Friday, May 18, 2012

Thoughts From the Stardust Motel....


So, this is it.  This is the last trip I will take with the Greenville College track team as a Panther.  Tomorrow evening (well, more like today) I will take the line at North Central College, for the last time in Orange and Black.  People keep asking me if I am sad that this is “the end.”  Although this may be the end of one chapter in my life, I am ready to move on and start something new.  One thing may be ending, but I am sure there is something good waiting for me around some corner…I just have to go for it.  They say time flies when you’re having fun, and time has flown by, but I know it is my time to go.
Really, this is my last race as a Panther.  It has been an interesting four years to say the least. Freshman year I struggled through cross country, indoor, and outdoor track, and finally ran a PR at the Gregory Invite (same meet we are at this weekend).  Sophomore year I had a Great start to the cross country season, only to get injured after the 2nd meet.  I then came back strong for indoor track, and ended up injured for all of outdoor.  Although I never got to compete outdoor that year, it is still one of my most memorable seasons. Last year cross country was a struggle, but I was consistently solid all though indoor and outdoor running PR’s all across the board.  This year cross country was just a hot mess for me. Indoor went about as well as I could hope for as I tied or set new PR’s in everything from 400m-3000m, and set the school record in the mile. With a fairytale-like indoor season under my belt, I had high hopes for outdoor! This outdoor season has been anything but easy.  With multiple health issues along the way, and a few weeks of downtime, things are just not clicking like they were during indoor.  Although I have not run any PR’s this outdoor season, I still have one more chance.  Even if I don’t run a PR, this season still has been great.  The times on paper may not show it, but the memories I have made this year are well worth it.
Tomorrow, when I take the line, it marks the end of an era, and the beginning of a new one.  Am I sad this will be my last time in the Orange and Black?  Yes, but it is not the racing I will miss…anybody that knows me can tell you I already have “a million” races picked out that I would like to do.  I will miss going to practice every day at 3:35 with the same group of people I have grown to know over the past four years.  There will be no more “Sic ‘em Panthers!” before cross country races.  There won’t be the same team lap and prayer before track races.  I won’t see Coach P jumping up and down yelling lap splits.  There won’t be a sea of Orange and Black running across the field cheering us on during the 4x400m.  I will miss the family.   Heck, I will even miss competing against the same teams week after week, and some of the other coaches we have grown to know.
I do have another outdoor season left of track to run.  As much as everybody wants me to come back and run it here, I will be gone. I will hopefully be getting into the nursing program at Louisiana Tech and running for them next year. It will be a new and different adventure.  New school, new team, new races.  If I can have half as much fun there as I have had here, then it will be well worth my time.  So, while this may be the end of my time at Greenville, my next adventure is soon to begin!
Anyway, back to the race.  1500m of…well…pleasure and pain.  I want to enjoy every moment of the race.  I want this to be a race to remember.  When I step onto that track, I am committing to give it everything I have.  I am out there to PR, I want to literally be picked up off the track after I finish.  I have one last race in the Orange and Black, one last chance to PR this year, and I’m going to take it!