Blogs : NCAA Division III Blog

Interviews: Esther Erb of Case Western Reserve

                                     (Photo courtesy of the Columbus Running Company)

Erb (pictured right) is a junior at Case Western Reserve University.  Last year at the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Cross Country Regional Meet she finished sixth overall helping her team to a fourth place finish, just five points from qualifying to the national meet. During the 2006 outdoor track and field season she placed 12^th in the 10,000 meter run at the NCAA Division III Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a time of 37:10.18.  Last weekend she finished second overall at the 34^th Annual Loyola University-Chicago Sean Earl Invitational (5k) with a time of 18:05 helping the currently 20th ranked Spartans to a first place overall finish in the Maroon Division.

By: Derick Lawrence (09/19/2006)

Could you tell us a little bit about yourself (where you're from, how you got started running)?

I'm from a very musical family in Richmond, VA.  Until 7th grade, I never participated in an organized sport.  Before that I did dance, a few gymnastics camps and a lot of music, singing and playing cello.  In 6th grade, my gym coach noticed that I got pretty competitive in gym class when I was told to run, so he told me to go out for track.  So, I quit dance and started with spring track in 7th grade (there was no cross country).  I had a pretty successful middle school career, but decided not to run in high school because the coach at my high school, Jim Holdren, was pretty hard core, and had been the coach at that high school since my dad went there.  I knew that I couldn't commit myself 100% so I never joined even though I knew that he had heard about me and seen me run in middle school.  I never really did anything athletic outside of gym class throughout the first two years of high school.

Then, my junior year, I went off to Germany for a year abroad, and got lured in by the wonderful bread, beverages, and sausages.  So after gaining 20lbs, I decided to start running again after almost three years.  When I got back, I had lost most of the weight, and had gotten into the habit of working out, so even into my senior year, I was working out after school.  Finally, in November of my senior year, my coach stopped me one day after I was done working out at school, and asked me "so Esther, when are we gonna get you to run for us?"  My response was pretty vague, and I said something about doing outdoor.  To that he replied "let's just get you in shape in indoor."  So I told him I'd let him know, and came into his office the next day with my reply.  I said I'd do it, but only with the understanding that my musical commitments came first.  That season, I went to states in the 1000m and was on the district and regional champion 4x800 relay team.  Outdoor wasn't quite as good, but it was still a really good experience.

I ran about 20 miles a week the summer before college, and came into school in decent shape.  I had very little intention of running cross country and had told myself that I would decide when it came to track season, since I fancied myself a middle distance runner.  A couple days into orientation, I found my way to the cardio room in the athletic center, and after I finished my work-out, a woman approached me and said "you look like a runner.  Do you want to run cross country?"  I think I said something about considering it, and then she introduced herself as the head cross country coach and said "well, they're doing physicals now so let's go downstairs and get that done in case you decide to run." So I guess ever since then I've been a runner.

What were your PR's in high school (cross country and track)?
Well, I never ran cross country until I came to Case, and since I was a middle distance runner in VA, my 1000m PR was 3:12, and my 800m PR was 2:27, 1600m was 5:28 or something (I only ran it once).

What are your current PR's (cross country and track)?
My brand new 5k PR is what I just ran this weekend at Penn State Behrend, 18:18.25, and my 6k PR was at regionals last year, 21:25.  In indoor track, I ran my first provisional time with a 5:03 mile at home, and a 17:34 5k at Akron a week later.  In outdoor, I ran a 2:20 for my leg of the 4x800 and a 4:41 1500m at our UAA Conference meet, and a 36:48 10k at Hillsdale a week later.  Since I started running so late, I feel like I'm still in that really exciting stage where I keep on shaving off time.  I'm not looking forward to that inevitable plateau, which seems to be the fate of every runner.

What made you choose Case Western Reserve University?
The Early Music (pre-Baroque) program.  It had nothing to do with running since I didn't even know I was a runner when I was looking at colleges.

What was your training like this past summer?
Mostly quick mileage, 40 at the beginning and 50 at the end, with a timed 1600 every week.  My mileage pace probably averaged just under 7 min/mile.  My 1600 times ranged from 5:16-5:34 depending on the heat.  Richmond is extremely hot and humid in the summer, so training was pretty nasty at times, but it was still so much better than the summer before when I was anemic and didn't know it.

What is your favorite workout(s) during the cross country season and what does it include?
I really like the tempos we do.  We go to the same marked mileage street, warm up, run it, and get it over with pretty quickly.  The road is fairly flat, so I usually run pretty good times, and it gets me pumped about the upcoming race.  Our other work-out during the week is hill repeats.  I remember that my freshman year, I didn't complete a single hill work-out.  It's pretty tough.

What are your goals for this cross country season (individual and team)?
Last year, our team was 5 points away from going to nationals, and that was a huge heartbreak.  My goal for the team is that we do everything we need to do as a team to get ourselves there this year.  Personally, I'd like to do the best I can to get myself and my team to nationals and hopefully repair my reputation as that girl who lead the first mile of
nationals last year and then died completely.  Somehow I've managed to underachieve at every nationals meet that I've been to (3 seasons last year), so I'd really like to change that this year.

Do you walk, bike, or drive to class and/or practice? If you bike or drive, what kind of bike or car do you have?
I walk, bike, and sometimes run, but never drive.  My bike is a piece of junk that one of my roommates had lying around, and my car is a 1997 Honda Civic 4-door.  However, I try to avoid driving it much because we have a single-wide driveway at my house and none of my roommates drive stick, so I have to park on the street, and those spots are tough to get and easy to lose.

What's your major? Favorite professor?
I am majoring in music (voice) with a concentration in Early Music performance practices. That's the reason why I came to Case, and my second major is Cognitive Science, which is a brand new major at the school.  I really do like all my classes and professors this semester (if they see this... I'm not just trying to boost my grades), but I'm inclined to say that my favorite professor would have to be my advisor, Ross Duffin.  He's been a very good advisor and helped me with a lot of decisions.  Not to mention that he's extremely good at what he does and can make anything interesting.  Since I want to be a teacher of some sort eventually, I find that to be an extremely important quality.  Plus, he's coming out with another book really soon (his second since I've been at Case!), and that's awesome.

What are your plans after college?
I'm trying to figure that one out.  Most recently, I've been thinking that I'd like to get my teacher certification and teach music at the secondary level, but who knows, maybe there are bigger things in store for me.  As a kid, I always wanted to be a pop star... but who didn't?

Who has been the biggest influence in your life and/or running?
Well, those would have to be two different people.  My mom has most certainly been the biggest influence on my life, and not just for the most obvious reason, but she is also a musician and has always tried to instill a sense of work ethic and commitment to music and whatever else I do.  One of her favorite phrases is from the book Momo.  She always says, "to get there faster, you must go slower."  It is meant in terms of music as practicing a piece slowly, but it can also have a lot of direct meaning in terms of distance running and pacing.  Most importantly, she taught me to do what I love and love what I do.  All that has definitely contributed to my running, but I'd say that most of my running success can be attributed to my running inspiration, teammate and best friend, Stephen Hrinda and my coach, Kathy Lanese.  Without coach being who she is, I never would have run in college at all, and without Stephen's attitude to look up to, I never would have developed into the runner I am today.

What's the most memorable road trip that you have been on?
My family took a lot of road trips across the country when I was a kid. The last big one was from Richmond to San Francisco and up to Seattle and back.  We took three weeks to do it, and I know that those trips are a part of my childhood that I will never forget.  I give my parents a lot of credit for taking on that kind of adventure, especially when we were really little.  I'd like to do the same for my kids someday.

What do you like the most about Case Western Reserve University Cross Country?
When I first started running on the team, I was kind of surprised by what I found to be a very low level of self-motivation, mostly on the women's team.  I guess it was in comparison to my high school team which was pretty seriously demanding, mostly due to the nature of my coach.  My freshman year at Case, I kind of fell into that trend of doing the minimum requirement.  However, the more I watched Stephen in his seriousness about running, the more I was inspired to apply that kind of attitude to my own training.  He helped me through my first winter, and once you've made it through a winter of distance training in Cleveland, you can do anything.  My sophomore year, we had a whole lot of great freshmen, who really contributed to the sense of team unity and seriously improved the level of commitment and motivation.  I think that at this point, we have a team that is very capable of making it to nationals.  We just have to make it happen.

What's the running environment like at Case Western Reserve University? Where does the team train?
We train on the lovely Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard where one often finds packs of wild dogs and people who honk or pull over to talk to the girls while we're running. That's where we do our tempos.

Any parting words for readers?
My whole running career has been a huge process of shock for me.  I never ever expected for things to go as well as they have.  I really just have to thank the people who got me started in this, Coach Holdren, Coach Lanese, and Stephen for slowly convincing me that I am indeed a runner.

Thanks to Esther for a great interview.

WRITER HAS QUESTION FOR ESTHER ERB

11:51 AM, January 9, 2007 .. Posted by Anonymous

Dear Esther Erb:
I am writing a novel about a XC runner and I'm wondering if I could be in contact with you with questions. Your interview was inspiring!
I am a freelance journalist. Please write me back at dianabletter@gmail.com.
Thanks so much! Any other female runners who read this and would like to help me out, please contact me