Vail looks to qualify for the Olympic Trials next year in Eugene, Oregon (New York Road Runners)

1. Congratulations on the team title at the NCAA Midwest Regional. What are your goals for the NCAA Championships next Monday?

Our first goal is to improve upon our 8th place finish from two years ago. There are a lot of talented teams up front this year, but with smart running we think we can pick some of the teams off that may be better than us on paper. Of course, being on the podium would be incredible, and we don’t feel that it’s out of reach. We’re going to run as smart and as hard as possible and we’ll see where that leaves us. We each have a very specific race plan.

2. Oklahoma State is currently ranked 9th in the nation by the USTFCCCA. Looking back at your season so far, did you expect to do this well heading into the NCAA meet?

We had high expectations of ourselves coming into this season. We’ve been 8th and 10th our last two years at the national meet and we’ve been working all year to improve on that. We set high season goals in order to ensure that we’d be in a position to do that at this point in the season.

3. Now that everyone is ready to run at the top of their level, how do you plan to pace your final race of the season knowing nothing is left to be saved?

The first priority for me is to secure a spot in the 20’s or 30’s at 8k for the team, and whatever I have left in the last 2k will dictate my final position. The last few years at this course in Terre Haute, the top 25 didn’t change much from 5k to the finish, so I’ll need to be in that group at 5k, whatever the pace is.

4. Looking ahead to the indoor season, what are some of your expectations and when do you plan to open up?

I’d like to run a fast 3k this indoor season. My indoor season was really limited last year due to a stress fracture in the fall, so I’ll be looking for a big PR most likely at the Tyson Invitational.

5. Originally from Gresham, Oregon, what led you to enroll at Oklahoma State considering the talent-rich area of other programs in the Northwest?

Our head coach, Dave Smith, is originally from the northwest so he spent quite a lot of time recruiting athletes from that area. Honestly, I didn’t even want to waste a visit to Stillwater, OK when I first talked to Dave. I pictured it as a flat, dust-bowl, dessert type place. But after numerous phone calls I really liked what he had to say, and when I came down on a visit I really fit in with the guys on the team and into Dave’s coaching style. Also, Stillwater is surprisingly a great place to run. There are miles and miles of hilly dirt roads; you don’t have to touch pavement if you don’t want to. There were a lot of great opportunities in the northwest, but I felt most comfortable with the team and coaching situation at Oklahoma State.

6. Speaking of the Northwest, I'm sure you're well aware of the chance to compete at the Olympic Trials which would be back close to home for you in Eugene. Assuming you will try to qualify in the 5,000 meters, do you have a plan for when or where you'd like to accomplish this goal?

I would love to run the 5k at the Olympic trials in Eugene this summer. We haven’t decided for sure which meet will be best to run the qualifying time at, but right now we’re leaning towards the Stanford Invitational or Cardinal Invitational depending on how the indoor season finishes out.

7. Speedwork is the key for finishing strong in your events. How often do you practice this near the end of the season? Is there anything else that you'd like to improve on in your training?

We do tend to focus on speedwork more towards the end of the season, but it is never our main focus. Dave is a firm believer in strength through long tempo runs and cross country intervals, even through a good part of the track season. Once the aerobic strength is established we start to implement some fast track workouts as the season progresses.

8. Oklahoma State has always been deep in the distance events. How proud are you to be a part of the winning tradition over the past few seasons?

OSU does have a rich history of distance runners and over the last few seasons we’ve been setting the program up to continue this tradition for years to come. We’ve got a great group of talented and dedicated guys right now along with some great up and coming freshman that are going to have no problem keeping us in the same direction. I’m extremely proud to be a part of what we’ve accomplished over the last few seasons, and we all firmly believe that we have the pieces to accomplish greater things in the near future.

9. Now that you have freshman and sophomores looking up to you, what kind of advice do you give them knowing what you've experienced your first few years?

For the most part I’d say I lead by example. The younger guys see all the long tough miles that the older guys are putting in and see the results from the dedication and commitment. This work ethic rubs off and when you get a whole group of guys with the same hard working attitude it gets people excited.

10. What was it like to compete for the U.S. Junior National Cross Country team in Lyon, France during your redshirt freshman year?

That experience was a big turning point in my running career. I was really excited to make the team and race among so many amazing athletes, but it really showed me how much work I had to do. Being around the athletes from the senior teams gave me a chance to see people completely committed to what they were doing and putting in an incredible amount of work. I saw that if I was ever going to be competing at their level I would have to be doing the same, and I’ve taken a very serious approach to my training ever since.

11. As a three-time academic All-Big 12 honoree, how do you balance your schedule of training and in the classroom?

I’ve been motivated academically ever since I was a young kid. My parents expected it from me and I expected it from myself. Just like training, you make sure and put the time aside every single day; no excuses. As long as you’re willing set the necessary time aside, it’s not extremely difficult.