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TCS NEW YORK CITY MARATHONOctober 30, 2014Ryan VailNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK Q.  Have you learned that it's going to be really cold? Do you think the conditions will be good for you? RYAN VAIL: I think so. I think the course being as challenging as it is plus cold and windy, all those things will be equalizers. When you have the guys, the top talent we have here, all those things, all those extra things are equalizers. Q. So it brings the top guys back? RYAN VAIL: Absolutely. It brings us all a little closer together. Q. I saw that interview you had done with Scott and your time up in Flagstaff with Ben. What did that add to what you'd already done before that? RYAN VAIL: The first thing was having a group to train with for a while. That was great. Having guys there to help me key off of as well at altitude. So I was kind of a rookie when it came to that, to help me adjust to the altitude, and just having guys to run with. That was huge. I haven't had that in a long time. Q. Was that a risk at all? You're saying older guys don't like change. But altitude, something new. RYAN VAIL: I think it was a risk. I think now is the time to try it. I did it early on in the training session, and now I'd like to see if it's something I want to do before the Olympic trials. So I decided now is the time to test it out. Q. What weeks were you there? RYAN VAIL: I was there from mid‑August to mid‑September. So I was there for four weeks. Q. What's going to be your strategy on Sunday? RYAN VAIL: I'd like to be a little bit more aggressive than last year and really stick with the front pack. When it's windy like this, if you get too far behind, it's just impossible to reel the guys back in. So just keep myself in the mix for as long as possible. Q. Time goal? RYAN VAIL: No time goal. I know better after last year not to set a time goal. I just want to place well. Q. What do you think about the crowd in New York? RYAN VAIL: It's unbelievable. I've been to several of the major marathons now, and there's nothing like New York. Q. What do you like about the New York City Marathon? RYAN VAIL: I like the challenging course. Whether it's the weather conditions or just the tough hills. It's a tough course. Q. How do you think your experience will come into play from last year, and what have you learned from last year? RYAN VAIL: Since the conditions will be so similar as well, I think that's going to help a lot. It's going to be basically a replay of last year, I think. A lot of the same guys are here as well. So it's going to allow me to keep in mind that I don't care what my half marathon split is as long, as I'm still in the mix. It might be too fast. It might be too slow. I just want to be in that group. Like I said, I don't think‑‑ you can't come from behind on a day like Sunday's going to be. Q. Where were you last year halfway? RYAN VAIL: I was in a second pack off of the main group with Jason Hartmann and Marial. Q. Do you remember what your time was? RYAN VAIL: I believable it was 65:15. Q. About ten seconds back then? RYAN VAIL: Not too far back, yeah. Q. But enough that you were in the second pack? RYAN VAIL: And the second pack fell apart very shortly after that point. I was alone a lot the second half. I can't let that happen again. Q. So can you just talk about your training overall, how it compares to last year. It seems like things are going pretty well. RYAN VAIL: Yeah, I've definitely taken another step forward. It's been a similar style build‑up. I didn't do a half marathon prep, a race this time around. That was just because I wanted to get the most I could out of the altitude training when I came back down. So altitude was the biggest difference, but other than that, very similar structure. Everything's been a little bit faster, a little bit more on pavement, a little bit more geared toward a New York course. I'm just a little better prepared overall with my experience, and my training has taken a step forward. Q. More mileage, more quality, or a combination? RYAN VAIL: Very similar volumes. I still got up to 150 miles a week, but better quality, overall better quality. Q. Did you do speed work at altitude as well? RYAN VAIL: I did some speed work up there. I did go down to Sedona for a couple of workouts. Still I'd say most of my quality workouts were at Lake Mary Road. Q. Can you talk a little bit about him, since you were training with him, can you talk about Nick and what kind of guy he is and how much you learned from him. RYAN VAIL: I lived with Nick Arcianaga when I went up there. A lot of it was helping me with how to start easy workouts, helping me decide where to run. So I could sit back, kind of like the freshman on the team again. Able to key off the experience with the marathon in New York, too. I think we have a similar fitness level and have similar goals. I imagine we'll be running together for a lot of race. Q. What about Ben as the coach? RYAN VAIL: Great guy, just really accommodating. Anyone who's there, doesn't matter who you are. He's willing to help you out. He was helping me with my fluids. He was driving people places. I mean, he just loves the sport. Whether you're affiliated with his team or not, he doesn't care. He just wants you there. Really great guy. Q. So it's possible‑‑ again, you're not talking about time, but given what the conditions might be, a high 2:12 on Sunday could be a good race if it puts you in fifth or sixth place. RYAN VAIL: That's right, absolutely. I'd be fine with that. All I can say for sure‑‑ it's hard to predict. All I can say for sure, if I was running London again right now, I'd run significantly faster than my 2:10:57, being my last marathon. I'm a good step above where I was before London, which wasn't that long ago. That's all I can say and ask for. Q. Mutai and Kipsang pretty much made it clear they're going to attack the course record this weekend. What are your thoughts on them even announcing it before the race? RYAN VAIL: Obviously, they're very fit, and they're going to do what they want to do. We'll see if they change their mind when they're going out in a 20‑mile‑an‑hour headwind. I can't do anything about that. When I say I'm going to keep myself in the mix, I'm not suicidal. I'm going to adjust if moves are made on the course, and I'm not going to go out that hard. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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