I'm shaking it over here

As a little kid I always had good wheels.  It just did not seem hard to out run most people.  However, at 12-13 as elementary schools come together you quickly learn there are faster folk.  As the gun cracked from Socs Russo we smoked out.  Like a kid "going long" to get behind the secondary I soon found everyone had the same plan.  Whatever juice propels you in your first race quickly had me at the half mile mark.  A quick inventory told me that only a handful of us were at the front, but soon enough Genova a senior and Heasley a junior seemed warmed up and just kinda twinkle toed ahead.  I tried...I really did try to go, but there was nothing to pull from.  My reserves were severely eroded and at the half way mark I was in a special pain zone I was unfamiliar with.  

The thing is I just assumed everyone was in this much pain and I was mostly right.  This must be how racing longer distance feels.  It was the only experience I had to this point and no one else told me any different so I marshaled on.  Past 2 miles the leaders had a huge gap, but being in 3rd overall wasn't wasted on me.  There was no way I was letting anyone pass me and just to make sure I probably glanced behind me a dozen times.  The last quarter mile of the course you turn and run up up a nice little rise.  I was thankfully safe at this point and crosses the finish in 17:50 for 3 miles.  It was a really good feeling doing okay and a few people congratulated me.  Fred was just behind me and our first race was in the books.  Let's cheer the others in and be on the bus home.  I wondered how bad we were beaten.