MileSplit - How is your fitness now that you are in the middle of the 2013 season. What excites you the most about the rest of the season and what you want to accomplish?
Emma - My fitness level right now is pretty good, I mean I feel great and in shape! I am looking foreword to the regional race on Thursday that is being hosted by my school for the first time. It's a really good course and I want to run really well on it because it is my home turf. If I make it to state again then I am looking foreword to taking down Big Willis (the hill) and beating my previous times on that course. My goal for the state meet is to take in the top five.
MileSplit - Colorado has a lot of talented female runners this year. You recently ran well and got 2nd behind Lauren Gregory at the Front Range League meet. How does this factor into how your season is going so far?
Emma - I wouldn't say that the League meet on Friday was my best individual performance ever, though my team did really well. Some races this season have been "off meets" where I don't feel my best and I just have to push through, the league meet was one of those. My season has been going well and I am pleased with some of the times that I have turned in so far.
MileSplit - When & how did you get started in cross country?
Emma - I started running cross country when I was a freshman but I had done track and competitive soccer before that. I realized how much I loved running at the end of 8th grade but it wasn't until the day before my freshman year that I actually signed up for cross country. I have done cross country every year since.
MileSplit - Person/people most influential to your success in cross country and why?
Emma - My grandpa, Kerry Gee, has been most influential to my success as a runner. After all my track meets in middle school he would call and ask me my times and congratulate me. When I started cross country in high school he came out to my big races and watched me run. The summer before my sophomore year he put together a training schedule for me and gave me a job moving pipe on his farm so that I could get in shape for cross country. He would even find big hills around his farm so that I could train on them to be ready for the state meet. He was a runner himself in high school and got a scholarship to run at Utah State. We both get the same nerves before races so he wrote me letters on how to deal with the stress. I really appreciate everything he has done for me as a runner.
MileSplit - What are the keys to your successful cross country training program and what work did you put in to start off so well this year?
Emma - Like I said, my grandpa puts together my summer training program and the most important part of them is the hill workout to be ready for courses that have hills. Every week this summer I would train on hills so that I would be ready for the state course.
MileSplit - What are the keys to your team's unity and how you train to reach your goals?
Emma - The key to my teams unity is working hard. There are no slackers on the Legacy High School cross country team. The girls on the varsity team are always focused on what they can do better for the next race so that we can place better. When someone gets a personal record we all congratulate them on their success...we support each other. We have a goal as a team to make it to state and we have trained in a way so that we can reach that goal. Before races we remind each other of our goal. At the beginning of the season I set goals on the times/places that I want to get in certain meets and I work hard so that I can achieve them.
MileSplit - Your favorite past performance in a cross country race and why?
Emma - My favorite performance this season was the Pat Amato Classic where I got my best time of the season so far. I felt really good the entire time, even though it was freezing out. It was the first time this season that I was really pleased with my performance in a meet.
MileSplit - Who are the cross country competitors you most enjoy competing against and why?
Emma - My favorite cross country competitors that I enjoy running against is probably Alaina Anderson, Isabelle Kennedy, and Erin Norton because they are the nicest girls I have run against. During the races they push me to run faster and get better times and after, regardless of place, they give the girls they finished near hugs.
MileSplit - What is your greatest non-running experience in cross country so far and why?
Emma - My greatest non-running experience in cross country is probably when my team went to the Pat Amato Classic last year when it was freezing and piled on top of each other with a bunch of blankets and took funny pictures for an hour. Our team is so close because we do silly stuff like that all the time, it distracts from the stress of meets.
MileSplit - What are your goals for the 2013 cross country season?
Emma - I want to place in the top five at the state meet. I want to qualify for Nike Nationals again and place in the top thirty. I also want my team to qualify for state and come in the top ten.
MileSplit - Do you have any long-term goals in running?
Emma - I definitely want to run in college and I have always had the dream of running in the Olympics. I want to break 16:30 eventually and get 4:30 in the mile.
The Fun Run
What music do you rock while working out…
Emma - I love listening to One Republic when I run.
Do you like to run in the mud or the grass…
Emma - I like running in the mud.
Do you hang out on Facebook or Twitter...
Emma - I hang out on Facebook- hahah I don't even have a twitter account.
Do you like going out or chilling at home...
Emma - I like chilling at home but I also love to travel.
What gear is your favorite while running...
Emma - I love sports bras! I have tons of different colored sports bras! My favorite is my hot pink/orange one. I also like wearing shirts from all the races I have run in.
