A week or two ago, I glanced at the front page of the paper and noticed a picture of a girl with a unicycle. It was, apparently, a slow news day. I recognized the name in the caption, although I couldn't figure out from where. A few days ago, I figured it out. The subject of the photo was Susan Dunklee '08, a cross country runner. A masochistic unicycle rider. I had to know more, and decided that you should too.
The D: How have you done thus far? What were you expecting of yourself coming into the season?
SD: I've had some success in the early season races -- that was really exciting. I came into the season hoping to improve from last year. I haven't run a new PR (personal record in running lingo) yet this year, but I haven't been far off. A lot of people on the team have gotten PRs and it's awesome to watch their progress.
The D: What's left for you and the team this fall?
SD: Next week is Heps (the Heptagonal Championships) and a couple weeks after that is Regionals. These are the championship races.
The D: How do you feel about the team's chances at Heps and Regionals?
SD: We plan to just go run fast and everything else will take care of itself.
The D: What do you think about while you're out there running? It seems like you'd be too winded to chat a whole bunch, but having nothing to think about other than your own exhaustion for however long you're running would drive me crazy. Any secrets?
SD: Sometimes you don't think that much -- you fall into some sort of zone where your body just does what it is trained to do. During practice sometimes you get runner's high where you feel like you could fly along for miles without effort. Sometimes you think too much and overanalyze what's going on during a race. You start to ask yourself why you are out there and what's the point and you can psych yourself out. Sometimes you are extremely in tune to a race and what the pack around you is doing. You focus more on what's going on around you than on how you feel yourself.
The D: What's it like playing a sport that doesn't attract spectators by its nature? Do you ever wish that you had rowdy fans, and maybe even Keggy the Keg, chanting and cheering you on during that third mile?
SD: Yeah, maybe the presence of our school mascot could bring a bit of energy to our meets. Fans and cheering are definitely a huge plus.
The D: What do you do to train, anyways? It can't just be pounding out mile after mile, can it?
SD: Training does include a lot of mileage. I prefer not to call it pounding. We run almost everyday but with an occasional cross-train like biking or pooling. There are different types of runs: workouts, such as intervals or a tempo, long slower runs and "normal runs." We also lift a couple times a week, and do drills and strides to work on form and speed.
The D: You mentioned that "normal runs" are part of your training regimen. For me, a "normal run" involves racing across the Green to class after I've overslept. How far is one of yours?
SD: Normal runs might range from five to eight miles depending on the day. But they also require splashing through mud puddles and trying to catch leaves falling off the trees.
The D: You tend to cruise around campus on a unicycle. I've thought about learning how to ride one, but it doesn't look much faster than walking, and probably requires a lot of practice. Are there any running benefits? The secret to your success, perhaps?
SD: In my opinion it's the ultimate form of training. It helps with the mind and it helps with the balance muscles. Every runner should have one. In fact, everyone should unicycle. And it is faster than walking. My bike kept breaking over the summer, so I switched to my unicycle -- it's easier to maintain.
