OFF TO THE RACES-Royal's Michael Cybulski blows past the competition during last month's Marmonte League Prelims. The junior distance runner will compete today at the CIF Masters Meet. He's only 16 years old, but Royal's Michael Cybulski has already accomplished so much.

The junior distance runner is the reigning 3,200-meter state champion and a prominent member of the Highlanders' back-toback state title winning crosscountry teams.

At last weekend's CIF-SS Track and Field Championships at Cerritos College, Cybulski won the Division I boys' 3,200 title. In doing so, he broke yet another career milestone: finishing the race in less than 9 minutes.

"It was my first time ever breaking 9 (minutes)," Cybulski said. "My goal was to run an 8:55, which I did. I'm pretty happy with that."

He attempted to dip below the 9-minute mark during the Ventura County Championships several weeks ago at Moorpark High, but came up just short.

"I tried to go for it at Ventura County," Cybulski said, "but I was all by myself and ended up with a 9:01."

Cybulski's time at Cerritos was 8:55.35.

He outdistanced the Division I second-place finisher, Diego Mercado of West Covina, by nearly 7 seconds. Despite showing up late because of prom pictures and not having the time to warm up properly, Mercado finished with a time of 9:02.04.

Since bursting onto the scene as a sophomore during the 2005 CIF State Track and Field Championships at Sacramento City College, a race in which he defeated heavily favored Mark Matusak of Loyola, Cybulski said his confidence has grown exponentially.

"Last year I didn't know what I was capable of . . . I didn't think I had a chance at State," he said. "This year I have a good idea of what I want to run."

Cybulski attended Chaminade High during his freshman year but opted to transfer to Royal after his original high school coach announced his retirement.

"My parents knew I had potential," Cybulski said. "So we wanted to get the best coach. That's why I came here."

At Royal, Cybulski teamed up with Ryan Luce, the man who's helped lead the Highlanders to six consecutive Marmonte League cross-country titles in a halfdozen years at the helm.

Luce, who coaches the track and field distance runners at Royal in addition to being a science teacher, said he realized Cybulski possessed some serious potential the first time he saw him race.

"Obviously, he's a very strong kid with tons of talent and motivation," Luce said. "He uses motivation quite well. Once I saw he was on my team and I saw him run the first time, it was like, 'Oh, this guy is good.'"

Training under Luce has been both grueling and beneficial, Cybulski said.

On some days the Highlanders run hills, up and down, over and over, sometimes as many as 15 or 20 times during a practice session. On other days they work on speed training.

Cybulski said the cross-country training has helped him improve his overall physical fitness and has allowed him to cut his times down in both the 1,600 and 3,200.

"Training like that sets up a huge base for us," he said. "In the summer, we're just running miles and miles and miles. The cross country gives us a great base for track, it makes us stronger. It helps us a lot."

Although he helped Royal capture another state title this year in cross country, Cybulski was not always in peak physical condition during the season.

In December, he had to have a bone spur removed from the second toe on his right foot. A teamfirst runner, Cybulski chose to have the surgery after the crosscountry season was over, despite the fact that the injury was painful at times.

"The bone went through my skin and there was a scab over it," he said.

"I could've had it removed during the season, but I didn't want to take any time off," Cybulski said. "The guys on my team knew, but none of my competitors knew."

After six weeks of rest following surgery, Cybulski returned to the track in February.

It's taken a while to return to full health, and that's meant putting off running in most 1,600 events.

But now that he's back in top shape, Cybulski, who's received countless college recruiting letters but has narrowed his choices down to Oregon and UCLA, believes he can become a force in the 1,600 again.

But Luce said the 1,600 will have to wait until next season.

"You've got to be a monster to run the mile and the 2-mile and win them both," Luce said. "Yes, we are going to be looking at that down that road . . . but I just don't think we're there yet."

There's also the matter of defending his state title in the 3,200. Cybulski will probably get that opportunity June 2 and 3 at Cerritos College. He'll run in the CIF Masters Meet today, also at Cerritos College.

"No one has ever won State three years in a row," Cybulski said. "I have a chance to do that."

By that time, if he's able to repeat this season, Cybulski will have already reached the ripe old age of 17.