What I have learned through cross country and track has now been reflected in my everyday life. It has not always been easy, but the experiences that I have had and the determination that I have gained and been able to use in my own life has made it all worth it. For me, it was never the great success that I had throughout my seasons that gave me pride and satisfaction, but instead how I was able to handle the trials that came my way. As a freshman, it had been challenging to experience a sport like cross country, a sport that I had casually enjoyed since seventh grade, in a whole new way. What had once been a pastime soon consumed most of life, but in the best way possible. The young girl who had worked hard with little notice from anyone else was soon in the top three on the varsity team. I had a hard time taking it all in. After I placed fourth overall in my very first race against almost ten other teams, I still hadn’t processed what my life would become. The training became harder, and if I wasn’t doing schoolwork I was running. It wasn’t …show more content…
I was truly started to feel the pressure from the reputation that I had created for myself, but I was excited for the season nonetheless. Everything went downhill, though, after I broke my ankle two days before track started. The next few months consisted of sitting in the sound booth, watching my teammates get stronger while I could do nothing sit with my crutches leaning against the wall. When I was finally ready to come back, I couldn’t push myself like I used to. My first meet that I did just barely got me a good enough time for the White Rose Invitational, where I was slated 14/14. The next two weeks were a series of pushing myself to my limits while everyone else counted me off in their minds. The invitational finally came and I placed sixth, earning a ribbon for the team. I went on to place twelfth in
I am now officially in my Senior year of Cross Country , and am close to the end of my season. My first race of this year though was a big accomplishment for me, because I hadn`t been able to run. When I ran that race though it made me just so happy I was able to finish it, I was`nt happy with the time, but there is always time for improvement. I was glad to be racing again and being apart of the team again. I believe that my injuries were a barrier in my way, but they did not stop my sports career.
My first week of school, everyone encouraged me to join a club or a team. Of course I did not want to, until I heard we had a track team, and even then I did not know if I wanted to pursue it. In my mind, debating if I should dedicate myself to track was a hard decision. I was about to not only give this sport my time but also nothing but
It has brought me in contact with people that I otherwise would have never spoken to. Additionally, no value can be placed on the countless lessons it has taught me. Olympic marathon runner Meb Keflezighi states, “Like the marathon, life can sometimes be difficult, challenging, and present obstacles; however, if you believe in your dreams and never ever give up, things will turn out for the best.” To sum things up, running has taught me many lessons, and it is one of the main reasons I am the person that I am
Another concept I have learned from my participation in running is teamwork. No matter how hard we try, we cannot live our lives without others' help or without helping others. We must work together to succeed on the road ahead. This is the essence of teamwork. I know that even my personal success in cross-country and track is not solely mine. I know that my three district titles, one in cross country and two in track, in the 800 meter and 1600 meter runs, could not have been accomplished without my team's unequivocal support and for that, I thank them.
“All runners to the start line!” The race AR had called out. I looked at my shoes as I approached the broad white line. My black Lunarglides were laced with white laces, the lydiard style of lacing almost hid them. The other girls beside me walked along, putting their hair up and strapping their watches onto their wrists. All but two regarded me curiously, like a kid learning that Santa Claus isn’t real. As the other girls continued to look at me while they put everything on, I simply spoke, “I don’t put my hair up when I run.” Kaylee Galvan from Munster squeaked “She doesn’t even use a watch.” Her tiny voice trembled. The other girls looked bewildered, but their looks soon vanished as we came about to the line. North Newton’s very own Ivy Allen had looked me up and down and smiled, her eyes glowed at the thought that we could finally run together again.
This past spring, was my first year running track and field at a high school level. I had spent my freshman year on the lacrosse team and had therefore missed out on track and field. From the other sports I had participated in at school, both coaches and fellow teammates had acknowledged my speed, this kept my confidence alive and made me believe I would strive in high school track
I was so excited to start my new journey in school. I knew that being involved in a sport was going to help me become more confident. Running has taught me how to achieve my goals, be tough; both physically and mentally, and appreciate life. The first week of cross country was difficult.
Though my 2015-2016 season ended suddenly, I accomplished multiple things for the short amount of time I had. In the past season’s open races, I was on the podium 3 of the 5 open races I skied in and was top ten in the other two. Though I was unable to attend the Western Region U-16 Championship, I was able to qualify having only completed 6 of the 9 races due to injury. For the 6 races I placed consistently in the top ten with one top 5 and three results just outside of the top ten. Though it was frustrating to not be able to improve as I usually do throughout the season, my almost two months of racing this season were certainly beneficial and aided in my growth as an athlete.
As the Tiger rolled around, there arose a question of whether or not to keep the team together or break it up and give the two seniors a chance to compete in other individual events at regionals. I actually didn't know about this possibility until about five minutes before the race began on Saturday. We were all huddled together preparing for the start. Jeremy came up to Rodney and me and told us that if we didn't do well the team might be dropped. Kicking our motivational drive into high, the four of us focused on only one thing: running the time we all knew we could. Getting into the blocks I felt more ready than ever. At the sound of the gun, I shot out of the blocks. I sprinted around the track, concentrating on making a great hand-off.
He ran around the neighborhood as fast as he could. The sky was pitch black, the temperature was thirty degrees celsius, and the neighborhood looked like a ghost town. He laced up his running shoes and ran for an hour-and-a half. When he got back, he felt so tired that he believed that that was the last time he ever ran. About half an hour later, after resting, he read a book about running for an hour, until it was time for him to go to school. He kept the things he learned fresh in his head so that he could incorporate them into his cross country training. This would be his schedule for six months until he became exceptional: really
It was a July morning when I woke up to the sound of my alarm. The light rain hit my bedroom window as I prepared to run to Coach’s cabin. This was a tradition of our cross country team to run to his cabin. It was going to be a cool, wet run. I grabbed a granola bar, hopped into my car, and drove to the high school. As we pooled into cars, I jumped into Kaylen’s and her motivating music immediately rejuvenated my spirit and energized my soul. She is the party animal of our team and the spirit to our runs. The teammates in her car included Cheyanne, Rachel, Kaylen, and me. We enjoyed her music and the beautiful morning drive up the mountain. The rain gradually increased and the hope of a dry run diminished.
In the end my training show and prove better results than last year. In the mile run, softball toss, and long jump I have proof of it. On that day, I could tell that something was still burning bright; a second chance. A new chance was indeed coming, and it is call the special Olympics.
The start of the 2002 track season found me concerned with how I would perform. After a disastrous bout with mononucleosis ended my freshmen track season, the fear of failure weighed heavily on my mind. I set a goal for myself in order to maintain focus and to push myself like nothing else would. My goal for my sophomore track season was to become a state champion in the 100 meter hurdles. I worked hard everyday at practice and went the extra mile, like running every Sunday, to be just that much closer to reaching my goal. The thought of standing highest on the podium in the center of the field, surrounded by hundreds of spectators, overcame my thoughts of complaining every time we had a hard workout. When I closed my eyes, I pictured myself waiting in anticipation as other competitors names were called out, one by one, until finally, the booming voice announced over the loudspeaker, "...and in first place, your 2002 100 meter hurdle champion, from Hotchkiss, Connie Dawson." It was visions like these that drove me to work harder everyday.
The feeling of triumph I received when they announced my name for the all around champion was incomparable to the torment of the injury. Eventually, my mother managed to get me into the doctor after a week or so later. My tendon had chipped off a piece of my bone, meaning I had competed through a broken foot- and won. When I have a passion for something, I devote myself into it completely. Very few people have this kind of drive and commitment that I have had throughout my life, and still have today for my education and future.