Sunday, October 26, 2008

SJA Thunder Runners

Hey!! Officially my first XC EVER season has ended. Varsity wrapped up regionals on saturday. Four of our varsity girls made it to state and one of our guys. (It's ok guys....we still love you too!). Our races are each 2.5 miles, except for the last one as noted. I missed QUITE A FEW races, but here are my results.....
Paola: 29:29
Rim Rock (Lawrence): 32:21 (placed VERY last)
SM park: 28:49 (Placed VERY last)
Gregory Invitational: 17:25 (this was a 1.5 mile race) I WAS SO EXCITED....I placed 14/16 it was AWESOME! I had a hard sprint at the end against this guy and he was already ahead of me, but it didn't matter in the end because we weren't competing against the guys, we were just running along with them, however we finished in different shoots.

Here's the comments my super nice coaches gave me on each of the races:

1) "Mary, Only a few short months ago you were not sure if you could finish a cross country race. Look at you now! Your race today was fantastic! And what a great finish! Each one of your races was much faster than your previous race this season. And today was your first top 20 finish! The first of many!" (this was from our final race)

2) "Mary, I appreciate that you gave your best effort even though you were not feeling well". (Rim Rock Race...I didn't feel well at ALL)

3) Congratulations on finishing your first race, Mary! The first of many! (Paola Race...I was VERY depressed after this one)

That's all I can find for now, I"ll post back more. But before I head off to homework, just want to say that XC is probably one of THE BEST things I've done so far . I know it never sounds like that, but I lost 12 lbs (!!!) and I made a ton of friends, and had a GREAT team feeling to the team, and I'm so much stronger. The farthest I've made it is 55 minutes running straight and I've felt pretty good most of it. Cross Country just improves your life ALL around. It gives you SO much thinking time, gives you REALLY good health, gives you a positive and stronger outlook on life, and makes you proud. (Unless you've ever run an XC race, you'll never experience this AMAZING feeling of running through the finish line, even if you're very last, you feel like you've conquered the world!) It's the most amazing thing. So GET OUT THERE AND RUN! Honestly this summer I couldn't even JOG for 5 minutes straight. I CAN RUN FOR 55 MINUTES STRAIGHT! It's not the fastest running, but I can do it! I'm gonna try and stay in shape through the winter so I can do track. Running a 1.5 mi race is like a DREAM! IT was amazing and I felt great. And of course, having great coaches ALWAYS helps! So if you want to know anything else about my experience so far or anything about running let me know! When I started "Training" in the summer, I'd walk for 10, slightly jog for 5 (min). I decreased walking time, and increased jogging time VERY eventually. You need to continously run or you'll lose your endurance over a span of a few months. DID YOU KNOW...that if you continously run it's easier on you AND your body, then if you walk, jog etc. But either way, just give it a shot!

~Mary~

1 comment:

Eva. said...

Hey Mary!! You're TAGGED!
Read my post.
http://randomthoughtsofacatholicgirl.wordpress.com/2008/10/28/six-random-things-meme/