Giant Relays @ Highland Park

When the coaches at Highland Park asked if we wanted to attend their relay meet this week, we enthusiastically said, "YES!"  Not only did this meet allow us to continue to work on racing skills, but it also allowed us to have fun with the relay format.  Sometimes the second meet of the season is more difficult than the first; runners have experienced the reality of the "pain" of racing, and now they are required to look that pain in the eye and proceed with enthusiasm.  This truth is difficult for many runners to face, and as a result, many runners try to negotiate with themselves:  if I go out a little more conservatively, then I will be able to finish without dying; I want to feel better at the end, so I'm going to run even or negative splits; I thought I was going out just as hard as last week--what happened?  These lines of thought are common, but they must be overcome.  The results of this meet largely reflected that second-race-hesitation.  Let's learn from that problem and move forward!


There were several gritty highlights to the meet:  
1.  Despite being tripped during the 4X800, Holly popped back up and finished her race hard for her teammates.


2.  Lainey, Karyn, and Tiara all shaved time from their mile splits.  And Mary ran hard...only to be stopped by a fire alarm!


3.  Several people ran odd races (Lissette and Helen) in order to help the Medley relay succeed.


Overall, this meet was a great learning experience.  More importantly, I am pleased with the character of this group.  You are coming together to help one another grow as runners--let's keep that progress coming!  :)