The lights swirl around me, and the noise is unreal. BANG! A gun is fired and the people scream. Simultaneously, a crowd of teenagers takes off as fast as they can. Security guards watch, unmoving.

This is not a crime scene, but a high school track meet.

Here in Portland, Maine, many students participate in indoor track. Practices are grueling and meets are weekly. Always striving to make the weight, beat the brutal competition, you may find yourself running 30 miles a week and constantly working on your start during practice.

Track is a sport for almost everyone because of the great variety of events: shot-put (for the big and strong), high jump (for the quick and tall), sprinting (for the short and quick) and distance (for the tall and lean).

Another unique aspect of this sport is the fact that there is always room for infinite individual improvement, always someone else to beat, always another event to conquer. Unlike soccer, basketball, baseball, football, or hockey, track is only a loose team sport. In track, people ask about your time, not your team's record. Most athletes find this to be a refreshing change.

Many athletes enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that they are in the best physical shape of their life and they are doing something useful and productive in their free time.

Experiencing the thrill of exploding out of the starting blocks and racing down the track, your feet barely touching the ground, and then leaning through the tape as you win your race by a stride is one of the best things that I can imagine.

I run track for its glory and its pain. l