It was announced recently that Sara Bei had finalized her decision to not partake in any national meets after the California State Championships. To some, this was upsetting news. Many had anticipated one final high school match-up between the distance queens, Bei, Siraki, Craig, Zeigle, etc., but it now seemed as though the match-up just wouldn't be the same. Why would the 2000 FLCC champ and 3 time CA XC state champion call it quits now? FastPREPS chose to investigate the situation. Here is what Sara had to say about this matter, in addition to a few others.
Why exactly are you chosing not to return to the Golden West or adidas Outdoor Championships? Many people were looking forward to seeing a matchup between you and all of the other incredibly talented girls who are on the scene. What influenced your decision, and will you miss either meet at all?
First of all, it isn't true that I am for sure not going to do meets after state. I am seriously considering having State be my last race and I am definitely racing to peak at that time. California runners are in a different situation than most states because we have such a competitive state meet, especially this year! We all peak for state, that is our most important race. In past years, State has always been my focus, the other meets were just kinda extra if I felt up to it at the end of the season (our track season in California is VERY long with 3 qualifying meets leading up to State). The only reason why I have gone to Golden West and Footlocker Outdoor in the past is to run a PR or a faster time than I did at state. However, this year, I am expecting to PR at state because of the level of competition. If I didn't end up running well at State, I would probably want to do another meet afterwards to end the season on a good note. I will definitely not be doing Golden West because I am graduating the night before and I want to have fun at Grad Night that night :)
 Sara takes a breathe and answers a few questions after the race. Photo by: Naveen Reddy.
|
With state being your big "finale," what kind of times would you like to run, assuming you have actual times in mind?
I'm not positive what I am capable of this year, but I ran 4:47 and 10:10 in March at Stanford in races where I was running alone for most of the race, so I think that I am capable of running around 10:00 and 4:40 if all goes well. I'm not sure which race I will be running at State, or if I am doubling. I am trusting God with this season and will be satisfied no matter what time I run as long as I do my best
What kind of training will you do now to prep yourself for college? Will it change much, will the intensity greatly rise, and who do you think you will train with?
As far as what kind of training I'll be doing at Stanford, I'm not exactly sure. I've talked to Dena Evans (the women's coach) a lot about mileage and intensity, and it appears as though I will be increasing intensity next year because I will actually have people to train with. I am REALLY looking forward to running with such talented women! Anita, Alicia and I are REALLY excited about training together; we already do the same kind of mileage and work-outs.
Have you thought about the kind of times that you want to run when you start racing at the collegiate level? If so, what exactly are your goals?
I don't really make long-term goals because I don't know how long God wants me to keep running. I don't run to try to achieve certain times or win races, I run to glorify Him. I focus on running my hardest and using the abilities that He has given me the best that I can.
Lastly, do you feel any more comfortable heading to Stanford knowing that you have other in-state runners (Ryan Hall and Anita Siraki) attending as well?
I am SO excited about having Ryan and Anita as teammates because not only are they great runners but they are awesome people! We are going to have a blast on the team next year. Our girls team is going to push each other to some great things, I know it! So many of us are already good friends from being on the same team for Footlocker and knowing each other from races. I can't wait!
Interview granted by SARA BEI exclusively for fastPREPS.com: May 25, 2001