Deutsche Hallen Meisterschaften (German Indoor Championship)

Trip to Germany Rd 2

Leading up to the Trip

This Indoor season was a big step for me in regards to goals I set along with projects I had been working on. Being a post-collegiate hurdler for my first year out of school was difficult, taking on the job of not only the athlete, but also the coach, administrator, driver, and planner. At the end of the 2014 outdoor season I was lucky to be able to remove one of those tasks from the list of things I was responsible for to keep my career going. Even with this job now filled, I had added a new project to my plate.

For those of you out there who don’t know me, I am a 25 year old post collegiate hurdler who has dual citizenship with Germany and the USA. My new task for the 2014-15 season was to find a way to utilize the German side of my blood line. This was something I was only able to talk about, and up til the end of the 2014 summer it was really just all talk. My coach, Shelby Johnson has been instrumental in so many part of what I have been trying to do the past couple of months. Since meeting him I have gained a new confidence and even regained some drive to make some new things happen which are outside of my comfort zone. Through the Fall, I was researching how to get over to Germany this season. With all the research I found many rules and regulations, but nothing I could not make happen. By December I was able to file all of the paperwork with a Club in Sindelfingen, the city where I was born. The team, VfL Sindelfingen, welcomed me, and even suggested a race at their local facility (the GlasPalast) where I could race to try to qualify for the German National Championships in February. This whole plan began growing and becoming very real.

By January, my coach and I had planned out the season to best prepare me for my trip to Geramany in January. When I traveled to Germany for the first time in 17 years, I spent less than 48 hours on the ground. I was able to get a win along with Qualify for the Championships. All of my planning and preparations were starting to pay off.

After returning back to the States, I was very eager to make some improvements on my race. My goal was now to make finals in the German Championships.

The Trip

The Championship trip was going to be a pretty big deal for me. I was going to my First National Championship of any kind at the age of 25 in a country that had become very alien to me.

This time around, I planned to be in Germany for a full week to prepare for the race. This was a good idea because the time difference really does take a lot out of you. After 2 nights I was finally able to get a normal full night sleep. My week of preparations was going well until Wednesday, when I became very sluggish and had no spring left in my legs. I became very upset and concerned, sending messages to my coach saying I was very tired. On Thursday, after a good night’s sleep, my body felt much better, and I was able to get a good workout in. Friday was just a day to relax, so I took the kids from the family I was staying with to the track with me. During the easy day, the kids wanted to race me. This was a good change of pace for me, and allowed me to really relax.

On Saturday, I went to a Stuttgart Kickers game and then just relaxed in preparation for the Championship racing I would be a part of on Sunday.

Sunday, I drove to the house of the Sindelfingen Hurdles coach's house in Boblingen. From there we drove with the female hurdler from the club to Karlsruhe. Upon arrival I was given my bib numbers and athlete pass. We then walked into the Halle to see what was going on and then walk to the warm up area. I relaxed and prepared my mind for about 30 minutes, then began my warmup.

I knew this warmup would be different from most I have done, so I made sure to take care of everything I really needed to do. 20 minutes before my race I was called with my heat to the Call room. We were then escorted out to the track, where we would be able to do basic block work and a 2 hurdle practice start. I did my best to stay focused on what I needed to do.

To be completely honest, I cannot remember much of my race, I know I felt very smooth, but being in lane 7 I felt blind. As a Left leg lead, I struggle to see anyone during the race to my left. When I finished I had no idea someone was ahead of me by 3 tenths of a second. I ran hard, felt good, and when I saw my time I was happy because it was a career best time but I also knew it would not be enough for finals.

This experience was something I will never forget. I saw a new level of competition that I could have only dreamed of before this season started. To be able to say that I competed at a National Championship for a country is one thing, but along with that I was the 10th best in a country. This really makes me so much more motivated to get started with my outdoor training. My goal remains to make finals at the championship, but this time it will be in the race I am better at because it is longer.

My indoor season goals were not entirely fulfilled. But that is not to say that I did not accomplish anything. I will always tell people I am behind in my training, but that just mean I need to be patient as I put the pieces together. My coach and I have work to do, and we are aware of where we need to fix issues. The possibilities are there, It’s just time to make it happen now!

Article on my German Clubs website had this to say about me (google translated, very rough):

“A hurdler sent Sindelfingen on the 60-meter track with obstacles in the race. Niklas Rippon holding the flag of blue-white high and stood at the inlet port. The hurdler with dual citizenship, the US-American and German, was 8.13 seconds fast.”

"Another blue-white hurdler in Karlsruhe was in the men's Niklas Rippon. The German-Americans hit a respectable third in his first runnings 8.13 seconds. Not more than twelve hundredths of a second missing for collection in the finals of the best eight."