MOSCOW, Idaho – Google Maps says 12,000 miles.  That's the distance between Andrea Condie's hometown of Doha, Qatar, and her current home in Moscow, Idaho.
 
Condie joined the Vandals last season and made an immediate impact on the program.  She has continued to improve this year, scoring in all four meets thus far.
 
Her journey to the Vandals has been anything but easy, but through hard work and dedication she has found a home in Moscow, regardless of where she may be from.
 
"I was originally born in Argentina, then we moved back to the States for a little bit.  Then when I was about five we moved over to Doha, Qatar.  I lived there for the last 13 years of my life before coming to Idaho.  I was over there because my dad works for an oil company as a petroleum engineer.  He really liked the job so we just never left."
 
But when it came time for college, Condie had some ideas for where she wanted to continue her racing career.
 
"Then I was looking for colleges in the United States because I knew it was what I wanted to come back to.  Home base is kind of California for me in the States so I was looking on the West coast.  I just really wanted to be in the Pacific Northwest for sure and I got attracted to Idaho, I talked with coach Travis, really liked him and what he's about.
 
I always knew I wanted to run in college, since like middle school, and so that was always a goal.  When he offered me an opportunity to do that I wasn't going to turn that down."
 
There are many difference between Qatar and Idaho.  In fact, there are very few similarities.  Condie embraced those differences, and has adapted tremendously well to her new home.
 
"It was really weird coming back because it almost felt like I was a stranger in my own country.  One of the biggest things that stands out to me, over there everybody was very conservative, because Islam is a very conservative religion.  So coming back here, seeing people in short shorts sometimes kind of took me back.  'Oh you can wear those now?'  I couldn't wear that.
 
"And just the culture.  There are so many little things that you don't even notice.  Driving.  Driving there, you couldn't drive until you were 18 so I didn't actually get my license there.  So when I came here and had to get my license it was a bit crazy because everyone else learned to drive at 14 or 15 and I was learning at 18.  It was a very big difference there for sure.  Driving there was always crazy, here in Idaho it's a big difference."
 
The distance between Idaho and Qatar makes for some fairly difficult travels.  But the Condie family manages to make it work.
 
"My parents and my little sister are still there.  I go back for winter break, can't go back for Thanksgiving because it's a little too short.  They normally come here for summer.  My parents have actually made it out to quite a few meets.  Last year my mom came to one of my cross country meets, my dad made it to one of my cross country meets.  And my mom made it to one of my track meets too.  They make an effort to come out and see me, I think my dad is coming to our regional meet in California."
 
Championship season is finally here for Condie and the Vandals, and this year's squad is poised to make a splash in the Big Sky.  Although Condie may not have been completely ready for college racing when she first got to Moscow, she has proven herself to be one of Idaho's top runners this season.
 
"I've definitely come a long way since running in the desert in Qatar.  The conditions are obviously not the best there; super hot, super dusty.  So my training wasn't always very, very good.  I had to push myself and train myself more because there wasn't really that high of a standard at my high school and I didn't really have anyone to compete against.  I knew where I wanted to get, to college, that was my end goal.
 
"Since coming to college, just being in better conditions and all that, it's definitely made me a lot better runner.  Having such an amazing team, with such amazingly talented girls that all push each other every day, I know I would not be running as well this season if I didn't have the girls that I have on this team.  We're improving every race and just all working together to improve.  I think that's the really great thing about this team this year.  We all know what our goals are.  We're all just there to help each other reach our goals.  No one is competing against each other, no one is trying to beat someone else, it's all about working together and being together to reach a goal together.  That's what we're going for.  Really pushing each other and helping each other be the best that we can be this season."
 
Condie and the Vandals will compete in the Big Sky Championships at home on Friday, with the men's race taking off at 11 a.m. and the women's race beginning at 12:15 p.m.
 
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