My Goal

After every race, you can vaguely expect what you will see up on the clock. I know, now, how much I put in, is only as much as I can expect to get out. Running has helped me form some ideas that are still fresh in my brain but will hopefully help me become a better version of myself. Just remember, someone may have a lifetime ahead of them, but they need to make the last bit just as good as the

In physical education we were put to do the mile I was always second to last if not last I wasnt made fun of but I didnt really good about myself. As the years went on I was still fat couldn’t do anything until sophomore year of high school is where it all changed. I remember it quite clearly as if it was yesterday I was sitting in my math class when one of classmates had large number pinned to his bag and a uniform on that hadn’t seen before. That's when I got curious and asked what sport was all this for he then explained it was for cross country and that I should join it would be fun. It turns out that the season was about to end so it was to late to join so I had to wait for next year so I did. I went my junior in the summer since that's when they practiced and ran for the first time. After this first run I thought I was going to literally die and didn't want to this any more and to top it off all the guy runners who I thought that were slow beat one by one. This is where I decided I wasn't going to be last or lose a race to anyone. I practiced the whole year and did track top it off. Now the summer of my senior year was very motivational since I got up early ran and did this everyday till school started to be the best of my high school. Well the season would begin and I was breaking my school records and receiving medals from invitationals and

Since the 7th grade, I have and continue to push and strive to become the most elite athlete I can be. In middle school, I ran the 100m, 200m, and 400m relay, and the main objective of middle school track for me was to not only place, but to also gain experience before entering high school track. As my high school track career began, track and field was not as much fun and games as it was preparing for future track events. One of the most challenging moments as a freshman was being able to transition from the 100m to the 400m. When most high school athletes think of the 400m, they feel it's one of the most gruesome races to run, and it is. Although I had zero experience running the 400m, I was more concerned doing what was beneficial for

We were out for vengeance, and as the first heat came to a close, the three remaining teams lined up. Our team was Brandon Reid starting off the blocks, Isaiah running the second leg, me securing the third, and Bawa trying to end the race in strong fashion. As I loosened my legs up, the gun sounded, and I watched Brandon get off to a quick start. Before I knew it, Isaiah was 10m behind me and was ready to pass the baton. As I grabbed the baton from Isaiah, I noticed I was a few meters behind a kid from Avon. Never, ever again I thought. My legs planted and exploded off the ground in a simultaneous motion. I was like a cheetah chasing after a gazelle. As the wind blew through my cleanly cut hair, I began to close the gap between myself and the man ahead. In the closing 20m, I tried my hardest to catch the Avon kid, but I couldn’t. As I passed the baton to Bawa, my heart sank. As my chin dipped to my chest so I could only notice the ground, I realized I did not run the fastest 100m. At the end of the race, we finished second behind Avon, again. My arms tensed and my stomach dropped. Losing to Avon was the worst possible ending to my track season. However, my head would be picked up by a more important event that followed days after the Founders League Tournament.

I approached that year’s conditioning with a pessimistic attitude and wondered why was I doing this when I’m not going to run in meets. Just like the year before, I assumed that conditioning and practicing would be obsolete. I braced myself for another disappointing year. Every winter day after school, I braced myself against the cold with a hope that this season would be different. I went into the first day of practice feeling in shape and optimistic. But just like freshman year, there was no preparing for the ache and suffering of the first practice. With the season approaching, our coach timed us to determine who would run in meets. Our coach divided us into groups based on how fast she thought we were. When a senior saw that I was in the first, slower group, he said that I belonged in the faster group with them. Hearing that compliment from a senior changed my outlook on the season might go. As the first track meet approached, we split off into groups so we could perfect our technique based on the event we were running. As I was jogging around the track wondering whether this year was going to be the same as last year, our coach summoned me over to perfect baton handoffs for the 4x100 meter relay. As the realization hit me that I was going to compete, I thought, “I’m not going to relinquish this spot because I labored profusely to attain

Throughout summer training, I put in more effort than previous seasons and finally became part of the cross-country team’s top seven group. The entire squad noticed my diligent work and voted me to be the team captain. As team captain, I always helped my team get organized and advised fellow teammates. Additionally, I found a way for the team to get Chipotle at a pre-race party and everyone was incredibly thankful for the free catering. Additionally, I ran varsity in most meets, and the intense competition made me an even better runner. I received a mark of 17:48 in a 3-mile race, which was my best time

I knew the first couple weeks of practice were going to drag on, but I was ready for whatever workout coach was going to throw at me. Then came meets and the fun really started. Don't get me wrong, I was definitely feeling the nerves, but it didn’t stop me. The first indoor meet was at Buena Vista College and I was in the open 400, the one race I had been training for. I was so anxious to see what my time was going to be that I was shaking. I just kept telling myself, “This is what you worked for. Everything that you have worked for starts showing now.” I ended up getting my PR and winning the race. It was the first of many heart pounding meets. As the season went on, every meet started to count even more and I was getting frustrated because my time wasn’t getting better. After crying to my dad one night after a meet, I realized that what did matter is that I wasn't getting worse either. I was maintaining my time and that counted for something. A couple weeks later I was standing in my blocks at the district meet trying to maintain my nerves. After the hardest 400 of my life, I ended up making it to state and I could not have been

All the time and hard work spent had to pay off for something. I was also determined to beat my biggest rival on the team. She wouldn't hesitate to smear my face in it if she got a faster time than me. We stepped up to the 200 meter starting line and I tried to push the nervous thoughts out of my head. It felt like butterflies were bouncing off the walls of my stomach. We got into the start position and our coach began counting down from 5. It was only 5 seconds but it felt like an eternity. The four of us took off in unison and I could tell I was going to have to give this race everything I had. There was no way I was going to let the others defeat me. I heard the pounding of my feet against the track as I ran the curve. That's when I realized I was already in front of the rest and I began sprinting with every ounce of energy I had left. There were nearly 100 meters to the finish line and my legs were moving so fast it felt as if I was flying. I kept thinking about how much I had been working towards this and how I would not let myself down. Bolting through the finish line I could tell that was one of the best races I've ever run. My lungs felt heavy, legs aching from exhaustion and my eyes were watering from the frigid wind. As my coach was recording my time on his clipboard he revealed how many seconds faster I had been. Not only had I beaten my own personal best, but I had gotten the fastest sub varsity time.

I was never the person who would stay for anything for long let alone participate, i especially wasn’t athletic whatsoever, until the middle of my 9th grade year when my best friend moved to San Francisco, this was a turning point in my life. I became depressed and so i joined my school’s Track and Field team. I never enjoyed running nor did it to lose weight but that all didn’t matter when i had to run 6 miles as a warm-up. I have never been trained to do a non-stop mile let alone 6 miles. As the team started the warm up, I was very nervous since i was the slowest in the entire team, as i got closer to a stop light that head to my house i remember thinking “ if this light turns red I’ll go straight home and never go back, but if it stays

“What are you talking about, you are just a freshman and you are racing against the best runners in the state of Iowa, and the conditions were not even the best”.

But my dad was there encouraging me to keep going and not to stop and because of him I didn't stop. Even though I didn’t stop, I was getting discouraged as it felt as if the race would go on forever but then I caught a glimpse of the finish line. It was still half mile away but seeing it filled me with the resolve that told I could finish this race. From that moment I knew I wasn’t going to ever think about stopping until I crossed that finish line. I powered through that last half mile with my dad and sprinted across the finish. I wasn’t disappointed that I didn’t place, I was more

This was my first time running long distance since 7th grade and now it was sophomore year. I did not play any sports during my freshman year because I tried out for the soccer team that year too, but I did not make it. It took a lot of time for me to decide on a participating in a fall sport, but I finally settled on cross country. I started the season as one of the slowest guys. I only expected to get a little better during the season. I promised myself I would try my absolute hardest. In order to earn my letter in the sport I would have to hit a certain time in my 5k. I had no intention of earning it though. Throughout the season I gradually got faster and was happy with myself.

Since I was a child I have always been fascinated by languages. Most likely, this passion derived from my parents trying to hide things from me by speaking Pig Latin, which I caught onto fast. However, as I got older this passion grew and has yet to cease growing. Currently, I work as an American Sign Language Interpreter and I am enrolled in Spanish 112 at Wake Technical Community College. Thus, for my SMART Goal I have decided that I would like to learn a new language, German. By the end of the time limit I would like to be able to speak conversational German and be able to travel to the country and converse with locals. The reason I would like to learn German is because of my boyfriend. Over Christmas break I went to a private island is

It wasn't for another twenty-five meters that I saw the second place runner break stride, which I knew was my chance to move up because it meant that he had tired himself out. Upon reaching the six hundred meter mark I hastened my pace to my finishing pace—I normally reserved this pace for the last fifty to one hundred meters because I can't hold that pace for more than a matter of seconds. Fortuitously, I caught the runner that was in second place by the seven hundred meter mark where I was forced to maintain my suicide pace of sorts that I had started one hundred meters too

Things had changed from a year ago and personally I thought I could beat the record by putting in the time even when track wasn't in season. Even though my mind thought I could beat the record, it stayed to myself so no one knew about my ridiculous dream. As junior year started, I could see myself getting stronger and faster. Then spring came and track started up again, and that same number, 48.9 seconds, was posted in the locker room. By the last meet of the year, my personal best was 50 seconds. This may sound impressive to someone who knows where I started, but to me it was a disappointment because I had missed my goal for the year by a second. Through this disappointment, I saw how much I had achieved in the last three years and got the extraordinary chance to run in the Nebraska State Track meet on our team's 4x400 relay. The accomplishments I have slowly achieved over the last three years have showed me that if you work hard enough at a goal, you can achieve it with time. I have one last season of running track and I will give my all to have my name posted on the board so for years to come other kids trying to become something have a goal they can