The first time I set foot on a track was only last spring, but it felt as if we have been old pals for forever. didn't’t even know the difference between a shot put and a discus. I just wanted to compete. The night before my first meet my heart pounded, almost flying out of my chest. The next day when we got out of school and walked up to the track a knot began to form in my stomach.
My race had been the mile. I had the potential to run it. I remember waiting patiently on the starting line for the first time, for the gun to go off. I would only focus on that sound, narrowing my brain on only that one thing. Winning. BANG!! It was like my mind had gone blank, but I kept running. The knot disappeared, I had taken second. Like my coach always said: Never look back.

As we got deeper into the season I improved, coming in only a few seconds behind the girl who took first. I had also started running the 400 meter sprint. This race took a lot of skill. You had to keep a steady, fast pace the whole time you ran. 400 meters is one lap around the track and a fourth of a mile, so to win this race you had to have strategy.

The record for the 400 was around 66 seconds, and I almost beat that record on the first try. Only four seconds behind. I had gotten all this power by pushing myself to a level that didn't’t even know existed. My mom told me she was just like me, in high school, setting all the records she had raced in. Her stride was unbelievable.

You always need to try new things; you’ll never know what your interests or hobbies are if you don’t. If didn't’t try tryout I wouldn’t have known that I loved it. I can’t wait for this season to start. People might say drawing or writing is their passion, but running is mine.

Sometimes you have to step out of your comfort zone to find what you love. You really don’t know what track and field is like unless you experience it. The best part is it’s an individual sport meaning you don’t have to work with others. You can just count on yourself. Also you are less likely to get hurt because it’s not as physical as other sports in the sense of beating each other up for a ball.

I know, it may sound bad that I like a sport without any teamwork involved, but really we’re a huge family. We treat everyone the same, with respect. We cheer each other on when we are racing. If someone is discouraged, courage to help them run faster. We are all like brothers and sisters, except without all the fighting.

Overall track and field is a very fun sport. You’ll never know unless you try. Experience the feeling of winning for the first time, and the best part is you meet a lot of new friends. Like I said everyone is a part of this family and whoever is negative and a sore loser should be shunned from track forever. It’s more than just a couple of races, its life.