Catching up with Mickie Rzepka
5/26/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track and Field
May 26, 2005
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Novi, Mich., native Mickie Rzepka has had a terrific season. During both the Indoor and Outdoor Big Ten Championships, Rzepka took first place in the pole vault. During the Outdoor Championships she set a new school record of 13-1 1/3. She is only the second person in MSU history to win a field event title at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships.
This Friday (May 27) Rzepka competes at the NCAA Regionals. She is tied for the fourth seed in the pole vault.
Q. Describe what your season has been like for you?
A. Outdoor season was kind of a struggle for me. I had been working on a lot of technique and we had a lot of rained out meets, so I didn't get to compete as much as I normally like to. But I kind of put it all together at the Big Ten meet a couple of weeks ago and I am kind of peaking right now at the right time. I am excited for Regionals this weekend and hopefully I'll make it to Nationals.
Q. Do you have any goals for Regionals?
A. For Regionals I want to make it into the top four or five so that I can advance to Nationals. I know if I place within the number one to five, I am going to be hitting the heights that I want to hit (probably around 13-6, just over 13 feet is going to be the money), but Nationals is the main goal.
Q. What is the highest height you have hit?
A. 13-3 1/4. But I am definitely ready to explode. I am definitely ready to PR (personal record).
Q. Why did you choose Michigan State?
A. I am a local. I am from Novi, so it's not far. I just walked on the team. I really like track a lot and vault is my passion, so I just went with it and came here and earned my way on the team and stuck with it since then.
Q. Where does your inspiration come from?
A. From the love for the event; I just love it so much. I wouldn't come out here every day and practice or spend so many hours if I didn't love it.
Q. When did you first learn how to pole vault?
A. Freshman year in high school is the first year that girls could pole vault. My brother and his older friends did it and I just thought it was the neatest thing. They kind of took me under their wing in high school and taught me the ropes and that was pretty much it.
Q. What goes through your head when you are flying through the air and over the bar?
A. Everything happens pretty fast. It is an awesome feeling. Everything kind of slows down after you have cleared the bar and you can have time to fall back. But everything before that is just a lot of technique and focusing on everything you need to master.
Q. What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened when competing?
A. I don't really have too many embarrassing things. I frequently trip from my spikes, when you get off the mat sometimes your spike gets caught. But nothing too embarrassing has happened, besides hanging out in like bathing suits competing.
Q. If you could eat dinner with one person, dead or alive, who would it be?
A. I'd pick Sergei Bubka. He is the highest pole vault jumper for males in history. He is done jumping now, but I never got to see him jump in person. So I would like to meet with him and talk to him.
Q. What is your greatest fear?
A. Not accomplishing what I want to accomplish in an event. I really want to train for the trials coming up and to stay healthy and injury free, and give myself an opportunity.
Q. Do you like indoor or outdoor season better?
A. Outdoor. I think everyone by far likes outdoor season better because of the atmosphere and there is more hype. You have Big Ten, Regionals and Nationals, where in the indoor there is just the Big Ten and the Nationals which is kind of a big jump.
