Women's Track Q&A: Claudia Rodriguez
2/11/2016 4:25:00 PM | Track, Competing With Purpose Blog
Claudia Rodriguez was Pepperdine's top sprinter as a freshman, posting the team's top times in the 100 and 200 meters. Returning this season as a sophomore, she reflects on last year's achievements and what she's looking forward to this season:
Q: Returning as a sophomore after doing very well your freshman season, what goals are you setting for yourself?
A: My ultimate goal I set for myself this season is to be faster than last season. I broke my personal record in the 200-meter dash two weeks ago, which was really exciting. It is rare to PR in your first meet of the season, so I was pretty proud of myself.As of now, my goal is just to keep getting faster and stronger with each meet.
Q: Do you feel that having a strong start puts any pressure on you this season, or does it motivate you?
A: I have definitely felt a lot of pressure. Coming off your freshman season as the top sprinter is kind of an intimidating feat. I knew everyone around me was expecting a lot from me this season, so I felt the need to constantly push through and be the best in every workout I did. It was great motivation for me, though. I didn't miss a single workout this summer and I gave my everything during our off-season training. Without that pressure, I would not have had the strong start that I had in Flagstaff two weeks ago.
Q: Going off of that question, how would you say you prepared yourself to perform so well as a freshman? What advice would you give for others striving to be their best?
A: Honestly, as a freshman, I had really no clue what I was doing. I just listened to what the coaches told me and did what they asked. When they told me times I had to hit,I made sure to hit those times, and if I was feeling particularly good, I worked to run faster. For those looking to place their names in the record books, make sure to keep grinding, or as I like to say, grustling (that's grind and hustle combined). The hardest workouts and the workouts you dread the most are going to be the ones that make the difference. Get over that mental obstacle and put in the work. Hard work pays off 100% of the time.
Q: Given that this is your second year of track now, what do you think you learned from your freshman year? What did it teach you and how do you think it'll help you improve for this season?
A: The biggest thing I learned is that nothing is given, everything is earned. I can't just want to bethe fastest or to run a certain time, I have to work for it. I carried that lesson over into my summer and fall training. I've already seen that mentality pay off, but I am excited to see how much I will improve over this season.Â
Q: How did you enjoy the experience of participating in Pepperdine's first-ever indoor track competition?
A: Indoor was awesome!Coming from the east, I had competed in indoor meets before and I always loved doing them. Coming to Pepperdine last year and not competing in indoor was an adjustment for me, but our men's team worked hard in order to get us indoor. I am forever indebted to them. It's hard to put it into perspective now, but we are the first indoor track team at Pepperdine ever. That's huge. Yeah, our records will be broken in the future, but there will never be another first women's indoor track team at Pepperdine. Being a part of history, or as our team call sit, "HERstory", is just amazing, and I am so glad I got to be a part of this legacy at Pepperdine.
Q: What are you looking forward in this next indoor track meet coming up?
A: We now know how the track feels and we all have better gauges on our races. Our first indoor meet was sort of our test meet, and now that we know how our race will feel and are acquainted with the facility, we are ready to truly capitalize on this meet and show everyone our speed.Â
Q: You earned Pepperdine Scholar-Athlete honors in 2014-15. How do you balance being both a student and an athlete and manage to do so well in both academics and your sport?
A: I have always been pretty organized, so I think that really helps. Any free time I have during the day to do homework, I use. I try and get everything done before practice (which is typically in the afternoon), so I can go into practice not worrying about school. Focusing on practice alone helps me get through workouts and to perform at my best.
Q: What has been the most challenging thing for you so far about running track at Pepperdine, and then also what has been the most rewarding for you about it?
A: The most challenging thing about running at Pepperdine has been finding my purpose for running. I went through a period where I didn't even know why I was running track, all I knew it that I've always been doing it. The greatest reward, though, was finding that reason. I run track not because I want to be pro or anything like that, but because I love working towards a goal with like-minded people. Having my teammates has been an incredible blessing in my life. We work to get stronger not only physically, but mentally. I learn so much from them every day and they honestly make me a better person, as cliche as that sounds. We all want to be better at our sport, but in addition to that, we want to create habits that will be formative once we leave college. We want to have a network of individuals we can always count on. We want to have a family. And I've found all of that and more in my teammates. We have accomplished so much and it's been a phenomenal experience thus far. They're the best and I don't know what I'd do without them!
Players Mentioned
