2004 FOOT LOCKER CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Post-race interview with Katelyn Kaltenbach

by Ricky Quintana

Katelyn Kaltenbach, a senior at Smoky Hill High School in Aurora, Colorado, finished 15th at the 2004 Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in 18:28. She qualified for nationals by finishing fifth at the Foot Locker Midwest Regional after missing much of the season due to a stress fracture. Kaltenbach is the 2003 Foot Locker Cross Country Champion.

Katelyn Kaltenbach (Photo: Alison Wade/NYRR)

Fast-Women.com: How did you feel?
Katelyn Kaltenbach: I felt good until we got to the first hill. My leg had been sore from all the mud last week [at Nike Team Nationals], where I tore the tendons from my stress fracture. After that first steep hill, it just tightened all the way. It's just hard to push off.

FW: Is it injured more than it was coming in?
KK: My stress fracture has healed, but it's just that I tore tendons on the side and up my leg. Those just haven't healed yet. They have, but with the scar tissue and everything, they just tighten really fast. It's not good.

FW: Where did you end up?
KK: I don't know. I didn't get out that good and I moved up a little in the middle of it. And then, I don't know really what place I was in.

FW: What will the rehabilitation look like for the rest of the year?
KK: I can take a whole two weeks off and do nothing. Depending on how it feels, I'll start building up for track.

FW: Coming into the race, what were you expectations?
KK: I was just really happy to get here because I had hardly run. I just wanted to come here and give it a good effort and try not to hurt worse and have a good race.

FW: Were you happy with how you ran?
KK: I would have liked to have run a little better, but I did what I could with my leg. My breathing and everything felt pretty good, but my leg just tightened up.

FW: I've noticed you've grown a lot. How much have you grown in the past two years?
KK: I don't know. I think about two inches.

FW: Do you notice a difference at all?
KK: I just feel like my strides are longer and I cover more ground.

(Interview conducted on December 11, 2004, and posted on December 16, 2004.)