Oklahoma State University Athletics
Weekly Coach's Update: Dave Smith
September 11, 2008 | Cowboy Cross Country & Track
On practice this week:
“Practice is going extremely well. There is a little bit of anxiousness to get racing right now as we are doing a lot of training without any racing. I can feel the team kind of chomping at the bit to get into some competitions. This is a very special group and they have put in the miles over the summer. The hardest thing about this time of year is staying patient and controlled when they feel ready to race but we have some great leaders who have been through this a few times.”
On how much the team is running:
“Right now, our volume is just about at the maximum. Guys are running anywhere from 50-100 plus miles per week, depending on their experience, background and fitness levels. We are also beginning to slowly ratchet up the intensity as we build toward races. This week we are doing some tempo running, a fartlek and some gradual hill repeats.”
On how the athletes are doing:
“Most of the veterans that we had high expectations of are exactly where they need to be, so no surprises there. The same is true for the newcomers. German (Fernandez), Colby (Lowe) and Ryan (Prentice) all look very good and each could have an immediate impact on our team. Ryan Little seems to have had a great summer and seems much improved over this time last year, so he has caught my attention. John Stublaski, Brad McNiff and Clay Mayes also made strides over the summer.”
On how the team is feeling:
“I think the team is anxiously optimistic about the season. We have some pretty lofty goals and those types of goals can bring a little more pressure. Like I said before, I think the guys are ready to get through the next month and get into the big races. They have worked extremely hard in the off season and now they want the chance to measure themselves against the best in the NCAA.”
On the difficulties of not racing until the Cowboy Jamboree:
“This is the toughest time of the year for competitive guys that are fit. They want to race. They want to test themselves. They want to run hard. But, they have to temper that instinct, remain patient and stick to our plan so that they are racing their best at the end of the season.”
On who will run at the Cowboy Jamboree:
“We will run everybody that is ready to race. Right now, it looks like Vail, Chirchir, Kosgei, Barnes-Smith, Watts, Little, Lusk, Birkholz, Gosnell, and Wood will all run. There will be others. I know Lowe, Fernandez and Prentice all want to open up at the Jamboree and the way they are training I would say there is a good possibility they do. Some guys might open up at Pre-nationals but we will wait a couple more weeks to determine who is racing where this season.”
