Kate and Laura have been a force for Yale in the distance events (ivyleaguesports.com) |
1. Will you be concentrating on the 5k this spring, and what kind of goals are you hoping to achieve?
Kate: I will be concentrating on the 5k, but I am also hoping to try the 10k for the first time. I don't really know what to expect in the 10k since I have never tried the distance. In the 5k, I would like to break 16 minutes. Eventually I would love to run in the low 15:40s. I would like to run that by the end of the spring track season, but I have a lot of work ahead of me if I want to do that.
2. Will your sister be joining you, or will he be concentrating on a different race?
Kate: We'll probably race the 10k and the 5k at the same meets. In the past, we have focused on different races, but I am not sure what we will do this year. I think we will wait and see what kind of times we are running.
3. What kind of (if any) rivalry exists between you and your sister?
Laura: We push ourselves to improve every day in practice and in races. We don't really have a rivalry. I know that I wouldn't have placed nearly as well in meets the past few years if I didn't have Kate to run with me every day. I don't feel jealous when Kate runs well; I get excited because I know how hard she works.
Kate: We don't exactly have a rivalry. Of course we have to race each other and both of us want to win every race that we enter, but we also want to push each other to improve. Over the years, I think this attitude toward racing has helped us a lot.
4. Everyone can imagine the good things about having a twin sister to train with, but what might be the down-sides?
Kate: I honestly don't think that there are any down-sides. Distance running can be lonely. It's great to have someone to run with during long runs and push you in intervals.
Laura: I am so accustomed to running with Kate that I have trouble pushing myself when I do have to run alone. One other downside: This past summer when we were running on a trail, I tripped over a rock and then Kate tripped over me. We both got some cuts and bruises, but other than that I can't think of many disadvantages of having a training partner!
5. How can having a twin in the same race play to your advantage? Are there any race tactics you've ever tried?
Laura: Having Kate in the same race definitely pushes me to run faster. It is also helpful to have someone you know so well that you work out with every day running a race with you. We try to encourage each other a little bit during races too.
Kate: Earlier in the season, we both wanted to run automatic times to qualify for NCAA's in the 10k. We decided what splits we wanted to run and then we traded off every quarter of a mile. Concentrating for 25 laps is a pretty daunting task, but trading off laps helped a lot. We were both able to make the time that we needed.