Personal Narrative: The Sport Of Running

Of the more than twenty million Americans who are running today, most who start do so for the wrong reasons, with the wrong attitude, and tend to lose interest after a few weeks or months. Many quit. This is usually because they become concerned with superficial goals such as time and distance and never discover the more profound mental benefits that running offers. (Lilliefors 15)

In the races today, there is a set course, and the runners must stay on the designated course. The earliest version of Cross Country had multiple runners in a team start at different times. The first runner started ten minutes ahead of the other teammates. This runner left a trail of paper scraps for the others to follow once they started. The next runners had to hurry and follow the trail. Sometimes the first runner made the trail as difficult to follow as possible. The person did this by leaving false trails and running in strange patterns. Another version of Cross Country appeared later on. This version had the runners “race from one point to the next, but had no fixed route to follow” (Tiefenthaler). As long as the racers got to the finish line they were good. Finally, Cross Country morphed basically into the sport today. When Cross Country began to popularize, “U.S. Track and Field athletes ran cross country to improve their stamina” (Tiefenthaler). The sport gained many fans and followers. Official races started occurring in the United States. Cross Country became so big it was even put in the Olympics. Fans of Cross were quickly disappointed because the sport

Both track and cross country display running in many different, but similar ways.  Both are great sports at keeping people active and happy. According to active.com, running can raise your levels of good cholesterol while also helping you increase lung function and use. In addition, running can boost your immune system and lower your risk of developing blood clots. Being active in track and cross country can also help with losing weight, because it's one of the best ways to burn calories.

Many times the men had stressful lives outside of running; they would use running to get away from the stresses of life. Not only did they overcome mental challenges, but also physical challenges, which were a constant struggle. One quote in the novel that shows this is when Roger Bannister said, “but feeling rejuvenated. He needed to reconnect to the joy of running, to get away from the tyranny of the track.”(14) To emphasize the mental challenges they faced Wes Santee shows a perfect example. Wes Santees father did not support his running career and believed he should help his father out on their farm in Kansas. Running was freedom to Wes due to the amount of stress his father put on him about maintaining their farm. If Wes did not succeed in his races like his father hoped, his father punished him. These actions drove Wes to become a better runner and he eventually overcame the mental barriers set by his father. Each man worked to achieve his goal and that meant doing track workouts. Many track workouts for the men were grueling and strenuous this is an example of physical challenges they faced. In the long run, the workouts got them to their best performance. Each of the men endured training throughout their childhood and young adult years to train their bodies and mind to be the best they could

I used to be able to run so fast I could fly. Racing through the woods behind my house I was untouchable, unbeatable; I imagined I was a graceful as a fox and as fast as a deer racing over bushes, logs, and ditches. Running served as an escape from the perfect student, perfect manners persona I adopted in the classroom allowing me to break out of my shy shell and go from being ¨the teacher’s pet¨ to ¨the fast girl.¨ My love of running-- as well as my parents-- drove me to play soccer; I ditched my goody two shoes for cleats and never looked back. I could chase down any opponent and outrun any defender, through sports I completely let my boundaries down.

Since kindergarten, I grew up watching my older siblings play sports and track has always caught my interest. I was fast runner and everybody knew it and I just couldn’t wait until I could do track in middle school. During middle school, I got even faster, I was at my

As a track runner, it is a necessity to be relaxed yet focused and determined. When I participate in track meets or even at practices, I receive a comforting warmth just by stepping onto the track. I feel as though burdens and worries temporarily lift from my shoulders. One may wonder how this can make someone content with their surroundings instead of nervous and uneasy based upon their environment and luckily for me this is an uncomplicated notion to explain. Unlike particular people, the track calms me and gives me a place to clear my head. I work relentlessly to achieve my goals, nevertheless it also gives me the clearance and space I need to effectively work my hardest whether it be a physical goal I am working to achieve

The competition is another factor too, because in each race you are lined up against two hundred to three hundred other competitors, each of whom wants it as much as you do. Knowing that, every runner

"Hmm, I think I'll wake up tomorrow and run 10 miles!", said no non Cross Country runner ever. This is a prime example of why a lot of people don't do it. It is a very rigorous sport that requires a very special type of person to participate in. What kind of people does Cross Country attract? If you asked me, I would say that Cross Country is the toughest, geekiest sport there is.

When I was only eight years old my mom and dad made me join a track team called Lighting Links. I was furious because I hated running, I was scared I wouldn't make any friends, and I really really hated running. For me, running was like throwing away your favorite candy for no reason. I would just use up all of my energy and get no benefits from it, well at least that is what I thought.

Just as I formulated plans for racing strategies, I devised strategies to balance priorities in my schedule, to pursue the collection of all essentials to running. I formulated strategies to approach literature analyses, handle school rallies, and engage the community in activities, all of which are routes and trails imperative to running. As pressure rises, my heart pounds, but I am determined; I carry on through the hurdles, I inhale and exhale the justifications that shove the worries away. Whether it be the time that my family and I lost our house or the time my father departed from my family, I was resolute and forced the hardships aside. Each day, new trails are discovered and decisions that we are compelled to make, are

A personal experience I have went through in my life would be making it to districts in track and field my sophomore year of high school. Making it to districts was a big accomplishment for me and my teammates because track is something that I take a lot of my time to focus on and do multiple hours of training so I am able to compete with the other athletes. I come from a small town in Ohio called Oak Hill. The sport track and field is something you do not hear that much about because our high school is not very big and very few athletes actually run track to make it somewhat far in competition, so for my 4x1 team to make it to regionals was a big deal for me considering it is something that does not happen that often at my local high school.

I was almost two seconds behind Josh before I closed the lead he had. My car was much faster than his as I could put my car anywhere on the track at will. When I caught Josh, he was running in the middle of the track so I made several attempts to go both high and low to try and maneuver a pass. However, with him running in the middle groove, none of my attempts would make it possible for me to get a solid run to complete the pass. I even slammed my brakes, and went to the high groove to try and keep from hitting him. I tried every line possible to get around Josh cleanly with no

Runners are extremely passionate about their sport. Running brings people a kind of satisfaction that is hard to describe. Enko's hope was to make running a little more comfortable and safer for your joints, and also, give you a boost in speed.

Many see the foible of running, for they believe it is repetitive and boring. Those who say that have a good point. After all, one is just moving quickly down a long, straight, unchanging asphalt road with no electronics to play with or nothing to eat or drink. They do not understand that running is very versatile