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Sydney Duncan, Indiana University Kokomo · The Red Banner Race Report

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: At the 2026 NAI Outdoor National Championships in May in Asheville, North Carolina, Sydney Duncan of the University of Indiana Kokomo completed a rare and historic feat, sweeping the hammer, chocolate, and discus national titles, earning the honor of being named NAI National Meet MVP.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_00: Sydney has a long history of dominance on the National Throw stage.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: She was the NAI Indoor Chocolate Champions Best Winner.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: She was the outdoor chocolate champion and runner-up in the discus at last year's outdoor championships in 2025, the indoor champ in the chop and weight throw in the winter of 2025, and she has dozens of invitational wins to her name.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: She is the first hammer throw national champion to ever come out of program history at Kokomo.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: And she was named the USTFCCCA NAI Field Athlete of the Year, along with River States Conference Field Athlete of the Year and the Kokomo Female Athlete of the Year.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: Join us as we discuss the technical differences between throws, the nuances of training as a field athlete, and get to know Sydney personally as an NAI thrower.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Red Banner Race Report Podcast.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_00: I'm glad to have you.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: First of all, congratulations on an amazing national meet.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: By sweeping the hammer, the shot put, the discus, you became just the second female athlete in NAI history to ever win all three titles in a single outdoor championship meet.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: So when you look back on that really long stretch of some really tough competition and some pretty exhausting days, um, which of those three do you think was the hardest to complete as far as event-wise?
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_03: It was definitely um day three for discus.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: So winning three titles is one thing, but you were also named the most valuable performer for the NAI Outdoor Championships.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: So what did it mean when you were given that honor and told, hey, you know, here's a really big recognition for your accomplishments and all the hard work came and paid off.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_03: It was awesome.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_03: I didn't even really know that that was an award that was given out at the meet because our team had never sent anybody, so we never really had a reason to stay for like the award ceremony at the end.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_03: So I honestly didn't even know it was the thing.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_03: So my coach told me um that I had to stick around a little bit longer, and it was kind of a mixture of I'm super excited, this is awesome.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_03: Like, when is this ever gonna happen again?
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_03: And oh my gosh, I'm so tired, I just want to get home.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_03: Um so I kind of feel a little bit bad that I was like, oh man, like I just want to go home and sleep.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_03: I need like 18 hours straight.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but I'm really glad that that I had that experience in that we had all of that positive attention, not only for me, but just for the Kokomo program in general.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that's gonna lead really well into my next question for you because your 30-point performance single-handedly helped the team to a historic fourth place overall team finish at nationals.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: So um, you know, that that squarely sat on your shoulders.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm curious, what is the culture like right now within your track and field program?
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_03: I would say like right now there's we're not like we're in off-season training and a lot of the freshmen haven't come in, so there's not a whole lot of anything happening right now for the track team specifically, but I would say that we have a really strong um culture of hard work and grinding through the process.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_03: Like we spend 11 out of the 12 months of the year essentially throwing.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_03: So it's a it's a year-round process.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_03: It's basically head down, work through everything as long as you can.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_03: Um, super supportive coaching staff, super supportive teammates, um really solid culture.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_03: We're having a small like coaching shift this year.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_03: So actually, um our throws coach is sort of stepping down to more part-time, but then his brother that just graduated is kind of stepping up as the head throws coach.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_03: So there'll be a little bit of a learning curve, but I've been throwing with him since I got here, so it's not gonna be anything that's super different.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: Well, what were the main factors that helped you decide out of high school to attend?
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, what how did that help you decide that this was the school for you?
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_03: Well, they were the only school that recruited me.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_03: So that made my decision relatively easy.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: Well, they uh struck a gold mine with you.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, so I wasn't going, I wasn't planning on throwing in college, like at a high school.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_03: I just came from a small high school, so I never really realized that I even had the potential to throw in college, so never really thought that crossed my mind.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_03: Up until my senior year of high school, like I was trying to play volleyball in college, and so I was playing football year round, and then track was just like a side thing that I did like for fun, just because we needed people on our track team because it was really small.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_03: So just being recruited by anyone, I was like, oh, this is something that I can go do, and then they're also gonna help me pay for my school.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_03: Okay.
• 5:48
  unknown: Yeah.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that that does make it a little more attractive for sure.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, so they must have seen something special in you.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, clearly your potential has grown because as a freshman, your outdoor national meet consisted of shot put where you were eighth, and then hammer throw, where you finished 19th.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: But now your PRs are vastly further than they were.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_00: So, I mean, did you ever see yourself as a multi-ring thrower, or did that just kind of develop as they began to work with you?
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I had absolutely no idea that I would be really any good or like super impactful at throwing at the college level.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I was not a very strong discus thrower coming out of high school.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_03: I threw like 112 feet, which is really not that great.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and then you can't even throw hammer when you're in high school.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_03: It's not a sanctioned sport.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_03: So I completely picked that up as soon as I got here.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_03: And then I changed my throwing technique my freshman year here.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_03: So everything was new, and I didn't really expect anything to go as well as it did.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and then I've kind of just grown since my freshman year, and it's gotten better and better and better.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I see that you have thrown the javelin several times.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: Um I I am in a different state than you are, so was that a high school sport you could do?
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_00: Because it is allowed in some states, but not others in high school.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_03: It's not allowed in Indiana.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_03: So no, it was not really available to me in high school.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_03: I could have joined like a club and done it not attached to like my high school.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_03: But I didn't honestly know that that was a thing because my high school was so small, I didn't realize that we had track clubs that you could be a part of.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but yeah, I picked that up my freshman year.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and you did not do that this outdoor season at Nationals.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_00: So when and why did you decide to cut that out?
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: Was it just because you couldn't do everything?
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you had a lot going on.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_03: Um, yeah, there's several reasons.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_03: I threw it my freshman year.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_03: It seems to be kind of like a rite of passage, like everybody comes in, like really wanting to try javelin because it looks like so much fun, and then the people that are good at it, you just watch it go super far.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_03: So everyone comes in as a freshman, like, I'm gonna throw jab, like I'm gonna do all four throwing events, and it's gonna be great, and nothing is gonna go wrong.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_03: However, that is not usually what happens.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_03: Um, javelin is really niche, so typically, if you pick it up, you're either really good at it or you're not really good at it.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_03: And obviously, like you can work at it and you can get better at it fairly quickly depending on how much work you put in.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_03: But coaches can pretty pretty much tell early on in the learning process if you're gonna really excel at something or not.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I didn't think I was very good at it, which when you look at like the national level, I was not very good at it.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_03: It was just something that I wanted to try, and I did it for one season, and I'm pretty sure I got like halfway through or like 60% through the outdoor season, and I was like, I'm not doing this again.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_03: I'm gonna finish on my freshman season, but I'm not gonna throw it again.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: It was it looks like your focusing on your other events has worked out anyway.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, I I definitely, yeah.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_03: I could not imagine having to train another event on top of everything that I'm already doing.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_03: I would have it would have been dropped by at this point anyway.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_00: Well, what are the biggest technical differences between the throwing events?
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you can talk about, you know, discus, shot, hammer, weight throw, javelin, whatever you want to do.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you can stick to the main three if you want.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: But for a lot of people who are not field athletes and they're runners, um, they just lump all throwing into you know one category, and that's not true.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_00: They're quite different technically.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm interested to hear what you think are the biggest differences between the events.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_03: So the main difference with javelin is that it's very linear.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_03: Like you're obviously running in in a straight line, there's no rotation involved, it's all like very like linear force generation.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_03: So that is kind of what makes it challenging compared to the others.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_03: Because when I started spinning for shot and then you spin and discus and hammer is also rotational, trying to master three rotational events, but then also be somewhat okay at a linear event was really challenging.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_03: So javelin stands out as the it's a very linear force production compared to the other three, which require more rotation and centripical force.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: Um, would you say that you focus more on your footwork or your arms?
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_00: I know you have to use both, but I I've heard from some discus throwers that they they focus more on their feet.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it definitely depends on the specific athlete and what they struggle with.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_03: When it comes to hammer, it's pretty much all footwork.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_03: Footwork and making sure that the hammer is in the correct position in relationship to your body throughout the entire throw.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_03: So you don't want the ball behind you, but you don't want it too far in front of you so that you're falling into every turn instead of moving with the ball.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_03: So hammer is really heavy on the feet, I would say, for pretty much everyone.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_03: But discus and shot, it kind of depends.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_03: Um they're definitely it's definitely forward heavy because there's more going on with your lower body.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_03: Like you have to do the entry and you have to hit the middle and the finish correctly for the throw to happen.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_03: But I struggle with controlling my upper body with both throwing with both shot and disc.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_03: So I have to think a little bit more about my upper body than normally people have to.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_00: Were you a little bit intimidated by the hammer?
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: Because I look at it and it's slightly terrifying, if I'm being honest.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_03: Oh yeah, no, I was terrified.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I just think, gosh, that could kill me.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it's really dangerous, actually, which I think is hilarious to think about because we throw this really dangerous thing, like for so much, like we get so much joy out of throwing this thing that it could literally kill somebody.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but I came to practice my first session as a freshman, it was over the summer, and I remember walking up to my coach and he was like, You're gonna learn how to throw a hammer today.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_03: And I was absolutely terrified.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_03: I was like, I have no idea how this works.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_03: So we did like turns with a PVC pipe for probably an hour before he even let me touch a hammer, and then the first month it was terrible, but then you kind of you get used to it and it becomes less scary.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_00: I was just gonna ask if you had any uh trading protocols or safety measures in place as you begin.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_00: It sounds like you yeah, you do have yeah.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_03: You everyone starts with doing turns, which is the ham for the footwork for hammer, and you end up doing probably north of a thousand plus turns before you even are allowed to touch the hammer.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, that's that's quite impressive.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um, well, I mean, if you look back to indoor nationals last year, you were 22nd in the weight throw, and then if you flash forward to 2026, then you're fifth, and you're moving from 15 meters to 17.78 meters, and then PR of 18.5, and you can correct me if any of these stats are wrong because I know you know the internet isn't always right.
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um But I'm wondering in the course of that year, was it just experience?
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_00: Did you make technical adjustments?
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_00: Did you get stronger physically?
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: What were the things that you did that really overhauled your your throwing execution to see those really big gains in your personal bests?
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_03: It was definitely a mixture of all three.
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_03: Um, the more you thrown it in, the more comfortable you are with it.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_03: And so the easier it is to kind of make improvements of a sort to a certain point because eventually technical changes become really challenging.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_03: But I was still so new at throwing weight that I was gonna make progress just basically throwing it.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_03: Um it did help that I've gotten stronger and um a little definitely a bit bigger since my freshman season.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_03: So um that was helpful.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_03: But we also do a lot of technical work pretty much all the time.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_03: Um a lot of figuring out what entry is best for what athlete and how many turns you're supposed to be doing.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_03: Because I think if I remember my sophomore year, I did three turns with weight, and then this season I did four.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_03: Which as a smaller athlete compared to some other women that throw, um, is it's it's beneficial because you have more time to create momentum and speed through the ball.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_03: So definitely a mixture of just being more comfortable with it and changing things around and then getting stronger definitely played a part in my week kind of seeing a lot of success this season.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I know that you are currently in the summer and that's the off-season, so to speak, but what would a typical week of training look like if you were in season and it was outdoor?
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_03: Uh okay, so in-season outdoor practices every day of the week, Monday through Friday, um, 4:30 p.m.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_03: at a local high school that we practice at.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_03: I usually show up either right after class or right off of my shift at work.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_03: And it's usually for me, it's 10 to 15 minutes of stretching and getting warmed up and getting loose.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_03: And then it's right into whatever first throwing event you're doing that day.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_03: And then usually about an hour and a half, an hour and 45 minutes later, I'm finally moving on to my second event where I spend another hour and a half-ish, probably finishing that one up before I head back to the school to get my lift in.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_00: So now that it's summer, what does your training look like in the off season, so to say?
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_03: So until practices ramp up in September, everything right now is still optional.
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_03: So we're not being we're not required to practice over the summer.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I practice three days a week.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_03: I actually started practicing again this Monday because after nationals, I have a four week four weeks off of no throwing, just lifting to kind of give myself some time to rest.
• 16:40
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but I just started back this Monday.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_03: I just left three days a week.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I'm only throwing shot, but I'm doing drill work for hammer, and I'll do that this entire month.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_03: Three days a week throwing of shot and then drilling hammer, and then next month I'll add in some actual like full throws of both of them.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_03: But volume is pretty low, and it's a lot of um mental kind of technique work opposed to like distance and high intensity throwing.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_00: Well, what is your recovery protocol to keep your body fresh?
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_00: You know, your arms obviously are a big part of what you do, but it's a whole body effort.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_00: So is there anything specific like icing or soft tissue work that you you know utilize in your training plan?
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I actually hate ice baths, so I won't you will not get me in an ice bath ever.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_03: Same.
• 17:35
  unknown: Agreed.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_03: A lot of the cross-country guys love ice baths, and I'm like, you couldn't pay me to sit in an ice bath.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: Nope, me either.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_03: But during the season, um usually from yeah, pretty much August through April, end of May, I have a training appointment every single week with our trainer, our AT.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I actually have her cell phone number sometimes because I'm like, hey, uh, I need a treatment and the times don't work.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_03: So I I'll just text her personally and we'll get it figured out.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_03: But every week without fail, depending on whatever day it is, I'll move it around.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_03: I have a training appointment with her, and we do a bunch of uh soft manual range of motion, kind of just flushing out all of the junk that I like to build up in my body throughout the week with lifting and drawing and whatnot.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_03: Um, other than that, I do we have some Normatex, which are like compression boots.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_03: And I will do those not as consistently, but probably once every other week, usually after like a really tough lower body day, it just kind of helps flush everything out and get some circulation going.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_03: I definitely use them more towards the end of the season when I'm feeling super run down because I've been throwing for eight months competitively.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_03: But other than that, I just do I'm fairly good at stretching and doing mobility.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_03: And I have my own massage gun and I have a scraping kit, so like if my forearms get angry or upset, I can do some like minor um treatment on myself.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I would never have guessed that a thrower would use Normatech boots.
• 19:09
  SPEAKER_00: So that's that's as a good segue into my next question, which is what do you feel is the biggest misconception that track athletes have about field athletes, particularly throwers?
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_00: So, what do you wish that more athletes knew about what you do?
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I guess the biggest misconception would be that we're lazy.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_03: A lot of the sprinters and runners, just like in our conference and net meets that we go to, just have this idea that throwers just show up and they do things for 20 minutes and then they sit around and like they eat food and they just chit-chat for however long.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_03: Um, which is totally not true because we live five days a week during the off season, basically until December, and then we're still lifting four days a week, even with competitions on the weekends, and our practices are not easy.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, we're not doing 400 meter sprints, we're not doing 60 some miles a week for our crossrunners, but we still have three hour, two to three hour practices five days a week, where we're doing really intense, like not only technique work, which takes a lot of brain power and focus and body control, but also we'll get to a point where we do like really high volume where you are trying to simulate competition.
• 20:35
  SPEAKER_03: And I think that people don't realize that we actually work really hard year round, even though we make it look like we might not.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_00: Well, to be fair, I I know some runners who show up for 20 minutes, compete and then eat.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: So, I think that's athletes.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it's important to eat.
• 20:55
  SPEAKER_03: I I don't blame you, but I promise we do more than just sit around eating eating pizza.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, there's nothing wrong with competing, working hard, and then you know, eating.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: But we gotta eat to be healthy.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_00: So exactly.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: Well, let's get to know you a little more personally outside of the throwing arena.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um, what is the go-to song or a genre that you would pick for your warm-up playlist that would get you hyped up before you would throw?
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_02: Honestly, only get to listen to music maybe like three meets out of the entire year.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_03: Um, so I actually don't listen to a ton of music before I warm up.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_03: Okay.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_03: And I when I do listen to music, I don't listen to hype music because my adrenaline is already through the roof.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_03: I don't need any help getting hype.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_00: You need to calm down.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_03: So I will listen to either my an whatever audiobook I'm listening to at this point, or I'll listen to To like some slower, more like folk type music or some calmer country music.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that makes sense.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_00: I've had I've had uh athletes answer that pretty divided on that.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_00: One half says they need to get pumped up, and the other half says the same thing as you.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_00: I need to just focus and stay calm.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_00: So more adrenaline going through my body.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, agreed.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: That that can sometimes be a detriment.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_00: Well, if you've just competed, like let's say the NAI meet where you had a pretty grueling couple of days and you're done and you're celebrating, what is your ultimate meal?
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_00: If you could pick anywhere to go or something to have, what would you choose to eat?
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_03: Um I'm a classic, you can ask me when I eat want to eat, and I won't be able to tell you type of person.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_03: I can never make a decision about where I want to eat.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but usually it's it's gotta be something with some sort of like really good dessert.
• 23:02
  SPEAKER_03: Okay.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_03: Like I'll eat whatever, but as long as I can get like a milkshake or a brownie or a sundae after, then it's fine.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: So it's more about the sweet treat at the end, not the entree, huh?
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_03: Yes.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_03: Now I will say that after my uh sophomore season indoor, I did request that we get surf and turf.
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_00: Oh.
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_03: Because I wanted some steak and scallops.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_00: I was gonna say, did you find it?
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_03: Uh we did, but it was like we didn't eat until probably like 10 o'clock at night.
• 23:36
  unknown: Yeah.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_03: So it was not very good.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's tricky.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_03: Because the restaurant was like, Yeah, the restaurant was like, we're trying to leave.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_03: But I was starving and we drove like an hour and a half after competition.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_03: So I was like, I don't care what we're doing, I'm getting my steak and my scallops.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_00: That's a legitimate request.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_00: Well, let's say you're on a road trip with your team, and which one of these fits you best?
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_00: Are you the one sleeping?
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_00: Are you the one DJing or are you the ones trying to study?
• 24:07
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I'm always the one that is studying.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_03: You can ask any of my coaches, they actually make fun of me for it all the time because it'll be like a short 30-minute bus ride, and I'll still have an assignment pulled up trying to get it done before we get there.
• 24:21
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that's not a bad reputation to have.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_00: You could be known for worse things, right?
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, for sure.
• 24:27
  SPEAKER_00: What are you studying?
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_00: What are you interested in?
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_00: What are you majoring in?
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I'm majoring in health and exercise science, but I'm getting my undergrad done for PT school.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, awesome.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that is a long road.
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_00: So congrats to you.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_00: I see why you're always studying.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 24:46
  SPEAKER_00: Well, do you have any specific pre-meet superstitions?
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_00: Like, do you have a lucky pair of socks?
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_00: Do you have something you have to do before you compete?
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_00: Something that you stick with that just makes you feel grounded.
• 24:58
  SPEAKER_03: I wouldn't say I have like a super big superstition.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_03: Um, like a couple of my teammates, they have like lucky socks that they wear.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_03: I don't think I have anything like that.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_03: But I I have started, especially this season, trying to journal like before or after I compete just to kind of like calm myself down and center myself about around the competition.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_03: Um but I don't think that I really do anything or like I freak out if I don't do something before call.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_00: Do you look back at your journal before your next throw?
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_00: Does it help you like reflect and prepare for what you do after that?
• 25:39
  SPEAKER_03: I haven't done that because normally I like talk to my coach and we'll talk about it.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_03: But I have um kind of bounced around with the idea of trying that kind of this season and doing a quick like check-in between every throw instead of just like after the whole comp.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_03: So I haven't exactly decided how I'm gonna set that up.
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_03: Maybe like uh what went well, what didn't went well, how to fix it, just like three quick line things after every throw.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but I'll have to work on that system.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I'm imagining you're kind of busy.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, it does get a little bit tricky.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, so what is a hobby or a random talent you have that your track teammates may not even know about?
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_03: I like to bake.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, that's a good hobby to have.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I don't really have any special talents.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_03: I'm kind of boring, but um, yeah, I bake and I cook all the time.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_03: So I guess if I had to pick a hobby, it would be that.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_00: Do you have a specialty or something that you like to cook or bake the most?
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_03: No, I'm pretty much done for whatever.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_03: Okay.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_00: All right.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_00: Well, when you finally get a free weekend with no homework, no training, you're not in season.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_00: Is there a show you like to binge or something you really like to watch?
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_03: That's kind of hard because during the season, even on the weekends, I don't have that much time for TV.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but over the summer I found myself having ample time to watch TV.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_03: So I've seen I've caught up on a lot of shows.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_03: Um I'm kind of a little kid and I enjoy like older sitcoms.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_03: So like I've watched the entire series of Friends, like probably four times.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, that's a good one.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, and I just started watching um Full House over again.
• 27:33
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's a classic.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I was like, I was not even bored when the show came out, but I think it's making me feel really old.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_00: Oh man.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_00: I was definitely bored when that show came out.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that was that was from my childhood.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_00: So they had this okay.
• 27:50
  SPEAKER_00: So when I was a kid, TV was not the cable was just getting started.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_00: Of course, streaming was not a thing.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_00: So if you didn't watch it when it was on, you didn't see it because you couldn't DVR it yet.
• 28:01
  SPEAKER_00: You couldn't do any of those things.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_00: Um, unless you physically had a VCR tape and you pressed record, which is a whole nother technological.
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I think that we did that with we had a VCR when I was little because my sister is six years older than me.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_03: Okay, and I think that we taped them on VCR, and then I watched them with her when she watched it.
• 28:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yep.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_00: So um, yeah, there was a a Friday night, I don't know how many shows were in the lineup, but it was called TGIF, and it was Full House and Family Matters and another one called Hanging with Mr.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_00: Cooper.
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_00: So we used to always, you know, plan our Friday night around these shows.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_03: Of course, you have to catch up on your TV.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, nostalgic for sure.
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_00: Well, if you were handed a free plane ticket to compete in any venue, any meet, any stadium, anywhere in the world, where are you heading?
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_03: I would hands down go to Hayward Field in Oregon.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_00: That is a very popular answer.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, I had a feeling that pretty much everyone kind of wants to compete there.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, it is the track town USA for sure.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, it is.
• 29:15
  SPEAKER_03: Well, unfortunately, being in Indiana, it's uh a little bit far of a good ride.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: It is.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_00: Well, you got a free plane ticket though, so you don't have to drive.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_03: I'd love to actually have a free plane ticket.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, wouldn't that be great?
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_00: Uh well, okay, so which one of the throwing events would you pick?
• 29:33
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, I would throw shot for sure.
• 29:35
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 29:36
  SPEAKER_00: Do you feel like that's your strength?
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: That's your best event.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, for sure.
• 29:40
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, definitely.
• 29:41
  SPEAKER_03: And now if they're gonna let me throw all three, I'm gonna throw all three.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_03: But if I had to pick one.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: Uh well, all right, good to know.
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, have you been watching?
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: Well, Valerie Allman got married to her coach, and now she's Valerie Scion.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so she's been breaking more records again.
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_00: She's just a beast.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_03: I know.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_03: I watch she I follow her on Instagram.
• 30:02
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, as every track thrower does.
• 30:05
  SPEAKER_03: Um, so I see her posts pretty much every day.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_00: She's incredible, just unstoppable, it seems like.
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_00: Just keeps trucking along.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, pretty much.
• 30:15
  SPEAKER_03: Well, the same for sure.
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, well, I would say the same is true for you.
• 30:18
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you're not done yet, right?
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_00: We have another year to go, and we'll see if the NAIA follows suit with the NCAA and adopts a fifth year, which would be great for all the people who are heading into their senior year.
• 30:31
  SPEAKER_00: A nice little bonus, but um, it was awesome to chat with you, hear about your success, and clearly there's more to come.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_00: So thanks for coming on.
• 30:40
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks so much for tuning in to the Red Banner Race Report.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_00: I can't wait to feature more cross-country and track and field athletes from the NAIA.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_00: So stay tuned because it just might be you.
• 30:52
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• 30:56
  SPEAKER_00: You can find the Red Banner Race Report podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and other major media players.
• 31:04
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• 31:07
  SPEAKER_00: If you have an idea for a great topic or guest you'd like to hear about, feel free to contact me through the show notes or reach out on Instagram.