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ISLs

October 27, 2018 (Afternoon)

Exercise Type: Run

Comments:
I've kind of fallen off the wagon in terms of remembering (or finding the time) to log, but this was a race that definitely deserves a heartfelt log.
The week leading up to championships was not the relaxing tapper week I had hoped for. It was met with very little sleep, a lot of stress about first quarter grades, college, etc. I had a little freakout Friday afternoon. I hadn't gotten nearly as much sleep Thursday night as I'd wanted, and I was feeling pretty burnt out. I had a really nice conversation with Matt and Anthony before I went out for my run Friday and they convinced me that I could 100% have a good race as ISLs. That really made me put all of the negative energy out of my mind, and I started to feel a little better.
Friday consisted of a nice tapper run with Joyce, Maddi, and Ana.
I went to bed on Friday night feeling excited, extremely nervous, and exhausted.
I woke up Saturday morning feeling more excited, less nervous, and oddly very well rested.
As soon as I got off the bus at Derwood all the nervousness set in, but I tried to put it out of my mind and distracted myself with cheering.
Watching the JV races was so inspiring and I started to feel a little better.
I was a little tense and angsty warming up for our race. I'm definitely not my best self the 60 minutes before a race, something I will hopefully be able to continue to work on over the next few years.
I was absolutely terrified on the start line. I asked for a hug from Matt and I think that was probably one of the best hugs I've ever received. It made me feel a lot better.
The gun went off and my excitement really kicked in. It was a little scary the first mile because I was in a pack with the top 10-15 girls and a lot of us kept slipping and falling on our butts in the mud. Seriously the worst course conditions I've ever raced on. I felt super powerful the first mile... I think i was even smiling a little.
As soon as the second mile started I decided to let more of my focus kick in. I wanted to focus on passing people and running a more strategic race. It was hard because I kept finding myself on the wrong side of the course. I kept on trying to cross over to places where there was less mud, which it took up a lot of energy. I passed about 4 girls the second mile. There were so many people cheering during the second mile it was absolutely amazing.
Once the third mile started the pain really started to set it. I started to cramp up a little and the girls in front of me seemed a little further away than they were a few moments before. the hills were hard, but i really really really tried not to slow down. I ended up finishing in 7th. It was amazing to turn around and watch the 6 other varsity girls run their hearts out to the finish line. I teared up a little during anthony's speech. Very sad this was my last Derwood, but I'm so happy with how it went. THIRD PLACE LETS GOOOOO.
I could not be more excited for states next weekend. I'm hungry for another competitive race and I'm hopeful for a fast course with a low time. (hopefully sub 21, but i'll be more focussed on running strong than pacing).
my heart is full.