Last Saturday was a rather busy day for us. After DS's success in his cross country meet, I went looking for other running opportunities for him. I'm hoping to find a track team for younger kids, so he can get more experience.
In my searching, I stumbled on the USA Track & Fitness website, and a contact there recommended that we bring DS to that weekend's Junior Olympic Qualifying race. It was 3K (almost twice what he's run previously), but he was game, so I figured I would take him out there. Of course, it was freezing (literally) that day. Fine for those who are busy running, not so fine for those of us who are standing around waiting. The things we do for love ;-)
DS was psyched up for the race, though a little nervous. It was around the paths on a nearby golf course, so some hills, but nothing too steep. At the halfway point he was doing well and in good spirits. At the 5/6 point, not so much. As he ran toward us, up a hill, he was crying and saying, "I can't do this." I encouraged him that he was almost to the end, and that he could indeed push through. He finished in 10:54, but got to the end and announced, "I'm never doing that again." I just told him what a great job he did, and how proud of him I was. I reminded him that he was the youngest in the group, and had never trained at that distance, so maybe it wasn't the best situation to make that decision. He quickly calmed down. Later, in the car, he said he thought he had come in tenth, and I told him that the top 10 in each age group were automatically invited to participate at Nationals (in Virginia).
His response? "AW....Aren't you going to take me to Nationals?!"
So you can see why I didn't worry to much about his "never again" comment. I knew that once the immediate discomfort wore off, he'd be good as new, and he was. Now he has a medal to show for it, and we have a better idea of what to expect next time.
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