A Preview of the Season(and meet 1 motivation)

So where does Crockett XC stand? Well It's a scary place.  But I believe I'm up for the challenge.  As of right now I have a strong number 1 (he's being recruited by colleges). My number 2 is injured and out for the season.  My number 3 (now my number 2) is a strong sophomore.  And then.... I have a bunch of inexpereinced freshmen.  And they are going to have to step up.  They are cool kids, but they have no idea what is going to be asked of them.  I won't let them being young be an excuse to not meet our goal.  And our goal hasn't changed: it's to return yet again to the State Championship.  Someone once said 'Cross Country is like poker; you got to have 5 good cards to win.'  I wonder who my last 3 cards will be.

So that being said, here is their meet motivation for the first meet which is next Tuesday.  It begins with our quote of the year; the quote the team voted on (which just happens to be a quote from my husband.... and yes that will be weird for me wearing a t-shirt all year with my husband's name on it)

“The Path of Glory is Paved with the Pain of Discipline”

There’s a reason I never have to hold tryouts, there’s a reason we are few in number, and there’s a reason we are respected by other athletes and coaches who know what we do. 

You are still here, therefore:

you have perseverance.

you have mental strength.

you have high pain thresholds. 

you have said yes to discomfort.

you have said yes to running mile after mile after monotonous mile.

And you have something inside of you that most people do not.

If you are here, then you have submitted to the pain of discipline

If you are here, then you are already on the path of glory.

For most of you, today is your first high school XC 5K race. So here’s what you need to know about meet day. They are a blast: getting out of school early, the van rides, the banter, intimidating the other teams, the stupid juvenile games at the start line, getting medals, going out to eat after… everything is fun… except the race. And we have fun on meet day because we know that for the race, for that 20 minutes, it’s going to be hell.  It’s nothing but pure agony, torment, misery, and anguish from start to finish. It’s feeling like you’re going to die, it’s wanting to die because that would be an escape from the pain of the race.  It’s your mind screaming at you to slow down and your spirit telling it to shut the **** up. It’s running harder than you ever have and knowing next week you’ll have to run even harder. 

The XC season is a war and every race is a battle, a battle against other runners yes, but mostly it’s a battle between your mind and your body, your will and your instinct.  This is why I call you my warriors.  So, Newbies, have fun… but don’t be fooled; when the gun goes off, you run headfirst into the pain. Embrace hell for 20 minutes, and come out glorious on the other side.