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| | The first year after of high school can be filled with new challenges, unexpected success, surprising disappointment, homesickness, bad dining hall food, new friends and late nights. Knowing the adjustment isn't always easy, we've asked ESPN RISE intern Hilary May, herself a high school standout at Corona del Mar CA and a collegiate runner at Harvard, to contact some of last year's top prep track and field athletes and find out how things are going...one year out.
| | | Nicole Cochran
 “Some may say we are just a bunch of nerds, but we have fun. I’ve never fit in anywhere more in my life.”
After an overwhelmingly successful high school campaign at Bellarmine Prep in Tacoma, WA, Nicole Cochran packed her bags and headed 3000 miles east for her freshman year at Harvard in Cambridge, MA.
Now, having just completed her freshmen year, Dyestat catches up with Nicole to find out how the adjustment to the college level (and East Coast weather) turned out.
Firstly, how are you doing?
I am doing well and I am happy. Training is on the upswing and I absolutely love Harvard. The running program is exactly what I was looking for coming out of high school and I love being an essential part in the growth of the program.
Complete this sentence: Your freshman year was. . . a learning process. I had to learn not just how to race in college but how to train and be a member of a very dedicated program.
Have your goals changed after one year of college? Is the Harvard program getting you to your goals?
I wouldn’t say that my goals have changed after one year of college necessarily but more postponed. I guess I didn’t quite understand the freshman year transition that everyone warns about but my overall goals have not been affected. I want to be an Ivy League champion on the track, I want to make NCAA nationals in cross country (hopefully with the team), I want to PR in all my events, and eventually get to NCAAs outdoors. The program has been nothing but supportive in my quest for these lofty goals and I can’t wait to get back to school to continue the pursuit. I want to take myself as far as I can in running and I know if I put in the work, it will pay off.
How rigorous is running at the college level versus the high school level?
The intensity of my high school versus college running has been very comparable thanks to multiple fantastic coaches. I will say that college running has added a lot more little things to improve my running different from what I did in high school. For instance, a pre-running dynamic stretching routine, weights twice a week, and post-run drills and exercises.
What is the academic side of Harvard like? How hard is it to balance schoolwork with running? What are you planning on majoring in?
Schoolwork and running were definitely more difficult to balance in college than in high school. Both demand more and more of time until you practically run out of hours in the day. Time management and efficiency become huge and it took me about a semester to really get a handle on how to budget my time most effectively. It’s funny when I tell people where I go to school and they expect me to some sort of genius. Yes, Harvard was a challenge for me academically but it felt more like a logical progression from my high school education. It really depends on the classes that you choose for yourself and how interested you are in the subject. My favorite class this year was probably my social psychology class. As of right now I am studying to be pre-med but I really want to concentrate in psychology. I really love psych classes and I find it is much easier to have a great college experience and to get good grades if you take classes that really interest you.
 Is there time to party at Harvard? Are you allowed to have a social life being on the track team, and how do you balance it with academics and track? Do you go to football games or other Harvard events?
There are plenty of people at Harvard who party. The policy on our team is that the coaches treat us as adults and let us make our own decisions. They expect us to be responsible. I was once told there are three tiers in college: academics, athletics, and a social life of which you pick two. It isn’t that cut and dry but I do think two have to take priority over the other. That said, my social life is usually put on hold until the weekends, but it is still very fulfilling and fun once you’ve worked the whole week for it. I went to the first football game at the beginning of the year and then missed all of the other ones. Unfortunately, we were traveling to a meet during the biggest game (Harvard-Yale), though I did attend multiple other sporting events including hockey, soccer, and basketball. My favorite on campus thing to do is to attend the various a capella concerts. I have seen several fantastic performances at Harvard!
What is your typical Saturday night like?
Usually I will do some homework until it is time to go hang out with friends. The college social life takes a shift much later than high school. I usually didn’t leave my dorm until around 11:00. Then, the rest of night usually consisted of dancing and chatting with friends. I would try get back to my room before 1:00 so I would be rested for our Sunday morning long run at 9am.
What is your typical Monday night like?
Monday night, on the other hand, is usually completely filled with schoolwork. My goal is to always get to bed before midnight which happened most of the time.
Describe the track and cross country team.
The track/cross country team is incredibly fun. We hang out frequently outside of practice and we all get along very well. Crazy, goofy, and quirky might be better words to describe our team but I would definitely say I have the most fun in college when I am surrounded by teammates.
If you could do it all over again would you still choose Harvard?
If I had to go through choosing a college again, knowing what I know now, I would still choose Harvard. I have fallen in love with the school, the running program, and the people. It is still the best environment that I think that I could have chosen for myself.
 How was the adjustment to running on the East Coast through the winter?
This past winter in Cambridge was tough. Being from the Pacific Northwest, I have never really experienced that much snow and that cold of temperatures. When it is consistently below 20 degrees, it is difficult to even run outside. I remember it had snowed quite a bit one Saturday night so the next morning’s long-run consisted of 45 minutes around the outside of the indoor track and 45 minutes around the field turf in the bubble. We are very lucky at Harvard to have a top-of-the-line indoor facility so our winter workouts do not suffer. I just use the Northeast winters to make me tougher for the outdoor track.
What is your favorite food in the dining hall?
After experiencing a dining hall for every meal for months on end, you have to be creative. My favorite dining hall concoction is making my own pizza with flatbread, sauce, cheese, and veggies.
What is the funniest thing that happened to you on a run at Harvard?
When the team went to Houston for spring break, myself and a few other girls went for a run and it suddenly started to downpour. Next thing we knew, we were in the middle of a thunder and lightning storm. Being the dedicated runners that we are, we finished our 6 mile run with one hand in front our eyes to protect us from the rain and wind. It was raining so hard that my contacts were lifting off my eyes. We got back to the track where we had started only to find our stuff completely drenched from the waterfalls cascading down the concrete bleachers. We hastily made our way to a tent on the infield to call our ride for help. The wind picked up and would’ve blown the tent away had we not been holding it down. We then proceeded to sprint through the Rice campus, backpacks and all, to our ride. We made it safely to the van and broke down laughing at the situation we had gotten ourselves into.
Are Harvard runners and students nerdy or normal?
Harvard runners and students are relatively normal. You have to be a little bit crazy to be a runner and at least a little bit nerdy to go to Harvard. Some may say we are just a bunch of nerds, but we have fun. I’ve never fit in anywhere more in my life.
The head coach, Jason Saretsky, is an Ivy League graduate (Columbia), what is it like having a coach who competed in the Ivy League? What is your relationship with Jason like? How different is it from the coaching you had in high school?
It’s nice to have a coach that knows the Ivy League dynamics very well. Jason is very smart and very dedicated to the team and the sport and I feel his Ivy League background simply adds to his coaching. I work with Jason quite a bit and I communicate with him about almost everything running related. It took us a little while to get to know each other and to feel comfortable but now I feel confident about training and with communication of what is going on. It’s becoming more and more similar to my relationship with my high school coach and I think it will just take more time. I had and still have a close/friendly relationship with my high school coach and I think the same will come with my coaches at Harvard.
What was it like to go back to the Washington State Meet this past weekend?
I had a great time at the Washington state meet last weekend. It was great to have the state meet back in my home town so I didn’t have to drive 4 hours to catch all of the action. The best word to describe being a spectator at the meet was nostalgia. This year the competition for my Bellarmine girls went very smoothly. They are now repeat team title champions with only 4 sprinters scoring points. I am so proud of them!
You were high school teammates with NCAA 1500m champion Brie Felnagle. What was that experience like?
I was a freshman when Brie was a senior. It was great to have her as a teammate. She was so inspiring and encouraging and I know chasing after her helped my running tremendously. I do still keep in touch with her but mostly just through texting. I’ve seen her a couple of times since we were teammates at college meets and such. The last time was at pre-nationals though I hope to go on some runs with her this summer.
 How was the transition from 5k to 6k in cross-country?
I really only raced 6k twice in my freshman season but it’s not that different from 5k. I think more experience and time will tell how I can handle the extra 1k, but it hasn’t proved too problematic yet.
You ran the 3000m steeplechase this outdoor season. What was running that event like? Do you like it?
I really liked getting to try a new event this past outdoor season. The steeple is a great event and very different from anything I’ve done before. It will take a lot more practice to get where I want to be with it. I plan to continue running it in the future along with the 1500m and maybe some flat 3000s.
You ran indoor track for the first time this year. What were your successes and defeats training and racing indoors? Do you like it? Do you have any tips for other West Coasters making the transition?
At first, I wasn’t sure how my body would handle running indoors. It was kind of weird adding another racing season to the running year but I think it went well. I actually ran better indoors than outdoors this year so I guess I surprised myself a little bit. Indoor isn’t my favorite season but I enjoyed myself. If I had to give any tips it would be to try to avoid running too fast, too early or else you run the risk of fizzling out before outdoor is over and outdoor is much more important than indoor.
What is the team dynamic like? Is it different then your high school team?
I felt that our team has a lot of chemistry and we pretty much get along very well. I love that some of my best friends are girls on the team. We all seem to train extremely well together without getting overly competitive. It’s different from high school in that I am surrounded by girls who all want the same thing. We love to have fun, but we also know how to work hard and the camaraderie among the girls is absolutely amazing.
What was the biggest shock about Harvard?
The biggest shock about Harvard was the realization of the distance from home. 3000 miles, even if it is by plane, is very far and the 3 hour time difference made communication with family and friends back home difficult.
What was the biggest disappointment?
The biggest disappointment was probably going from 4.0, class valedictorian in high school to regular, average student at Harvard.
What was the best part about freshman year?
The best part of freshman year was meeting so many new people from all over the United States and the world. It really opened my eyes from my small high school community and I look forward to meeting more and more people over the next three years in such a worldly community.
What are you most looking forward to?
Right now, I am most looking forward to the summer training ahead of me and cross-country season. I can’t wait to get back out there for workouts and races.
What do you miss most about high school?
The thing I miss most about high school is the intimate running community and spending time with my family. It is pretty hard being so far away so visits are relatively infrequent.
What was your favorite college meet?
My favorite college meet was a tie between indoor Heps Championships [Ivy League Championships] at Harvard and Drake Relays outdoors. Both had tough competition and we performed very well.
What are your summer plans?
My summer plans consist of working, running, eating, sleeping, and hanging out with friends. I wanted a pretty relaxed, laid back summer this year. Next year, I will probably have bigger, more definitive plans.
Any words of wisdom for high schoolers?
You cannot really anticipate the transition into college to its fullest extents. I would say that you need to try your best to stay focused and simply get through freshman year, running the entire year while staying healthy. It’s good to have little attainable goals along the way so that you have motivation to keep going.
Stats:
High School PRs:
XC: 5000m: 17:37
Outdoor track: 800m: 2:12, 1500m: 4:30, 1600m: 4:49, 3000m: 9:53, 3200m: 10:35
Notable high school accomplishments: Mile, Nike Outdoor Nationals – 8th place (2005), 3-time Washington state track and field champion (2 time 3200m, 1 time 1600m), Border Clash Champion (2007)
College Freshman PRs:
XC: 5000m: 18:04
Indoor Track: 1000m: 2:52, Mile: 4:52
Outdoor Track: 1500m: 4:36, 3k steeple: 10:55
Notable freshman accomplishments: Indoor Ivy League Championships Mile run – 4th place
Photos: headshot - GoCrimson.com; middle right, Donna Dye; middle left, Brittan Smith; bottom, DyeStat.com |
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