The Life of a Runner | Teen Ink

The Life of a Runner

April 6, 2015
By Y-itBeard BRONZE, Lee's Summit, Missouri
Y-itBeard BRONZE, Lee's Summit, Missouri
2 articles 0 photos 0 comments

There I was, yesterday at dinner, eating pasta, loading up on carbs, getting ready for the big meet. I was worried about this meet. If I did well, I would be on a good team at Longview, one of the biggest meets, but if I did bad I could go down to the last group. I was doing anything I could to do well. During homework, I iced my knee. I even took a cold shower because Coach Walker said it would make your bones and muscles feel better. I went to bed to try to get some sleep, ready for a big day tomorrow. I woke up to my phone alarm going off. I got up pretty early to get ready for school. I needed to bring a water bottle, that was freezing cold because it was in the freezer all night, my brace, my uniform top and bottoms, an extra pair of shoes, and a jacket. I left my jacket at home accidentally, so when I was done I was going to be freezing. I strolled out to the bus stop, and waited patiently until the bus came. I saw the bus swerve around the corner. I stepped on and we rode to school. It was a very long and lifeless day at school, and I wanted it to end so I could get to the meet. Finally, school ended. We all gathered up in the cafeteria. I quickly transformed into my cross country jersey. We all froliced out the door and patiently waited for the race to start. The B team girls were the first to go. They demolished the other teams. They had first place through thirteenth place. My race was on in 10 minutes now. I was excited and neurotic at the same time. Mr. Lewis came over to explain the rules. “Runners on you mark. Bang!”  He shot the gun. We all started running. I got off to a bad start. I was in the middle of the pack on the start. I noticed that I ran past a lot of people, and I was excited. I passed about 10 more people on the downhill. I was worn out but I wasn't gonna quit. I made my strides bigger. I was placed in fourth, but then there was the uphill. I tried to sprint up it but couldn't. I got passed by three people as I reached the top. Then, I saw the finish line. I was pulling in through the shoot at 7th. With a finish like that I would be on the B team instead of the C team. I started sprinting. I felt as fast as a dog chasing a bunny. Just 20 more yards. Then I heard footsteps behind me. I tried to speed up but my legs couldn't go any faster. I was ten steps away as the short seventh grader pulled ahead of me. I passed the finish line. Coming in 8th. No B team. Stuck on C. As I was cooling down, disappointed in my position, I realized that I was now the fastest on the C team. In the upcoming race I finished in 2nd place, with my best time in a race. By the last meet of the season, I ended up getting on the B team. Now all I need to do is work my way up to the A team. 


The author's comments:

This is a true story in a real meet. Although I was mad, it ended up being a good thing. I was the 13 best runner out of 180 by the end of the season. I was on B team.


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