Flashback Friday: Track Edition

Oh Provo. I really don't care for you, but oh, how I wish I were visiting you this weekend.

It's the state track meet at BYU this weekend. I wish I were going. Anybody know a high school runner I could go cheer for? Throughout my four years of high school, my third weekend in May was always spent at the state track meet. And oh, how I loved it. At one of my brother's state basketball games, the announcer was the same man who had been the announcer at all the state track meets and I almost started crying.

My freshman year, I was a little nervous to go to state. There were only about 4 or 5 freshman going and I was scared to be with all the older kids. They treated me fine, but we did have a little problem that year. Someone stole the underwear of all but two girls on the team. I was one of the two whose underwear was not stolen. I'm still not sure how to feel about that. Grateful I still had mine? Hurt that whoever took the underwear didn't want mine? I'm not sure. But since my underwear was not stolen, I became one of the suspects in the missing underwear case and when the police were called in to investigate (seriously, the police really did come), I got to answer a few of their questions. One question I remember - "Did any of them have any spikes or studs on them?" One of the other girls on the team who was apparently a bit naive as to why someone would steal underwear replied, "we all brought our spikes, but they aren't missing." She was, of course, referring to our track spikes which the policeman obviously didn't care about. We also found a nearly full bottle of whiskey under our bed that year. It goes without saying that our motel was a bit unsavory.

This is a picture of me from my freshman year. I don't think I have ever been as tan as I was in this picture. We had an incredibly warm spring that year. I am running the 4X400 in the picture above. I think I was the second leg that year and we actually set a school record at the state meet.

Then, our 4X400 teams took a hit for a few years. I came to hate that race. Throughout my sophomore and junior seasons, I had to run the anchor leg of this race. For those of you unfamiliar with how a track meet goes, the 4X400 was always the last race of the day. And I was the last runner. And we were terrible. Race after race, I was always the very last runner to cross the finish line at the meet. Not an accomplishment I was particularly proud of. One time at a meet at Logan High, a dog somehow got loose and chased me the entire lap around the track, which I was running pretty much alone since most of the other teams were almost finished. I ran a bit faster than usual that lap, but not fast enough. We were still last. I guess it doesn't really matter though since pretty much everyone had left by then.

My senior season, we had some fast freshman that joined the 4X400 team. I was so glad. It is a lot funner to run when you win. We broke the record we set when I was a freshman that season (the record has since been broken - shattered I'm sure).

I had some good friends on the track team. My friend, Lisa, and I were roomies at every meet from the time I was a freshman. I am so glad that she ran track too, because let's be honest - most of the track team members were a little weird. It was also good to have Lisa on the team because that meant her mom would be there to cheer us on. Her mom is one of the nicest people I know and would learn everyone on the team's name. Then, she would stand at some distant corner of the track and cheer you on. Since I refused to run anything longer than 400 meters, I'd only hear one quick cheer. I'm sure that the crazy distance runners really appreciated her cheers lap after lap after lap after lap, however.

After our last meet, Lisa and me and our friend Justin (who was also at every meet since we were freshman but didn't get to be our roomie - crazy no boys allowed rules) went up to the track and took a final lap around it. It was about 3:00 in the morning and a beautiful starry night. Then we sat and talked about all our good track memories - and made fun of some of the other people on the team (we were, after all, still in high school).

I miss track. I love racing. I think I'll log off the blog and go register for a couple of half-marathons happening this summer and fall. Anyone care to join me? I always love company when I run. Meanwhile, I'm going to take myself to downtown Ogden with the kidlets tomorrow and cheer for the marathon runners. If you ever want to feel motivated, go to the finish line of a marathon. It's a great place.