" 'It's because you're Asian,' " says Bingham senior Kim Quinn, referring to friends' comments when they see the Asian artifacts sitting in her home.

Her friends are only teasing, but Quinn, whose mother is Vietnamese, sees it as a form of acceptance, another way of being more sociable with her peers. That's because the 17-year-old attends a school where, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, 95 percent of the students are Caucasian.

Quinn's coaches and teammates see her more for her hard work and commitment to the sport than for her skin color.

"The sport is just so pure, so unincumbered that race, creed and religion don't matter," said coach Jeff Arbogast, who's been in charge of the team for 27 years. "It's how fast you can go and how far you can push yourself. That's what matters."

But Quinn also believes her bloodlines matter, too. She started as an average, curious runner in her first year of high school, but is now considered one of the top runners in Utah.

Quinn says her determination comes from her mom, Hoa Quinn, who was born and raised in Vietnam, lived through the Vietnam War and worked two jobs to help support the family.

"She's the hardest worker I've ever seen," Kim Quinn said. "She worked so hard to provide for us . . . she has always taught me to work now, play later."

And she's been doing a lot of work lately.

On Wednesday, Quinn finished the 5-kilometer race in 19 minutes, 14 seconds, in the Region 3 meet at the Cottonwood Complex, beating the other runners by a couple of minutes. She is unbeaten this year.

Next up: Friday's Murray Invitational at Murray Park.

The girls' varsity 5K race will be a sort of a rematch for Quinn and Davis sophomore Candace Eddy.

At the Brigham Young Autumn Classic, Eddy was in the lead when she stopped inadvertently, thinking she had just finished, about 30 yards before the actual finish line. That allowed Quinn to slip past Eddy for the win.

"This time, I want her to have a good shot," Quinn said. "But this time, I want to beat her by a lot."

That's the kind of confidence Quinn has had ever since she decided to give cross country a shot four years ago. It started as socialization, but now Quinn is the only Utahn, and one of 13 runners nationwide, who will compete in the Great American Nike Race of Champions in Alabama at the end of this month.

"When she started out, she wanted to be more sociable," said her father, Joel Quinn. "She wanted that form of socialization, and running was a way to get that."

She's come a long way.

csun@sltrib.com