A Club All Their Own

Starting my day early is not my idea of fun. Especially when it involves getting up and running with people that are probably going to be a heck of a lot faster than you. My coach has decided that it would be in my best interest to run with the cross country kids [some of my good friends] on Mondays and Wednesdays. Well, I'm a mid-distance kid. That's not to say that I haven't run my extra miles before. I've run cross country, and I've fought the pain and built up endurance. But I never thought I'd be ready to run with the fast kids. At least not today.

The morning started as usual. Tired bodies lay haphazardly in the turf room, asking for another five minutes rest, or some forgiveness before they endure on another torture session. You jog for six minutes, stretch for one, then head out without warning. Today's adventure? The famed Tree Farm run. Oh happy, happy. A great big joy, joy. Not to say I wasn't excited to run it, because I actually was. It was a perfect morning to run; gray skies and a slightly windy/humid morning with absolutely no sunlight. I was in heaven. I kept up with some friends. But we didn't talk. We acted like "responsible" runners and paid attention to the task at hand. The occasional cough, clearance, and spit was accepted. Normal in this case. And I could care less. Because I do it too. The commercially paved trail seemed endless, but beautiful. Entrapped between rows of soggy, winter-weathered trees shaken of their covers to bask in the season's frigid rays. A quiet hush fell upon the group. The rhythmic pat of feet on the concrete path could really hypnotize somebody. I relaxed my shoulders and concentrated on things other than running. I had finally found my "zone". But by the time we hit mile 2 1/2, I wasn't having it. I needed to spit. I needed water. I wanted to be done. The pain of training was setting in. I had forgotten that running sucked sometimes. But I didn't stop, or slow down. I kept going because I was having some bitter fun. And at the end, when I had really boxed up my pain and went numb, I ran past those friends I had been pacing with. Amazingly. And I was done. And that was that. My first Runner's Club run had been complete. Amen.

So, this 'perfect' half of a month so far has been really good to me. I'm really pleased with December right now. We're making friends again. Really, really good friends. I'm welcoming the cold temperatures with a batch of cookies and a smile on the way out the door. Confidence is slowly coming back. I guess. And I am so ready for Christmas break. More than you could ever possibly know. Ever. Ever, ever, ever, ever.

Ever.

But, for even closer dates, I'm looking forward to this Friday, skipping school and spending the afternoon downtown at the convention center for the RUNNERS EXPO OH8! But then, I'm also excited to spend my entire Sunday downtown, with my family, to watch my dad run the rock. White Rock Marathon that is.

until then,
keep it real,
- Alex

New Kids On The Block

I wouldn't describe it as awkward anymore. Coming back to the track team this year wasn't like just starting high school track last year. I was pretty scared out of my mind to be one of two white kids on the sprinting team my freshman year, and this year I'm one of three. Slight improvement? Sure. Needless to say though, these girls are great.
Even though I run mid-distances [800, 4x4, 4x8] I still like to train with the sprinters. We're a pretty solid team, no matter what we do, whether it be doing tempo runs or lifting weights. It's like one, giant mixed family, full of twice removed cousins and uncles, divorces, and crazy marriages and adopted children. But it works out in the end. I guess we're doing something right if we're reigning district champions two years in a row. But that's just my opinion.
Now that volleyball is over though, I've finally gotten the chance to think about my future this year for track season. I have a few goals for this up and coming winter/spring schedule. It's going to be a tough, but rewarding year for my running career, and I'm excited.
I plan to:

• Run at least five 5K races.
• Run in one 10k race.
• Hit 2:49 [my district champion time from finals last year/PR] by season open.
• Make under 2:40 by the time season closes.
• Make district champion in the 800m two years running.

Like I said, it's going to be a tough year. I wouldn't lie. But seriously, if I can knock almost a whole minute off of my first race time last year, speeding up fifteen seconds more shouldn't be a problem at all. I guess all I can do for now is train hard at school, train hard at the gym, and hope I have the power to run crazy.

Keep it real,

Alex

The Starting Line.

So I'm new here. Kind of lost, but finding my way little by little. It seems like just yesterday I decided to make that tiny scrollbox on my myspace page and begin to write what I thought was good sense. But no, amazingly enough that was awhile ago. And I continue to write, even though I probably only get all of two viewers. Which I don't mind at all.
Wow, but where are my manners? For those of you who have no idea who this is, or what I'm talking about with all of this 'scrollbox' business, let me introduce myself. My name is Alex. I'm a high school runner with a love for writing. I have one best friend, and great good friends. My family is one of the most important things in my life. And I love living in Texas. End of story. About a year and a half ago I began a little box on my myspace page called 'my journalbox' where I jotted down petty ramblings about my everyday life and how it was slowly changing. So now, I've decided to graduate to a maybe bigger form of conveying these things; blogging. Over the course of this year, and maybe even into next year, I'll keep you posted. I'll be writing moments, happenings, training dates, times, and agonies, the best and the worsts, the obscure and the quite clear. So stay on the edge of your seats...kind of.

keep it real,

alex