Today was a party like none other. I was not really prepped for these races mentally, but they were both wonderful. We drove down with mc, set up the tent, and and hour later, I was already warming up. One thing I regret was I forgot to eat breakfast and didn't realize til and hour before when it was a little too late. It didn't mess up my race, but I was hungry during the cool down. I was in the open 1600 and invite 3200, so the 2 races were 7-8 hours apart. My strategy for the mile was to stick with the pack, and go when I was ready. I warmed up a mile on a sidewalk I found, then did some stretches on the field. Jessica, from Bonneville, warmed up with me the rest of the time which was wonderful. I hate warming up alone. We jogged around and did some strides waiting for our heat to start. The weather was also better than expected. It was supposed to rain and be cold, but instead it was windy with sun. When our race started, I was nervous. My start wasn't amazing, but the entire race was a big pack. There were a few elbows thrown because the pack was pretty tight (not purposely from me). Our first 400 felt pretty fresh. At the 800, I still felt good. On the home sretch there was a headwind, but I always had somebody to draft off of. The third lap, anybody was there for the win. On the final lap, I felt amazinf. With 350 to go, I passed the leader. My form felt amazing. I was sprinting pretty hard. 200 to go, I could tell I had used so much energy. The last 100 was the craziest feeling ever. There was a headwind, 2 girls had passed me, and me and this other girl were battling it out. My thighs and butt have never burned so badly. It felt really long, but the last 10 meters, I surged and got 3rd. I was pretty happy about it. My time was a 5:20, which was right on the line for a pr. I was dead after. Cooled down half a mile on the turf while watching Ethan race. Then it rained, so we brought our stuff inside. Cooled down another half mile inside.
It was so much fun hanging with everybody at this meet. I got plenty of time to recover for the 2 mile. Finally warmed up. It was pouring outside, so I did 1.5 on the inside track. Didn't plan to go that far, but I was feeling really good. Went outside, and they were ahead, so I stretched, threw on my spikes, and checked in. It was wet. When our race started, I was cold, but I forgot about it by the first 100. Our start was so slow. The first 200 was maybe a 40, and the 400 was around a 1:22. I just stuck behind the pack. Before the first 400 was over, I moved my way up. On the first or second lap my right shoe had untied, which was the bothersome foot, and it was harder to get on my toes. The front pack of 3 girls was pulling away, and I couldn't let them get away. Before the first mile, they were too far ahead to catch. I didn't want to give up. Right before I told myself that I love the rain! It hurt. The first mile was a 5:37, so I knew I was on pace. Lap 5 and 6 are the laps I focus on because they're the laps that determine qqualifying or not. I just pushed through em. Again, it hurt. I could hear someone behind me, and I couldn't let her catch me, so I pushed even harder. The last 800, I had to hit a 2:50ish to qualify. Inreally struggled on the 7th lap, but when the last lap came around, I gave it my all. The last 300 was everything I had left. I hurt similar to the 1600, my thighs burned. I don't remember the last 50m, I was just running. When I finished I was pumped to be done. My sticker stuck to my jersey, but I put it over my old sticker stain, so it's okay! After congratulating a few girls, I started coughing. Couldn't stop for a while, meaning I was still feelining the aftermath of being sick from 2 weeks ago. I was so cold! When we finally got inside, I got on a dry shirt and shoes, and cooled down a mile with Ethan and Spencer on the indoor track. I don't know how much of a cool down it was, because we were going pretty fast, but it was still fun! I can admit that I amso sore, but I'm happy to finally be qualified for state in the 3200m. Lol, sorry this entry is a novel, but it is still pretty vivid.
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