WHY I RUN (and why I am awesome among other things)

Old 5 mile PR: 38:50 on a rainy day in September with my fastest teammate (great weather conditions).

New 5 mile PR: 37:32 on a windy day in February by myself with 7mph winds.

In my own modest opinion, I totally rock. I beasted this run. I'm still finding myself doing victory dances when I think of it.

I'm not usually this excited when I PR, although this record was one of my fastest and one I was particularly proud of. So I guess I sort of knew that I'd be extra happy when it fell. But since it fell 3.5 days before track starts, it feels even more amazing. This feeling of great accomplishment is one of the best.

My run started out in not so prime conditions. I had decided to run a 5 mile route that went to another high school down the street, but I didn't know what the weather was going to be like so I had to guess (I was right on) and when I went outside, the wind almost knocked me over. It didn't get better because the first half of my route was straight into the wind. I had taken yesterday off so my legs should've felt rested, but when I was less than a mile into my run, my legs were heavy and weren't moving very fast (although it might've just seemed this way). I was struggling against the wind and a slight but long hill was coming up. I contemplated turning back but decided I'd look even stronger if I went on and I wanted to show off to all my classmates who drove by in their cars.

I went on and the wind lessened up a bit. Then I spotted two girls from the high school I was running to. When I spot other runners, especially those I want to impress, I become a vulture and chase them down. Not only would my school look good, but I would look good and they wouldn't (I become a nasty person when I run). I, of course, began speeding up the pace and was less than 5 feet away when.....they started walking. What kind of people start walking when they're about to be passed? I hate when people do this, just let yourself be passed or go faster.

About 100m later I saw another runner from the same school, which I was now in front of, and once he went by me I considered turning around and racing him just for the heck of it but decided that I needed to go the full distance. Plus he was a high school guy so I thought he might be to fast for me to race.

I went about 200m more and actually went the full distance of the route before turning around. I checked my time a few seconds later and it was.....19:35!?! Immediately I tried remembering my PR (I thought it was around 38:30) and knew I was on good pace to beat it. I had just run against this terrible wind yet I was racing right along. I knew I had a good chance of making it because not only would the wind be at my back, but after a long hill it would be downhill. On my way back, I went as fast as I thought I could keep up, because suddenly I really, really wanted that PR.

I sprinted up the hills but also concentrated on my form. At the large intersection which divides the road between the two schools in half, stood the high school guy. He was certainly surprised to see me. Luckily, the uncomfortable silence we stood in was soon over and across the street we went. Naturally, I started racing him. It was at this moment that I decided I wanted to beat this kid. I was feeling good and beating him would make me feel great. Plus he was a boy (males seem to get especially upset when they're passed by a girl) and he was from the other high school. He was also running at the exact pace I needed to run so whenever he sped up, I followed. If he slowed down, I kept going. I wanted to see the look on his face when I passed him. I did get to see parts of it as he kept looking back at me once he realized I was racing him. I was right behind him when he suddenly turned the corner. I could not believe it. We had only been racing for about 400m and he already quit. The road he was taking wasn't even a good option, it offered about 600m more and there were few sidewalks. This made me upset because I love beating guys and he wasn't going to give me the satisfaction (it was a good move on his part though).

I ran even harder once I was alone, half hoping my coach would drive by and see. Even at the faster pace I wasn't getting tired. I felt like I was flying, the noise of my feet pounding the pavement was the only indication I was on the ground. I felt amazing. At the large intersection, I wasn't sure if I was going fast enough to get the PR but with each step I could feel it slip into my grasp. When one of my classmates ran by, I barely noticed him because I was so focused. Because I was going to get my PR.

I sprinted up the parking lot to my school and stopped my watch. I wasn't sure what my old PR was so I knew I needed low 38's to get it. I looked and it was.....37:32. Immediately a huge smile graced my face and it stayed there as I slowly walked back and forth. I was extremely excited and had suddenly gotten a huge burst of energy. I was also filled with a rejuvinated love for running.

I had done it. I had beat myself and achieved a new PR. It was just an awesome feeling to know that the miles and miles of hard work I had put in over the winter were finally paying off. That I was ready for track to start and that even before the start of the season, my PR's were being replaced. Even though the weather was unfavorable and there was no one to push me except myself, I had done it. This PR is proof of the hard work and determination of those miserable long days spent in the snowy streets running. It is also proof that I can do so much more than I thought was possible.

And Happy 200th Birthday to Abraham Lincoln, who gave me a little extra power on this fabulous run. It was superb, kind of like he was.