Pursuing a degree in physics and taking on the 3,000-meter steeplechase as your track & field event, is not something you see every day from a college student-athlete.
But that’s how Danny Rubin rolls at Westmont College.
The Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table honored Rubin as Westmont’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year at the organization’s Monday press luncheon at Harry’s Plaza Cafe.
Rubin carries a GPA off 3.97 while taking courses in Classical Mechanics, Computational Physics, Spanish 3 and Major Honors Research.
His honors research thesis project is designing, developing and testing a system for sustainably harvesting electrical power that runs through a circuit based at the knee, with the hope of applications in powering a protheses. He’s been working with an electrical engineering professor on the project.
Just recently, Rubin was named the recipient of the Physics Department Outstanding Senior Award.
On the track, he does an event where the competitor clears 28 barriers and seven water jumps for 3000 meters.
“It’s no easy task by any measure,” said longtime Westmont coach Russell Smelley of the steeplechase.
Rubin hopes to qualify for the NAIA National Championships in the event at this week’s Golden State Athletic Conference Championships at Westmont.
“His workload is exceptionally hard,” said Smelley of Rubin’s course work and thesis project. “He comes and lets me know, ‘I won’t be able to do much training this week.’
“I’ve learned to go with it. That’s how things roll with him. He comes back in 1-2 weeks and the next race he runs it’s all out and all in.
“He’s really an exceptional student and athlete and individual par excellence.”
Smelley added that Rubin recently interviewed with Duke University’s doctorate program in Medical Physics.
In the fall, Rubin was captain of the Warriors cross country team that competed at the NAIA Nationals. He was the team’s No. 2 finisher behind the school’s multi-time All-American Zola Sokhela, placing 56th among 360 runners.
He has earned All-American honors in track as a member of a sixth-place 4×800 relay team and a second-place distance-medley relay.
The senior from Carlsbad took on the demanding steeplechase event in his junior year
Rubin said competing for Smelley made his college athletic experience enjoyable.
“Running under Coach Smelley is one of the best decisions I could have made for transformation as a college student. “His style of coaching has made me love this sport.”
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