Oct. 2, 2014 SAN DIEGO -
Getting to Know Aztec Cross Country's Elaine Ribeiro
The Basics
Name: Elaine Ribeiro
Year: Sophomore
Hometown: La Mesa, Calif.
High School: Helix High School
On getting into running:
"I started running my freshman year in high school. I got into it because my dad, Sergio, is a runner. He's been a runner since he was 12 years old. I thought maybe with genetics I'd have potential to be a good runner. I didn't do any other sports until I started running. The only time I ran in middle school was the mile because we had to do that and when I did that, I was still pretty good at it. I wasn't that great in the beginning, but I got into it and started doing it with the (Helix High School) team and I was one of the best ones out there. I thought if I'm the best one on the team (at Helix HS), what could my future be like?"
On her biggest influence:
"My dad is my biggest influence. He ran the steeplechase in Brazil, where (our family is) from, and still runs just for fun. He just loves it. I get everything from him. He is the brains and I get a lot of my information from him. I will be running the steeple this year (in outdoor track & field)."
On growing up:
"I lived in Brazil until I was three, then we moved to Connecticut. I lived in Connecticut until I was about 10 and have lived in San Diego since. I still visit Brazil a lot since my whole family is from there."
On choosing a college:
"Throughout high school, I got a lot of letters from different schools but they were all so far away. I didn't want to leave San Diego at all. The farthest I would have gone would probably have been San Marcos and that was where I was headed to, but Coach Chris (Capeau), my distance coach, emailed my coach in high school and said that if I wasn't going anywhere else to have me come over and take a look at SDSU and see the program because I had a spot on the team if I wanted. I was really excited. San Diego State is a great school and it's close to home."
On living at home versus on-campus:
"Originally I thought that during my junior year I would probably live on my own and have my own place, but I really enjoy being at home with my family and coming to school where my teammates and classmates are. I enjoy that separation."
On summer training:
"I took summer training very seriously. Everything I did, I made sure I did it the best I possibly could. I knew that if I did the best I could over summer, the (my teammates) would have to work a lot harder to catch up to me. We love each other but we're very competitive. My summer training was very tough. I did everything I was supposed to do. I hit the times I was supposed to hit. During freshmen year, I wasn't used to all of the mileage or the coaches. I wasn't used to being around girls because we don't have a guy's team (at SDSU). In high school, I was always running with the guys. I was more used to them so it was a different environment but I got used to it."
On helping the San Diego State distance team improve:
"I definitely want that because a lot of people look at the track teams as the sprinters, the hurdlers, the pole-vaulters and the distance team isn't looked at very much. (They think we) just go out there and run all of these miles and, who cares? I want us and our mid-distance team to be looked at. We want to create a very strong core with our distance team. We don't want that separation. We want to be one team."
On continuing the success that the track and field team h had at the national level:
"We definitely want to continue that success. Because they're gone now, other people are going to have to step up to show that San Diego State is here. We might have lost some girls but we have a lot more to gain."
On (assistant coach/mid-distance/distance coach) Chris Capeau:
"A lot of what he stresses is being uncomfortable, getting out of that comfort zone of where you should be on the team. For an example, during our workout, (we can't think that) this girl has to be here and I have to be here. He believes that we shouldn't feel that way at all. If you're ready to go, you go for it. Someone else can come with you. That was definitely what I worked on over summer. Even though I didn't have the girls there with me, I did train with my dad a lot and he was there with me. I wasn't afraid to be uncomfortable."
On her favorite and least favorite workout:
"Right now, my favorite workout is our mile repeats. I enjoy doing those more because they're a little longer but not too long. My least favorite would definitely be the 400s, the short, faster sprints. Because I did so many mile repeats over summer, I got used to doing that so I'm comfortable with it now. "
On her favorite place to run:
"We recently started going to Chollas Lake and I like it because that was my high school home course. Over the summer, I would tell coach (Coach Chris Capeau) that I did my workout at Chollas Lake so he added the new location this year. The other girls on the team didn't know about it and had never heard of it. Currently, he (Coach Chris Capeau) has us running around the lake but I'm sure we will be doing some of the workouts on the hill in the future.
"For our long run, I love going to the beach. The beach runs are the best because it's soft and not as hot. I love going there."
On her favorite college course thus far:
"(Our home course) was Balboa Park last year Mission Bay this year. I like the Balboa course because that's where I have done a lot of my workouts but Mission Bay was really fun. I like that course as well because so many more people are there watching."
On her favorite high school course:
"My favorite high school course would be Morley Field. I loved going there. That's where we had CIF (Championships)."
On what she does in her free time:
"I usually go to the beach and just hang out with my family because it's very relaxing. We have our dogs so we'll take them too. The best thing for me is sitting on the beach. It's very calm and you have the volleyball courts nearby."
On her major and career aspirations:
"Bio-zoology. I want to have an internship and then work at the zoo. Later on, I want to be a vet and specialize with dogs and cats."
On being an Aztec:
"I think you see a lot more people representing San Diego State. I didn't see that as much when I was in high school and middle school, but I see it all the time now. I think it's amazing. It went from this school in San Diego to being huge. You hear about (SDSU) all the time."