Penn State senior Bridget Franek is fresh off her first World Championship team this past summer where she qualified in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. She's now got a personal-best time of 9 minutes, 36.74 seconds in the steeplechase but is competing in her last collegiate cross country season. Last year in Terre Haute, Franek finished 15^th overall. In her last race, the Big Ten Championships, Franek defeated Illinois' Angela Bizzarri, who finished sixth overall last year, to indicate where her fitness is. Let's see how well she can finish!

I heard you recently had a pretty good workout, can you share what kind of workout that was?

We did a ladder of tempo. It was one minute, two minute, three minute, four minute, five minute, four minute, three minute, two minute, one minute with half the amount of the tempo as our rest.

How do the packs usually break up during workouts on your team?

We usually split up into two or three groups and within those groups, we'll string out a little bit, but the goal is to try to run together as much as possible.

Last weekend was a very strong conference win for you at the Big Ten Championships over Illinois' Angela Bizzarri, who took sixth overall last year at the NCAA Championships. Where would you like to finish at the NCAA Championships this year?

I would really just like to be in the thick of things and just be up there. My coach always says, “any given day” and I totally believe that. I think that if I put myself in it, I'll just see what happens when I run with the top girls and see how I feel that day and see how everyone else feels that day and hope for the best.

What about your team goals?

We have been so close to making it to Nationals all three of my years here. First of all, we'd like to just make it. It's going to be tough to get out of our region, it's such a strong region. We're ranked—and you probably already know this—11^th in the nation and fourth in our region! We're like, “what?!” Just getting out of our region has been a struggle, but I think that with our wins in the Big Ten, we should be able to do that this year. Once we're there, I would say we're looking at a top-15 finish definitely.

Coming off of competing in the World Championships this past summer, do you return to the NCAA with a little more confidence or a difference in the way you carry yourself as a runner?

I definitely think it gave me a lot of mental confidence. Just having confidence in my own abilities. The biggest thing it did for me was it changed my perspective on the sport and it showed me that there can be a serious career in it if your heart's in it and if you get the right opportunities. The way my career has been set up, I have had such great opportunities and I'm really looking forward to trying out the post-collegiate system once I'm done. It's got me really excited and rekindled my fire for this sport in general. I think that with that new perspective on it, it's really cool and I can take things in stride a little more, so to speak—no pun intended. I understand that in the collegiate system there's so much more above that and that it's not the end-all, be-all. Each race I go into is a new chance to improve myself. It's not something to be scared of. All of that stuff goes into it and I think that plays a role in the end result, since running is such a mental sport.

After watching the video on our site, right after you took third at the USA Outdoor Championships this summer, it seemed like that was the turning point. Were you a little surprised by your third-place finish? You mentioned that you had been planning on going to Nepal this past summer and were completely surprised that you were going to be going to Berlin instead.

I was really, completely surprised. It was a great surprise and was very unexpected. I think that experience showed me how much experience really does play a role. I've been going to senior nationals for a few years now, just to gain that experience and to help me in the future. There was such a big difference this summer there than last summer for me or the summer before that. Also, I had an opportunity to run at Stanford this past outdoor season with a lot of those same girls. Each time I ran with them, I got a better understanding that these girls were just other runners. I took them off their pedestals each time I ran against them and felt more comfortable with that type of competition. I knew every time I ran with that caliber that I was getting better and it became an exciting thing for me, not so much a scary thing. The way I went into it, especially after the pre-lims at senior nationals, some of the other girls were talking about how the barrier was set or whatever. I came off of the race having barely even noticed that it was any different. I just felt so comfortable and so strong and that was the point where I was like, “wow, if they really feel like they do and I really feel like I do...I actually have a chance at making this team!” Within those two days between pre-lims and finals, I was in shock and was struggling with how I was going to handle the pressure of thinking I could actually make it if I put together the right race at the right time. I knew that a lot of things had to go my way, because I hadn't even run the standard time. I knew that I was capable of it. It was just a matter of if I was going to be able to stomach the pressure and get it done or fall apart. I think that's such a cool situation. It's a do-or-die situation and it really helped me in so many ways.

After this year is done, what comes after college for you?

I've been thinking about that a lot lately. My coach suggests that I stay in the area at least one more year. Because college to professional career is pretty tough and she definitely emphasizes keeping as much as you can consistent the last couple of years. She thinks that helps adjust. I think I'm going to be here for another year, at least, running with her. Then, I guess I'll see where life takes me. I'd really like to get in with a group that would be willing to take me in and allow me to run with them, because I think that would be really good to have a lot of really good people to run with and push me. My coach also emphasizes that at that stage, running is a business and even the few that are with groups, she believes, that it's a lot of people doing their own thing. I have a lot to learn in that sense. This summer, I think I want to travel around and visit some of the people I've made contacts with some friends from Berlin and stuff and go to where they train and how they live and get a better sense of what I'm getting myself into, just to make the right decisions for myself and my career.

Do you think you'll race during that period of time or just test the waters with training groups?

I haven't really thought about racing overseas, I was kind of just hoping that I would get picked up on the professional circuit and they would tell me what I would need to do. I kind of feel like after I'm done with the college seasons here, I haven't really had a chance yet to build my mileage or experiment with that much and I feel like I have a lot of potential with even just small tweaks in my training. We haven't really pushed my training much in college because we race so much. You know you have to be fresh every other week or whatever. I feel like I have a lot of improvements in that sense and I'm going to look there to make biggest changes.

What's your training like now?

We're probably around 45 to 50 miles a week. Some weeks more, some weeks less. My body has been fine with that. I know in the past, with the little bit of experimenting that I've done, my body responds well to speedwork pretty well. I just never had a chance to increase very much. I've heard a lot of things about increasing mileage and how it will help you so much and all this stuff. I'm young and with everything right now, my body doesn't feel broken down like some people who I've heard have had coming out of college with so many injuries and feeling so tired. My body feels good and that's exactly where I need to be. My coach had that in mind the whole time, but I'm excited to experiment.

Do you see yourself sticking around the steeple or moving up to the 5,000 and 10,000 distances?

I would say that I might progress in my running and probably stay steeple-5K. I really haven't had that many opportunities to run a fast 5K. I've got a lot of room to grow in that event. That's probably where I'll end up...in addition to the steeple.

If you could have one meal, prepared by anyone, what would you have and who would make it?

Wow. Meals? Well, growing up we lived on my grandma's pork, sauerkraut and dumplings, which were really, really good. My mom makes a pretty good biscuits and gravy...like sausage gravy (laughs)...which is how we do it in the Franek Family...the heavy, stick-to-your-bones meals!

Can you share a crazy, running-related story?

We did have a really funny thing happen to us this season. We were all warming up for a workout and were running through these neighborhoods in State College. They're not very busy, so we spread out along the road, all running in a big pack. This particular time—all of a sudden—we hear this squealing and this squirrel drops from the tree...literally from like 40 feet up, onto the ground. We all just look at it for a second, long enough for us all to wonder if it's going to get up or what. It finals pops up and runs off. We were all like, “did that just happen?!” We were thinking that it just goes to show you that the timing of life. If we would have walked out the door or on the track five seconds earlier, the thing would have dropped on our heads or if we would have went a little later, we would have never seen it. It just so happened that it happened and this whole instance happened probably 50 feet in front of us.

 

About Running Warehouse:

My KWIK-Es are sponsored by runningwarehouse.com, located on the California coast in the small community of San Luis Obispo. The folks over there include one of the owners, Joe Rubio, a two hour, 18 minute marathoner and current head coach of the Asics Aggie RC. Jonathan Spiros oversees footwear buying and served many years as assistant coach at College Park High School helping Lindsay Allen. Erik Dube is in charge of accessories and helps with footwear buying. Erik has finished the Western States 100-Mile Race several times and was assistant coach at San Ramon Valley High School helping Scott Bauhs through high school. Erik’s wife, Tera, is in charge of customer service and is an ultra marathoner and former track star at Campolindo High School, where her brother Chuck Woolridge is currently head coach. Kara June handles web content. Kara was 6th at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials in the steeplechase. Kara was also third overall at Last Fall’s USATF Club Cross Country Championships. The entire online and phone customer service representative staff at the Running Warehouse, including the staff listed above, have spent considerable time working the retail floor. This, along with the coaching and personal athletic experience, enables the company to have a unique perspective of understanding the needs of every level of runner from beginner to All-American. Check them out when you get a chance!