It's the freshly cut grass with thousands of feet pounding the ground every second and the roar of the crowd of people along the course chanting to "Keep going!" while passing by that keeps me going strong. Some times you think to yourself "Why am I doing this?" After all, it would be much easier to lounge on the couch all day than getting up early to run 3.1 miles. All of the butterflies and nerves that have remained in your stomach for days are gone in a second once the gun is fired.
My first Cross Country race of the 2012 season, Brooks Invitational, took place at McFarland Park this past Saturday. After stressing about the race for weeks and preparing myself to face tough competition, the day was finally here. My main focus was to not sprint my first mile to save my energy for the second half of the race. Throughout the whole race I was dodging pine cones, carrying myself up hills, and avoiding holes. I came across my first mile in a fast 6:23 and slowed down my pace to save some of my energy for the end. The second mile carried me under few trees, which was helpful considering it was 83 degrees already. This was my first time running this course and I was uncertain how far I was from the finish. Soon, I came across a huge "2" in orange spray paint on the ground and I knew I was getting close to the end. "You only have one more mile," I told myself over and over. Finally, I was on the 150 meter straight away to the finish. The crowds roared as I came down the finish. Since this course was not "fast," I knew this was not going to be a PR. I came across the finish with a 22:08. I had completed my first ever Varsity race and placed 2nd Overall. The girls on my team did an amazing job and my teammate, Cele Moon, placed Top 10 as well! The team of guys had all ran very great races as well. Everyone's times have improved drastically since last season. As any other team, we are trying to lower our times and keep pushing ourselves throughout each mile.
This upcoming weekend, my team will be competing at Chickasaw Trails. This race will be much more competitive as we go against teams from other states. Thank you to all of the sponsors and Brooks High School for organizing an amazing meet as always. A special thanks to my parents for taking me running anytime and anywhere. I wouldn't be anything without them. I am taking each race at a time and hoping to improve my timing as the season continues. Thank you MileSplit for giving me this opportunity to share my experiences as my season progresses!