As an athlete, you might think of summer as a vacation. No more late nights of practice, great! I did for the majority of my life, but recently that all changed.

I run cross country, and during the summer I have been training to build up my endurance. I was just doing it leisurely, but when my mom asked if I wanted to do a race called the Freedom Mile, it became serious. I started running every day and slowly edging up my mileage so I could lower my time. 

I asked some of my friends if they wanted to run, and all said no. Except for one person. Henry Pasieka said he was game and he began his training too! Henry might be joining XC next year, and I was ecstatic that he would race with me!

Eventually, the day came. We drove over to the street and did warm up stretches. When we got to the starting line, my heart started beating out of my chest, but I acted calm and gave Henry tips for the race. We decided to stick together and help each other through it. 

“Ten seconds!” the announcer called. “5…4…3…” And before I knew it, we were off. Starting off fast, then finding our pace. Usually, I wasn’t running as fast as I did, but we had to keep up with each other. Before I knew it, we were at the finish line and I broke into a sprint, Henry right behind me. I finished at 7 :45 and Henry at 7:47!

Then, the awards. Both Henry and I were competing against 14 year olds, so my hopes weren’t very high. When they got to Henry’s category and called his name, I freaked out and high fived him. He had gotten 2nd in his age group!

Then they got to mine. Girls aged 11-14. 3rd place, not me. 2nd place, not me. My hopes sank. 1st place, Ailey Nelson! That was exciting, but only mildly so as they mispronounced my name (just as they had at the finish line) But it was still an amazing feeling!

Both Henry and I had an amazing time at the race! If you are reading this article, PLEASE consider trying to do a race or, even better, signing up for cross country. It’s hard, but it is so worth it!