Our high school is about a 20-25 minute drive from Union. Most everyone has a race story to tell which is what makes the sport pretty cool. No matter where you are, you are racing against someone else. Teammates included. The tradition back then was to stand and sing the school song shortly before reaching the high school. Might sound hokey now, but that was the drill. Just before this happens the results make it to the back of the bus and I see Laurel 27, Union 28. I yell up the coach to ask him why he hadn't told us we had won? He asked what was I talking about and I said low score wins in XC. His direct comment was that he thought is was scored like football. "No wonder the other coach kept telling me nice job!" Turns out we assumed we lost because they took the first 2 spots. We went 3, 4, 5, 6, 9 = 27 and they went 1, 2, 7, 8, 10 = 28. We had won our first competition. I'll be honest, I was hooked from there on out. In my mind it was the biggest XC win we had over the next few decades. First because we went 5 - 27 my 3 years there. Second after our class graduated it was decades before they ever started a team up again. Yes we were that bad, but everyone of us enjoyed it immensely. At my 40th reunion one of my classmates came up to me and said I was never a real fast runner, but because of your encouragement I still run today. I think that is now the biggest win.
On the current running front I am still pondering the last man standing event. Slots are slipping away. It is hard to honest with yourself. I hit the snuff can for over 30 years. Hardest thing I ever did was quit that. It was a friend that would never leave you. It feels a bit like that.
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