This past weekend Western Washington’s Sarah Porter took the individual title at the Saint Martin’s Invitational in 21:37. After Porter’s 2^nd place finish in XC last year and her recent 10k record on the track, she is looking to improve upon those results. Make sure to check porter out in action this weekend at the Greater Louisville Classic. (This interview was conducted by Flotrack's Cara Hawkins)

 

 D2Review: Your season ran pretty late this summer with NACAC winning the 10K in 36:15. What was it like winning against an international field? Besides winning, what was the best part of the experience of NACACs?

 

Sarah Porter: The race itself was a lot of fun, despite the heat and humidity of Florida in July. NACAC was a few weeks after a very dissapointing trip to USA's so when I lined up for the gun, my main objective was to enjoy it and to remember that this is what I do for fun, all pressure off. I absolutely loved being able to wear a USA jersey, that was pretty special. Thankfully the 10K was on the first day so I had basically an entire week to enjoy being with the team in a beautiful area. The other athletes, both American and foreign, were incredibly friendly and I still keep in touch with some of the girls I met that week. It was also nice to spend some time with my boyfriend Michael who represented team USA in the 5K down there.

 

D2R; How did that affect your training this summer for XC?

 

SP: It didn't really. I used USA track nationals as the end of my track season and began my building phase the week after. I trained right through the week of NACAC and thankfully, I was still at relatively low mileage then because I have a newfound respect for runners who train in Florida. It's miserable. I'm not built for that kind of weather.

 

D2R: You are known as a high mileage runner, can you walk us through a progression of your mileage from your freshman year to now?

 

SP:The summer before my freshman year I was putting in 70mpw. That winter I upped that to 85. The following summer I had planned to run 95 but late one saturday night I decided to run those extra 5 for the 100 mile week. It felt fine so I continued to run 100 throughout the summer. That winter I hit 110 but only for about three weeks and the summer before my junior year I started running 125, mostly in doubles. That fall I placed 2nd at cross nationals, a 43 place improvement from my freshman year and I wrongly saw the high mileage as the common denominator for success and improvement. It isn't, and it was just recently that I realized that. This summer I ran my highest mileage yet and got several rather severe warning signs from my body, including an attack on my nervous system that left me with partial facial paralysis for about two weeks. It was pretty scary and a lot of people were worried about my health. I now know my glass ceiling and I don't plan to try anything higher unless I devote myself completely to the marathon someday.

 

D2R;What does a typical training week look like for you?

 

SP;That totally depends on the week. Truthfully, a lot of my training for this season is still being decided upon. Since my mileage is down, I am craving harder speed work and more of it, but week to week, that speek work varies. The one element of my training that remains consistent every week is my sunday morning long run. Galbraith is a mountain in Bellingham that is covered with beautiful sometimes treacherous trails and most Sundays I just run up and explore for a few hours. It's church to me. For some reason, running Galbraith is such an intimate experience because in three hours I might see one or two other people. I feel like the mountain belongs to me. There have been runs where I've sang, laughed, prayed, cried and grown up about 10 years all in the space of twenty miles. Fundamentally, that is what I love about running, the way it poses a question that doesn't have one right answer. Galbraith has become that answer for me.

 

D2R;With your mileage so high, do you do a lot of your training by yourself?

 

SP;A lot of it, yeah, but Lauren Briehof, a girl on our team, has become my running soulmate these past few years. She is also one of my best friends and we live in the same house. For some reason, running with Lauren is as comfortable as running alone. We can read each other so well that we know when to talk, and we both know when to pop in our headphones and ignore each other's existence. We've been through a couple of near death experiences while running and once shared the bizarre experience of finding a naked man hiding in some bushes. We keep each other going through rainstorms, windstorms, snowstorms, hailstorms and whatever else the northwest has to offer. I think if I ever found a dead body while running, I'd want lauren to be there with me.

 

D2R;You recently broke Jessica Pixler's lap record at the Lake Padden Relays, was this a good indicator of what your fitness is?

 

SP;That was quite a surprise. That course is only 2.6 miles and mid-distance has never been my specialty the way it is Jessica's. I remember last year, hearing it announced that she ran 14:01 while I was still on the course and finished in just under 15 minutes. This year I went out with the guys in a 4:56 first mile, but my body didn't panic and about half way through I thought I might be close to 14 minutes. Running 13:53 was a huge indication of how much i've improved since last year and even though i'd much rather have Jessica around, it'll be very rewarding to chase her records this season.

 

DRR; What do you hope to accomplish this XC season and the rest of your collegiate career?

 

SP:I've always been tentative to state goals out loud. Most people are. But I will say that two of the things that have eluded me thus far are a national title and a D2 record. I don't want to leave college without those. As long as I'm working toward improvement, I feel that the races will take care of themselves.

 

D2R;Do you have plans for after graduation? Are marathons in your future?

 

SP;I have about 4 or 5 different plans with four or five different back up plans. Everything is still up in the air. I really won't know for sure until after I'm able to see where I'm at with the 10K this spring. I ran a marathon when I was 19, it was on my list of things to do before I turned 20, and I liked it, but I really don't want to devote my life to that until I'm at least in my late twenties. That is one comfort, I'm still young enough to decide what type of training and racing really suits me. My mom became an elite marathoner at age 47 and my aunt set an American record for her age category in the 10K at 45. This is something I plan to be doing long after I graduate.

 

D2R;What is your favorite running memory?

 

SP;I have no idea how I could possibly narrow it down to one. But off the top of my head, there are two that really stick out. This past March, I totaled my car and for a few days I wasn't able to run and I wasn't able to sleep and I briefly toyed with the idea of red-shirting until eventually I decided that I had nothing to lose, so I wrapped up my ribs with a big ace-bandage, took some Ibuprofen and struggled through a few miles with Lauren encouraging me the whole way. I found out what I was made of. Just over a month later I raced a 10K at Stanford. I went through the 5K in what was then a 6 second 5K pr. Again, I found out what I was made of. I had to dig deeper than I ever had before but ended up running a time that beat my personal best by 54 seconds.

 

D2R; What is the best piece of advice you have received?

 

SP; My adorable, 97 pound grandmother has taught me more than I can fathom about running and about life. She was an awesome ultra runner back in the day, and she's taught me not to sweat the small stuff and really, it's all small stuff. One race does not define a season and one season does not define a career. When I was in high school, I had a race down at Hayward and she came to watch. As I rounded the last curve towards the home straightaway I heard her little voice screech out, "FLIRT WITH DEATH SARAH!" I will never forget that. Also, great advice.

The Cross Country Season got rolling this weekend with three major meets spread across the country. The review will come from these selected meets as most of the significant teams that competed this weekend in Division 2 competed here. If I’ve missed anything be sure to let me know via comment or e-mail.

 

Oklahoma State Jamboree:  

Men: Abilene Christian’s Amos Sang was the first D2 finisher at 4^th place in 24:05, the next D2 finisher was fellow teammate Celophas Tani in 25:04. The Abilene Christian men placed 10^th overall in the University Division as a team.

Women:  Abilene Christian’s Anais Belledant was the first D2 finisher in 15^th place at 22:24. Chloe Susset of Abilene Christian was the next finisher in 27^th place in a time of 23:04. The Abilene women took 8^th place in the University Division.

 

Roy Griak Invitational:  

Men: There was a Division 2 Specific race at the Griak Invite. Augustana who is ranked #9 in the week 1 poll took the team honors. They were lead by Senior Matt Braithwaite in 12^th place who ran 25:51. The next place finisher for Augustana was Travis Beniak in 13^th in a time of 25:56

Women: In the Women’s Maroon 6^th ranked Minnesota Deluth took the team honors. They were lead by JR Morgan Place who also took the individual honors in 21:49. She was followed closely by her fellow teammate Bridget Hines who finished 6^th and ran 22:34. Obsie Birru of Grand View placed second overall in 22:06

Memphis Twilight Classic: The first D2 finisher was Daniel Kirwa of Harding who ran 24:05 and placed 4^th after going out in a blistering 9:16 at two miles. His fellow teammate Phillip Biwott ran 24:37 to place 9^th. Harding finished 3^rd as a team.

Women: The first D2 finisher was Harding’s Naomi Landecker who placed 25^th in 18:36. Her teammate Gladys Kimtai was the next finisher at 43^rd place in 18:55. The Harding women placed 9^th overall as a team.

Stanford Invitational

Men: Brent Handa of Chico State put up a big time of 23:56 to lead his team to a 6^th place overall finish. The next D2 finisher was fellow teammate Isaac Chavez in 27^th place running 24:27.

Women: Kara Lubieniecki was the first D2 finisher in 38^th place running 21:56 and led her team to a 9^th place team finish. Fellow teammate Alia Gray was next in 44^th running 22:06