Perhaps you have seen the tall, angular, freckled, half-Chinese track and basketball wunderkind criss-crossing town on his regular jogs. But did you know that Tommy Vandenburg ’11’s passion for running dates back to his birth? Vandenburg “ran out of the womb and out of the room,” according to Rishi Gorti ’11, an OSR winner and therefore a medical expert. But first, Tommy interjected, the doctors “had to cut the thing first.”

Vandenburg loves running so much that Physical Education is his favorite class. Gabe Samach ’11, resident expert on everything, said, “maybe he was born to run,” which corroborates Gorti’s claim. Tommy’s love for running has made him an integral part of the MHS Track team. Vandenburg has had a stellar track career: he is 2^ndin the county for the 800-meter sprint and recently broke the school record (from 1981) of same race with the incredible time of 1:56.69 (this is a states-qualifying time). When asked why he likes to run, Vandenburg said “I like running because it is fun and… why do I like running?”

This question points to another of Tommy’s fortes: asking questions. Vandenburg is famous amongst the MHS faculty for his likeness to Socrates. His insatiable curiosity has helped him succeed in three of the hardest classes in the school. However, his teachers have been receptive to his questions to varying degrees.

“Tommy is just so difficult to describe,” said Teresa Valdez, his BC Calculus teacher. “I’ve never had a student quite like him.”

Tommy’s relationship with his AP Macroeconomics teacher, Adam Sobel, is well-known. Sobel described it as “contentious,” and added: “Tommy likes to ask questions… sometimes he listens to the answers.”

One perceptive onlooker of their interactions, Barry Sassoon ’11 said, “Mr. Sobel wants to put a muzzle on Tommy.”

But Tommy’s AP Physics C teacher, Eduardo Nunes, feels differently about Tommy’s contributions. “He brings the class together with laughter,” Dr. Nunes said.

Tommy asks so many questions, in fact, that some have developed their own theories as to his true identity. “Tommy is a paid actor by the College Board,” insists Jason Hellerstein ’11. “He keeps us entertained, and with him in the classroom, you don’t get nervous.”

Vandenburg prefers to do his homework in school so he can study at night. But what if he has a question outside of class? If he is at home, he uses Google. The only time that Tommy does not think of questions, conveniently, is on his long runs. Maybe he uses running as a way to clear his mind.

Tommy does have a life outside of running and asking questions. He enjoys drawing, playing baseball and playing ping-pong. “Tommy likes ping-pong,” Sassoon confirmed. “I’m good at ping-pong because I am Chinese,” asserted Vandenburg. And here’s a fun fact: Tommy is one of the five only children in the senior class (this statistic has not been confirmed).

So what’s next for Tommy? He will be attending Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh (despite his dislike for melon), where he plans to keep running and to ask many more questions. He wants to major in civil engineering.

When asked if he has always been inquisitive, Vandenburg turned to the nearest possible source of answers, which in this case was Rishi Gorti, and asked, “What’s ‘inquisitive’?”