Q&A: Steeplechasing with Rachel Venezia

Fourth-year steeplechaser Rachel Venezia talks horses, saran rap, and goldfish with Maroon City.

Steve: What is the usual response when you tell people that you are a steeplechaser?

Rachel: “Oh, steeplechase, isn’t that on horses?”.  It was originally run by horses, and still is.  Rumor has it that one day the course was exceptionally muddy, and the jockeys decided to race on foot rather than risk injuring their mounts.

Steve: When did you first chase steeple?

Rachel: I first steeplechased at a running camp at Duke that I attended the summer after my freshman year of high school.  But when I was little and horse-crazy I used to set up barriers to jump over.

Steve: Is it tough to run with water in your shoes?  Do you do anything special with wardrobe that the strictly terrestrial runners don’t?

Rachel: I have special steeplechase shoes with drainage holes, so I don’t really notice the water on my shoes while I am running.  I have actually started wrapping my body in saran rap under my uniform.  I get cold easily, and don’t like being wet. It provides very good insulation, and I believe that it is worth the trade-off in decreased mobility.  For my last race I put vaseline all over my legs to help block the wind and water (not to mention that extra shine…).  Sometimes when I’m bored and nervous I will doodle on my leg the day before…you can see it in the picture that the maroon usually uses of me steepling.

Steve: Ever intentionally splash your opponents?

Rachel: Yeah.  When I’m having a bad race or am bored I pause at the top of the water barrier, wait until my opponent gets next to me, and then jump in their direction, getting them completely soaked.  I lose time in the short run, but it really makes them cold, and they falter next time they get to the water pit.

Steve: Have you fallen in college coming over any of the barriers? If so, on a scale from 1 to embarrassing, how would you rate that experience?

Rachel: In my freshman year I wiped out into the water pit.  I got completely soaked,and even my hair got submerged.  It was embarrassing (6/10), but I still had about 2,000 meters to go, so I didn’t really have time to dwell on it.  My team still enjoys circulating the picture…

Steve: What is your favorite youtube video of people falling in the event?

Rachel: I don’t like watching people fall, and I really don’t like it when people cluster by the water pit to cheer. I hate it when people put live goldfish in the steeple pit. It’s so mean.  They don’t even take them out before they drain the pit. My teammates and I often rescue them and release them into botany pond. We also have competitions as to how many goldfish people can scoop up while racing (record= 3).

Steve: How would you rate the Maroon’s coverage of track this season?

Rachel: I would rate it a two out of ten.

Steve: The floor is yours…

Rachel: The floor is Coach Hall’s. When we host two day meets he usually sleeps on the floor in his office.