Interview by Logan Scisco
At the 2009 NFL National Tournament in Birmingham, Alabama, Evan Larson of Bellarmine College Prep anchored the best extemp squad at the tournament and emerged as the United States Extemporaneous Speaking National Champion. A two-time champion at the California Invitational, a two-time California state champion in United States extemp, an MBA Round Robin Exhibition Round participant, a three-time national finalist, and CFL runner-up, Larson agreed to sit down for an interview to discuss his extemp career and provide advice for those wishing to compete at the highest level in extemp.
Logan Scisco: Thanks for doing this interview with us Evan. The first question to get us started here is how did you get started in extemp?
Evan Larson: Kim Jones, my team’s head coach, teaches a class for freshman that goes over the fundamentals of public speaking and debate. It’s a great resource for newcomers that are just getting started in speech. The students practice policy debate and then choose an IE event to work with. I chose domestic extemp during rhetoric class and I competed in it all four years. I think I was drawn to extemp because I wanted to speak on new topics, rather than memorizing a speech. I was also drawn to the current events element of extemp— I like talking about politics. Finally, as you may have already ascertained, I am both tedious and longwinded. In any other speaking event, this would be an extreme disadvantage, in extemp, it may have given me the competitive edge.
Scisco: When did you realize you had some potential in the event?
Larson: I don’t think there was a particular moment where I sat back and thought, “I could really go somewhere with this.” I think what began to hit me as I competed in extemp was how much I loved the event. As I went home from tournaments, both tournaments where I had done well and tournaments where I had done poorly, I was often shocked by how much I had enjoyed myself. If I had potential in extemp, it was because I loved competing in it – that’s what kept me moving forewords.
Scisco: What was the biggest highlight of your year last year?
Larson: I’ll never forget the National tournament. I had a great time with my team and the other extemp competitors. It was a great feeling to compete with all of them for the last time. I enjoyed it all: the food, the rounds. I thought it was a great way to end my extemp career and my high school experience. I have to say though, I really enjoyed the Montgomery Bell Academy tournament earlier in the year. Our top policy team and I attended the tournament along with two of our coaches. It was a great group of people to travel with, and the tournament itself was a blast.
Scisco: How did you manage your nerves before speaking for the final round?
Larson: First of all, I have to thank my coach Bill Healy. I can’t imagine myself having become a successful extemper without his help. Before finals, he did a great job of getting me in the right mood to do my best and not worry about the results. Right before I drew my question, I went through the Yang short form of Tai Chi. I went through the form before most of the final rounds I competed in during the year. For me, it was an invaluable way to calm down and focus myself. Before senior year when I learned Tai Chi, I used other mindfulness practices to prepare for my rounds. I would highly recommend mindfulness meditation or Tai Chi to anyone trying to do better under competitive pressure.
Scisco: In your opinion, what makes a good extemper?
Larson: I think a good extemper has three main characteristics. First of all, she is well informed on a wide variety of subjects. This means she knows the historical background of a particular issue, the major contemporary issues surrounding it, and can speculate about what’s likely to happen next. Second, she is well prepared to give a strong presentation. She can offer a unique and interesting perspective on the topic and use the format of extemp to full effect. Finally, I think a good extemper needs to have fun with her speech. If she can’t get excited about her topic, the judges certainly won’t be able to.
Scisco: What advice do you have to people who hope to win a national championship?
Larson: If you want to improve at extemp, I think the best thing you can do is practice. I was able to give two practice speeches a week to my peers or to coaches for all four years of high school. When I was really trying to step up my speaking during my sophomore and junior years, I gave three speeches a week. By practicing regularly and listening to feedback, I felt like my speaking kept improving – and my tournament results did as well.
At the same time, I would caution against setting out with a desired rank in mind. I was guilty of doing this before a lot of tournaments, but I never found that it helped my speaking in any way. If I got the rank I wanted, I was always contented, but never particularly excited. If I didn’t, I was often depressed and discouraged. Try not to shoot for a specific spot, try to focus on giving the best speech possible in every round. I am happy with how this year’s final round turned out, but I think it could have turned out differently on a different day. At a certain point, you need to do your best and be grateful for what comes your way.
Scisco: Did you feel that NFL was a “must win” tournament because of your success the year before in US extemp? How did you manage the expectations of some that you would do well?
Larson: As I was competing throughout the year, it was definitely on my mind. I wanted to do better this year than last year, and at times I was really focused on the goal of getting first.
By the time I hit the tournament though, I had graduated and decided where I was going to go to college. Coming from that context, I focused less on winning and more on enjoying my last tournament. I was really honored to win – I felt that it was a validation of the hard work I’ve put into extemp – but I’m even happier that I enjoyed myself at the tournament regardless of the results.
Scisco: What are your future plans? Do you plan to judge at any major tournaments this season?
Larson: Right now I am taking courses in the humanities, trying to get a better picture of what I want to major in. I want to get more involved with our debate team next semester and I’ve participated in some on-campus debates during the past few months. I will be judging at the Princeton tournament in December – it’ll be great to see the future of extemp in the making.