St. Joseph's Ava Dobson talks about the season and what it has helped her with for the future.
How would you rate your season?
I would say my season has been probably an 8/10 so far. I definitely want to try and achieve some faster times!
How do you handle meet day preparations?
Meet days I usually focus on lots of hydration and carbs pre-race, and plenty of stretches about 30 minutes beforehand.
How was the Bojangles experience with the win?
Bojangles was a great experience and a great atmosphere! I wasn't sure if I could come away with a win, so it was super exciting to do so and especially to be able to lower my time!
Watch Dobson's 3200 Bojangles 10:41 | 3200 rankings
What confidence does it give you for the season?
Based on how I felt, I'm hoping that I will be able to lower my time in the 3200 a little more! With a little bit more focus on the pace each lap, I feel like I can maybe shave some time off!
Now that two seasons are almost complete, how do you reflect back on your first year in the sport?
Looking back, I'm super happy with my experience in this sport - it's really unlike any other! Everyone I've met has been super nice and supportive, and it feels great to be able to take part in a sport where you can make friends with people who aren't on the same team! Not only that, but I think that the challenges that come along with this sport make it so much better- to be able to say, "I did that?" after a long race is the best feeling!
What do you hope to achieve next in the sport?
I'm hoping mostly to be able lower both my 3200 and 1600 times- it's just a matter of figuring out the right pace for the both of them! Especially the 1600, which I've had to learn is a little bit different from pacing a 3200!! Track has made me realize how important pacing is in a race, and I'm hoping I'll be able to use that in cross country next season to lower my times as much as possible!
