April 26, 2005

With this season's NCAA Division I Regional Championships quickly approaching for the UTPA track and field teams, the opportunities to qualify are diminishing.

For junior javelin thrower Rachel Reida (Garden Plains, KS/Cowley County C.C.), the goal all season has been to qualify and each competition seems to put her a step closer to that accomplishment.

"Qualifying has been the focus for me all season. I haven't quite hit the mark, but I've been so close. At this point in the season, it doesn't really matter how well I do at each meet because I need to hit that qualifying mark to feel like I'm doing what I set out to do this season," said Reida.

The track and field teams have already seen eight student-athletes qualify for regional competition, and Reida looks to be the next that could possibly compete in post-season action. In recent competition, Reida posted a third-place finish in her heat at the Texas Relays (Apr. 8) in Austin, TX, with a throw of 139-6. The mark was a personal-best, but just short of the qualifying mark of 141-57 needed for Regional Championships.

"It's almost more frustrating being so close to the mark than if I were 20 feet off. Every time I throw I'm hitting a new personal-best, which is great. However, there is a lot of pressure to qualify, and I want the chance to compete at regionals," Reida stated.

Reida's initial interest in throwing the javelin came when she was a sophomore in high school. The suggestion to take up the sport came while Reida was spending time her family one afternoon tossing around a football.

"I was actually playing football with my uncle, and he told me I had a pretty good arm. He said he thought I should try throwing the javelin, and so I thought I would go ahead and try it. It's kind of interesting to see how far that one suggestion has taken me," Reida commented.

Although she had a lot of natural talent for the event, she has trained very hard to become as successful as she has been. Reida had a very accomplished high school and junior college experience in the sport, and now enjoys the elevated level of competition she is up against at the Division I level.

"It's good to evaluate myself against other really great throwers. It's definitely more competitive now that I'm here at UTPA, and I see tougher competition in each meet we attend," said Reida.

The level of competition was just one of the reasons Reida felt UTPA was a good fit for her. She was also excited about the opportunity to be coached by someone who had worked with a lot of athletes in throwing events. Head coach Ricky Vaughn was able to help Reida improve on her technique and become more skilled in the javelin.

"I knew the coaching staff here would be able to help me compete at the next level. Coach Vaughn has helped me become mentally stronger in competition as well as athletically stronger. It makes such a big difference when your coaches know the event and can help you with the right form and techniques to throw farther and constantly improve," Reida stated.

While being physically strong is key in throwing the javelin, Reida claims that having the right technique can be just as important.

"A lot more goes into throwing then most people think. It's about having correct form, and a lot of leg strength where most people think it's all about having a good arm. I do a lot of footwork, and lower body weight lifting that helps me be more technically sound as I throw rather then just being strong-armed," explained Reida.

Reida spends most of her time during the season training in the weight room, and only actually throws twice a week during practice.

"It's hard to spend so much time on strength training and not actually throwing that often during a week. I love the days of practice when I'm actually throwing, those are my favorite practices. However, being in the weight room and working on all the other aspects of throwing is how I can ensure that I'll throw well in competition," said Reida.

In preparing for competition, Reida takes a lot of time getting ready for a throw. She will spend up to an hour and a half before her event doing stretches, running sprints, and taking standing throws in order to be ready to throw against the competition. There are also several challenging element that she has to factor in at each meet.

"It's hard to know what the weather will be like at any given meet. In my event, I have to battle the wind and make adjustments under those circumstances. A cross wind can make it harder to throw straight while in a heavy wind, I would have to throw lower to the ground. Each condition requires and adjustment, and I have to know what adjustments to make so that I still throw well," stated Reida.

With all her training and her expertise in the event, Reida hopes that she will hit that qualifying mark within the final meets of the season. In doing so she would not only feel a sense of accomplishment in meeting her goal of this season, but would also join those other eight UTPA track and field athletes who have already extended their season into regional action.

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