Ben De Santiago’s name will not appear on the Pahrump Valley High School track and field record board once. It will be there three times.
After helping break the school record in the 4×400-meter relay as a sophomore, De Santiago closed out his senior season by adding two individual records of his own, rewriting the marks in both the 400-meter dash and the 800-meter run.
For De Santiago, the journey began two years ago with the 4×400 relay team of De Santiago, Jace Wulfenstein, Antonio Veloz and Deven Nixon. After coaches experimented with different combinations early in the season, a race-off helped determine the fastest four runners.
“Every single meet we chipped away at the record slowly, by half a second to a second,” De Santiago said. “That was just our goal.”
At regionals that year, the relay team had not only broken the school record, but had done so by about two seconds while winning the race by several more. De Santiago said the moment was emotional.
“It was a really good day,” he said. “I cried.”
That success also gave him a new target: the 400-meter record. But after coming close as a junior, De Santiago said he had to take an honest look at himself.
“I thought I was the end-all be-all, and I thought I was the top dog,” he said. “I definitely wasn’t. I let that get to my head, and it messed with my ability to run, and it just humbled me really hard.”
A college visit before his senior year helped reset his mindset even more. Coaches told him plainly that his time was not good enough yet.
“It opened my eyes to what I could be doing and what I had been doing,” De Santiago said. “I wasn’t working hard enough. I wasn’t putting in enough time, enough effort, and I wasn’t really dialed into the sport.”
That changed. He joined cross country, even though he admitted he did not enjoy the heavy mileage, and said it helped prepare him mentally and physically for wrestling and track. Then, injuries during wrestling season forced another challenge. A hamstring and hip injury, followed by a concussion at state, kept him out of the first month of track season.
Instead of derailing him, De Santiago said the time away made him even hungrier.
“It did allow my body to recover, rest up, and just let me physically and mentally want to get back into the sport,” he said.
When he finally returned to competition, he quickly realized the record was within reach.
“I knew the record going into the season,” he said. “I knew the record was coming down, and it wasn’t a matter of how bad I wanted it. It was the fact that I had no choice but to break it.”
He first broke the 400-meter record at Virgin Valley, running 50.34 seconds to edge the previous mark of 50.47 by one-tenth of a second. He remembered lying on the ground trying to catch his breath as teammates and supporters celebrated around him.
“As soon as I stand up, I see the time on the scoreboard and it says 50.34,” he said.
But he did not stop there. De Santiago broke his own record five more times, lowering it from 50.34 to 49.83, then 49.65, 49.21, 48.77 and finally 48.67.
“It honestly feels amazing,” he said. “It just shows that you can literally do anything as long as you work hard enough for it and you put your mind to it.”
At regionals, De Santiago decided to chase one more record: the 800-meter run. Before that meet, he had only run the event three times, with a best of 2:01. At regionals, he ran 1:56.54, breaking the school record previously held by his coach, Bryce Odegard.
De Santiago said Odegard’s reaction made the moment even more meaningful.
“As soon as I crossed the line, he started screaming, jumping up and down, and was just so excited,” De Santiago said. “He ran over, made me give him a hug, and it was just the best moment.”
De Santiago credited Odegard with pushing him throughout the season and helping him prepare for his future. He also thanked wrestling coach Antonio Sandoval for supporting him like family, and Madison Sandoval for helping him through injuries and recovery.
“She has stuck with me through all of my injuries,” De Santiago said. “She was always pushing me to rehab, always pushing me to stretch and take it easy every once in a while and treat recovery like it’s a workout.”
He also gave credit to Dominiqué Maloy, who has been part of his athletic journey since he was about 11 years old.
“She’s stuck with me and trained me and always helped me strive to become a great athlete but an even better person,” he said. “She’s truly one of my biggest inspirations and one of my favorite people.”
Family, De Santiago said, played one of the biggest roles in his success. He thanked his parents, Crystal and Benji, for always pushing him and making sure he had what he needed, including replacing his stolen spikes before a meet. He said his father’s pre-race texts helped put him in the mindset he needed to compete.
He also spoke about his brothers, Jacob and Noah, and the pride he felt knowing they were watching him succeed.
“I wanted to be able to stand on top of a podium and them scream, ‘That’s my brother,’” he said.
His uncle and aunt, Frank and Mayra, were also among his biggest supporters. De Santiago said his uncle once drove from work more than two hours away just to watch him race, then drove back the same night. After De Santiago broke the record without him there, his uncle made sure not to miss another meet.
After every race, De Santiago said his uncle would text him encouragement, telling him, “That’s how you perform, kid,” or “Way to make us proud.”
His grandmother was another constant presence.
“She’s one of the biggest fans there is,” he said. “Even when she truly can’t, she still finds a way.”
Looking back, De Santiago said he understands how fortunate he has been to have so much support, not just from family and coaches, but from the Pahrump community.
“I didn’t realize how lucky I was until this year once I saw everybody come together,” he said. “I truly am lucky and grateful and blessed.”
As graduation approaches, De Santiago said he does not feel he left anything unfinished.
“I live by not regretting anything,” he said. “Put everything out there and the outcome’s the outcome.”
Now, with three school records connected to his name and a college track future ahead, De Santiago leaves younger athletes with simple advice.
“Work hard and be obsessed,” he said. “And don’t forget to have fun. Winning is fun, but the memories you make along the way are even better. It all goes by fast, so take it all in and enjoy every second before it’s gone.”
