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Current Public News
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| Kasie Enman: Reaching Her Potential |
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| 3/16/2008 |
On April 20, 2008, Kasie Enman (nee Wallace) will be competing in her first U.S. Olympic Team Trials. The former Middlebury College runner is no stranger to national competition however, having achieved All-American status and, as a senior, was a member of the team that won the Division III Cross Country National Championship. More recently, she has represented the B.A.A. at various regional and national championships and is always one of the teams most consistent performers.
Enman has continued to improve each year and is consistently one of the top finishers in every type of race she competes in - from cross country to the marathon. One need only look at her progression at the New Bedford Half Marathon (in which she took third place yesterday) to see how far she has come: in 2005, she won the USATF NewEngland Grand Prix Half Marathon title in 1:19:49; she was second in 2006 in 1:17:40, won the title again in 2007 with a 1:15:55. This year, she lowered her time again to 1:15:15, finishing 3rd overall.
The New England native currently resides in Vermont with her husband, Eli where she is an elementary school teacher and graduate student.
Below, Kasie shares her thoughts on training, racing, and balancing life and running.
Q: I guess we can start with the basics: how old are you, where do you live and what do you do for a living?
A: I am 28 years old. I live in Huntington, Vermont. I teach 3rd-4th grade at Robinson Elementary School, coach cross-country and track at Champlain Valley High School, and am also enrolled in graduate school at Antioch University through their distance learning Masters of Education program in Educating for Sustainability.
Q: What are some of your significant running accomplishments?
A: While in undergrad at Middlebury College, I was a Division III All-American in cross-country and indoor track. Although, I’m more proud of the team accomplishments that I’ve been privileged to be a part of over the years. Our Middlebury cross-country team won our first NCAA championship title my senior year. Then, last fall at the USATF X-C Club Nationals, I was fortunate enough to be a part of another national championship winning team with the BAA.
Q: How long have you been running competitively and when/where did you get started?
A: I joined the track team when I was in the 7th grade in Manchester, NH. By the time I reached high school, I was training and racing year-round and have kept going ever since. I have my dad to thank, though, for my initial introduction to the sport. He started running in road races and marathons right around the time I was born and brought me with him to a lot of his races. I think I have a few pictures of me sitting in the start/finish area of a road race in diapers.
Q: Did you have immediate success or did you have a breakthrough race that convinced you to continue to pursue the sport?
A: My decision to continue running after college stemmed from a combination of a growing love for the sport and a sense that I had some unfulfilled potential in me. I learned a lot during college about different philosophies of training, what worked for me, and the mental side of competitive running. I still have a lot to learn and have basically made a commitment to myself to keep striving for that potential as best I can so that I don’t look back with any regrets.
Q: How did you end up in Boston/New England after college and why did you decide to join the B.A.A.?
A: I’ve always been a New Englander. I spent the first 18 years of my life in Manchester, New Hampshire before heading to Middlebury, Vermont for college. During the fall of my freshman year in college, I met my husband, Eli, who was the star runner on our men’s cross-country team. He and his family started up a cross-country ski center and bed and breakfast in Huntington, called Sleepy Hollow, right after Eli graduated. He’s been working there ever since and we built our house on the property, so we’ve been living there ever since. It’s actually an amazing place to train with miles and miles of dirt roads and trails right out my door.
I contacted the BAA a few years ago after I became an unattached runner because I was looking for a team that had good coaching and that would allow me to compete at national level races. I had also been finishing many of my races at the time in the middle of a pack of BAA women, so I was excited about the opportunity to be able to work together with these women I had been racing against!
Q: How is the Trials different from other races?
A; This is my first time racing at the Olympic Trials, so I’m not entirely sure what to expect. In an attempt to get a similar experience to the trials, I chose to race in the Boston Marathon last spring, which also served as the Women’s U.S. National Marathon Championship race. That gave me a chance to train for a race that would be at the same time of year as the trials, start with a separate women’s-only field, and try to race a marathon for place as opposed to time. Unfortunately, I was injured going into the race, so I wasn’t able to race the way I would have liked, but it was still a really valuable learning experience. I’m taking a similar approach to my race-day goals for the Trials as I did for the U.S. Championships – focusing primarily on place, finding a good pack to work with, and moving forward throughout the race.
Q: How have you maintained your focus on the Trials since qualifying?
A: I’ve had to do a lot of focus-shifting and reevaluating over the past couple of years leading up to the Trials. I ran my debut marathon in June of 2006, with the goal of qualifying, but in the back of my mind anticipating having to spend most of the next two years trying again for the qualifying time. I haven’t had much luck with qualifying times in the past! When I was lucky enough to have everything come into place in that first attempt, I was able to take a deep breath and focus on things like improving my speed and gaining experience. Then, I spent the entire year of 2007 battling a plantar fascia injury and my goals shifted over to just getting to the starting line in one piece. It wasn’t until the last month or two that I’ve been able to wrap my mind around performance goals again. Fortunately, I seem to have maintained a decent base of fitness through cross-training and the running that I was able to do. I’m heading into April refreshed and very motivated to get out there and have a good race.
Q: How do you balance work and running?
A: Every year is a new balancing act! Some seasons, my schedule requires that I wake up before dawn for my morning run and head out after dusk for my evening run. I have definitely gone through a lot of headlamp batteries. This year, I’ve been able to job-share my teaching position, so I have certain days during the week when my schedule is a little more flexible allowing for luxuries like running in the daylight, loosening up before a workout, and stretching. I have learned the hard way that I can’t roll out of bed straight into an interval workout without getting injured. I have also learned that I can’t carry tension from a stressful workday into my runs if I want to get in a quality training session. These lessons guide the way I balance my training and the rest of my life.
Q: How much training have you been able to do on the Trials course?
A: I haven’t been able to train on the Trials course yet, but a run on the course with some of my BAA teammates who will also be racing in the Trials is in the works! I think it’s valuable to be able to visualize the course you are going to be racing on, so I’d really like to get out there at least once. In the meantime, I’ve been diligently studying the course map.
Q: What do you think of it? Does the course suit your running strengths/style?
A: I would probably do best at some kind of hilly trail marathon, but I love how spectator friendly the course is. I love that it’s so close to home. I think that I’ll be able to handle the broken-nature of all the turns well. I’m also hoping for lots of wind and maybe a snow storm!
Q: What are your post-trials running plans?
A: Last summer, I got my first taste of mountain racing at the Mount Washington Road Race, Loon Mountain Race, and Mt. Ascutney Run to the Summit. I was pretty injured at the time, but for whatever reason it didn’t hurt to go uphill, plus I’m always running up big hills here in Huntington, so I figured I’d give the mountain racing scene a try and I loved it! So, I just signed up for another Mount Washington and would like to try to race well there in June. After that, I hope to be able to do some more mountain racing as well as get in a full cross country season in the fall. It has been really important for me, both mentally and physically, to take a break from marathon training during the half of the year following a marathon block. I don’t know how those people who race multiple marathons a year do it!
Q: What is your favorite distance to race? Do you have a favorite race (or races) that you enjoy competing in?
A: I don’t really have a favorite distance or race. I like to mix it up between road racing, track, trails, mountains... I definitely have a bias toward cross country, though. The muddier and messier, the better! Club Cross Country Nationals is always a highlight of the year with the team aspect and the post-race party. I always try to rally for that one.
Q: Do you have any runners that you particularly admire?
A: I have been really inspired lately by the local running community here in Vermont. Although I do most of my week-day running alone, every Sunday all winter long, through sleet and wind, over ice and hills, I have had an amazing group of people to train with. We’ll be 12 miles into a 20 miler and I’ll say, “Did I mention that I need to pick it up to marathon pace now? Anyone want to join me?”, and I always get a few takers. There are some extremely talented masters and senior runners around here who train as hard and smart as anyone I know and maintain a phenomenal level of focus. Most of them will be racing Boston this year and will be out at the Trials the day before, cheering from their lawn chairs along the course. They have such belief in me, I’m going to have to run extra fast so I don’t let them down.
I am also very inspired by my BAA teammates. Even though I don’t live in Boston or get to train with my teammates, except for on a weekend or two when I might come down for a long run, I feel very connected to our team. Our coach, Jeff Staab, does a great job of keeping me up to date with what’s going on with each of my teammate’s training and lives. I’ve also developed some great friendships with many of my teammates from the time we spend together at races. I think about the team on those days when I’m a little low on motivation to get out the door. Just knowing that they are out there, a few hours south, doing the same workout helps get me going.
Q: What is your advice to other marathoners: any tips that you have garnered from experience (either racing or training)?
A: Each race and each person probably has something different that works for them. Leading up to my first marathon, visualization was a key piece for me. While training for my second marathon, I found that I needed to forget about time goals and simply run based on how I felt. What works one time, isn’t necessarily going to work the next time around. I think it’s important to allow yourself to experiment a little. Find what makes you happy and be grateful for what you can do.
Q: Is there anything else that you would like to add?
A: Thanks to everyone who has supported me along the way. I have been blown away by the number of people who have come up to me and told me that they will be coming to Boston to cheer at the Trials. I can’t wait to return the favor, for some of them at least, by cheering at Boston the next day!
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