Run for fun?

A little more than four years ago, Brittany Clark signed a contract that, unbeknownst to her, would end up shaping her athletic career at Laguna Beach High.

The contract, drawn up by track and field hurdles coach Fred Pichay, wasn’t legally binding but, when the then-14-year-old Clark signed it, she had made a promise to live up to that contract.

She kept her word.

She kept on training.

And as she is just a few weeks away from graduating, she’ll be running away with two school records in track and field.

“The funny thing is, I didn’t want to run track,” said Clark, now 18, adding with a laugh in her voice, “I just didn’t know why people wanted to run for fun.

“But Coach Fred talked to me my freshman year and asked me to think about it. He motivated me and the contract basically said that I’d work hard in track and give it my all. I signed it and he kept that contract. I stayed with it and kept my honor.”

Clark, who had no formal training, made her mark early on the track but said that it “took awhile” for her to grow to enjoy the sport.

She has been a member of the girls’ varsity track and field team all four of her years at Laguna Beach High, the same amount of time in which she has started at point guard on the girls’ varsity basketball team.

She’s experienced many, many highs in both sports and a few lows, to boot. But, she says, they’ve all helped shaped her beyond the athletic spectrum.

“Being involved in both sports definitely has helped me in many other areas of my life,” she said. “It’s taught me to treat everyone the same way I would my teammates. It has also helped me be a leader in the classroom. I’ve really learned about perseverance, about not giving up. There were times that I wanted to, though.”

On the track, Clark will leave the school as the record-holder in both the 200-meters and long jump. She also nearly set the school record in the 100-meters last month too, but just missed setting the new mark.

She competed in the long jump only during her junior year and that’s when she set the record.

“I was asked to give the long jump a try but I knew that I was a sprinter at heart,” she said. “I only did it that one year. It was a lot of fun but I learned that there’s a lot of technique involved, not just running and jumping, as most people might think. I just wanted to stick to sprinting.

“But being a part of the track program was a lot of fun. It was kind of like a big family out there. I spent a lot of time on the track, so much so, that my Dad would refer to me being at ‘the office.’ ”

Sprinting definitely was her forte and for the past three years, she has been the Laguna’s MVP among female sprinters.

In April, she won the Orange County Championships title in the girls’ 100-meters.

“Brittany was a tremendous talent all four years,” girls’ track and field coach Earl Towner said. “It was great to watch her improve over those years and watch her work ethic really take shape.”

Boys’ coach Dave Brobeck echoed Towner’s sentiments.

“Brittany has been the face of the girls’ program for the past four years,” he said. “She has been dominating at the varsity level since she was a freshman.”

Perhaps her most trying time in athletics came in basketball. During her four years at Laguna, she endured a head coaching carousel that saw three different coaches take over the program. She began her playing career one year after the program had ended a 51-game losing streak. During her sophomore year, she was part of a team that did what no other Laguna girls’ team had done before: win a league championship. That same year, Laguna hosted it first-ever home CIF playoff game, which it won.

“That definitely is the greatest highlight and honor for me in my four years at Laguna,” she said of winning the league title. “It was an awesome achievement for our team. We had a few ups and downs during that season but really came together during league.”

But following that incredible high, the program has been back on the down-low the past two years.

“Going through all the coaching changes was tough for all of us on the team,” she said. “When you get three different coaches, you get three different personalities and coaching styles. I actually wasn’t going to go out for basketball this year. It was hard and I got emotional about the decision but I thought about it and really didn’t want to let my teammates down.

“I’m actually very glad that I stuck with it. The ups and downs really helped me develop character and team leadership. But this year I kind of felt like an assistant coach out there most of the time. I didn’t care about stats or winning or losing. It was about helping out my teammates.”

Still, she went on to earn first-team all-league honors, which she has done the past three years. She was a second-team all-league pick her freshman year.

In late-April, she was one of two players selected to represent the Orange Coast League in the Kiwanis/PlyoCity All-Star Girls’ Basketball Game.

“I have been coaching high school sports for over 12 years and it is rare to get a great athlete, with a great attitude as well, like Brittany,” girls’ basketball coach Keith Clarkson said. “I really enjoyed working with her this season.”

Clark, who has also been involved in Christian youth groups and has logged nearly 700 hours of community service while at Laguna, will go through finals next week before enjoying senior activities the next.

When she’s done with high school, she has another contract to honor: she has a partial athletic scholarship to Pepperdine University. She’s part of the first recruiting class at the Malibu school which just this year added women’s track and field to its athletic stable.

“I’m really excited about that and feel pretty fortunate to get that opportunity,” she said. “I’m looking forward to the next step.”