There are just over 500 high school-aged students in Sedona and the Village of Oak Creek, according to the 2020 U.S. Census, most of whom are enrolled at Sedona Red Rock High School. While many appear in Sedona Red Rock News stories for their academic or athletic activities, a question many Sedona residents many have is, “What do Sedona area teenagers do when not in school?”

Nic McAtee

Nic McAtee is a senior at SRRHS who said he constantly does his best to achieve greatness inside the classroom. McAtee has made the academic honor roll multiple times while also taking hard classes like Advanced Placement calculus. However, there is more to McAtee than meets the eye.

“I sail, I spearfish, I do regular fishing, I backpack and I [go] offroading,” McAtee said. “I mean, do a little bit of boat stuff, ice ski too in the wintertime. I’ve just kind of always been outdoorsy.” 

McAtee said that he considers mountain biking to be the most fun, as it gets him out of the house and into nature, as well as helping him stay in shape.

“It’s just the people that you get to meet while doing it,” McAtee said. “You get to meet some cool people, and then just the trail riding. Whenever you hit a jump and you’re in the air, it’s just a weird feeling that you can’t match with anything else.”

Although McAtee is not a member of the Sedona School Mountain Bike Club anymore, he still goes on some of his favorite trails when he has the time. His favorite trail is Hiline Trail, which he said is one of the longest and toughest trails Sedona has to offer. 

McAtee said that while mountain biking is fun, it comes with challenges like pedaling uphill while also having to navigate the difficult terrain Sedona has to offer.

Ari Tedrick

Ari Tedrick is a SRRHS junior who said that while getting good grades is important, his focus is on sports. Tedrick formerly used to play basketball and run cross-country, but has since taken up pole vaulting with the SRRHS track and field team.

Tedrick has been pole vaulting since his freshman year of high school but did not start competing in the sport until his sophomore year. He said that the biggest reason he decided to pick pole vaulting was the small number of people participating in it.

“I have found I really enjoy the sport, and I find it challenges me in a good way, and allows me to continue to grow as a [person] while also giving me something to focus on,” Tedrick said.

While he has enjoyed his pole vaulting experience so far, Tedrick said it has not all gone according to plan. 

“Injuries are probably one of the biggest challenges,” Tedrick said. “It’s a very physical sport that is very injury-prone. I’ve gotten a concussion. I’ve sprained my ankles. I’ve pulled muscles in my arms and in my back, and I have fallen off the mat one time, too.”

Tedrick said these experiences have taught him how to persevere with determination, and that he has now learned to apply them to school as well as his home life.

Melle Glatt

Melle Glatt is a sophomore who said she works hard in and out of school. Glatt currently has a 4.0 grade point average and takes part in both Interact Club and SRRHS Student Council, where she is the sophomore class president.

Glatt noted that she also works very hard outside of school as well, particularly in ballet. She has been dancing for 10 years and is currently training with the Sedona Dance Academy, which she said she is very happy to be a part of because she loves to dance and the academy gives her a positive environment to do so.

“I’d say I like ballet because there’s so much you can do with it,” Glatt said. “And there’s different, like, styles, I guess you could say, of ballet. There’s pointe, which is dancing all the way up on your toes with special shoes, and then there’s flat, which is kind of just going halfway on your tiptoes.”

Glatt said she also loves ballet because she believes that it gives her a safe space to let out any emotions, positive or negative, and how creative ballet can be through its choreography and uniqueness compared to other dancing styles. She added that a challenge is the physical demands of the art, as practicing often leaves her sore, which she said can be hard to recover from.

Lotus Flores

Lotus Flores is a junior who said she prides herself in getting good grades and mastering the violin, and enjoying doing art in her free time.

Flores said that she has been dedicated to learning the violin since the first grade, as it’s something she enjoys and wishes to keep improving on.

“I’ve grown to really love the instrument. I find it very soothing to the mind, and it gives me a skill to work meticulously on, and not only that, but to socialize and to be able to spread music with other people and find joy within that,” Flores said.

Flores currently takes private lessons once a week to improve her skills as a violinist, as she hopes to continue playing after high school. That being said, mastering the violin isn’t exactly easy and comes with its fair share of challenges.

“You have to meticulously work on that skill and craft, and think you need to make sure things are perfect when you’re playing,” Flores said. “But I think also working with others can be difficult at times, but overall, it is worth it because you’re creating something very wonderful.”

Yonas Rahman is an intern and senior at Sedona Red Rock High School, whose work is funded through a grant from the Arizona Media Association and Arizona Local News Foundation.