I’ve gotten there.”

Rayla Castillo loves running. But what she loves even more is her teammates. Being able to hang out and go places with them. She also loves winning. And medals. She’s won a lot of those. In fact, Castillo is our cross-country champion. She placed among the top 50 runners in the state. That’s 2 percent of all 6A runners. “We call her Big Race Rayla,” said WHS cross-country coach Tyrone Comstock. “She always comes up with a great race when it counts. But she is even a better person. She is kind and considerate to everyone no matter who they are.”

Castillo has been running since seventh grade when she moved to Weatherford. “I thought it’d be cool, and I was decent at running in elementary school,” Castillo said. “So I thought I’d be good at it.” Good – and noticeable. If you’ve ever gone to one of Castillo’s meets, you know it is easy to spot her. She stands out from the rest of the team with her bright red hair. She likes to keep her hair that way and has had it redone for that reason.

“It’s so coach can see me, and my parents and especially my older family, my grandma can easily spot me when she goes to see me run,” she said. Castillo has always been a good runner but didn’t start to see herself as a team leader until two years ago. “Our number one (runner) back then graduated, and It was kind of my role to fill her shoes,” she said. “So, I just stepped up and tried my best to be her in any way. I think I’ve gotten there.”