Blog #9 – Dreams do come true

By Brenna Cohoon

The weather-related adversity we experienced during Regionals continued this past weekend.  In fact, these challenges just so happened to occur at the same exact place as where Regionals were held.

Unfortunately, after all of the precipitation we received the last couple of weeks, Katherine Legge Memorial was not in the best condition for anyone to race there.  We heard the news that Sectionals would be moved to Lyons Township early Friday afternoon.  

It was a switch that initially disappointed me considering this would have been my last chance to race at KLM, but I quickly got over it.  That’s often what we have to do in our sport: acknowledge and move on.  After all, this decision was a wise one with the safety of the athletes taken into consideration.  It’d be nice to get everyone to that starting line in Peoria all in one piece!

The morning of the race was fairly odd.  It simply didn’t seem like it was Sectionals already.  The season has flown by, and it just doesn’t seem like it’s almost over.

Our coaches reminded us of the primary goal of the meet: survive and advance.  The secondary goal was to do that by winning the meet.  Better yet, we wanted to strive towards a finish similar to last year’s sectional meet, where we had our top five in the top 10 and all seven of our girls in the top 15.

Standing at the starting line and looking out at the numerous spectators lining the course was when my brain finally processed the fact that it was Sectionals.  I took in the view, acknowledging that this would be the last time I ever raced a cross country sectional.  I had to make it a memorable one.  

Well, a power beyond my control made that thought a reality.

You know what they say about dreams coming true?  For some reason, the night before the race I dreamt that I was running a track meet without either of my shoes on.  I made a mental note that I should’ve run in my spikes.

My “nightmare” came true about 200 meters into the race on Saturday morning.  The course was muddy, and someone behind me must have slipped slightly as they stepped on the back of my right spike.  

My heart skipped a beat as my heel popped out of my shoe.  This never happened to me before!  As I panicked, I quickly fell back in the pack.  Do I stop to put the rest of my spike back on?  Or, do I just kick off my shoe and keep going?

I went with my second option after running about 200 meters more.  I instantly felt sorry for myself, assuming that because of this, my entire race would be sabotaged.  I was tempted to use this as an excuse for why I might not run a great race.

I had to stop my negative internal dialogue immediately.  Why should I need any kind of excuse?  Instead, I should use this as a great story (hence what I’m trying to write here)!

Still quite a bit back in the pack, I surged to get to the front.  This unexpected turn of events gave me a huge rush of adrenaline.  Plus, I wanted to avoid getting my foot stepped on and spiked!

I eventually established my position in the race and felt much more at ease about the whole situation.  I even laughed a bit as my foot went slightly numb from the cold mud enveloping it.  There were multiple occasions where I thought I was going to wipe out, but I miraculously managed to stay on my feet the entire time.

I used the energy from the crowd to fuel me forward.  It was one of those special races where everything fell into place mentally.  I kept on smiling, kept pushing to challenge myself so I could accomplish my goals and find my other shoe as quickly as possible.

Once I finished the race, I was immediately filled with relief, particularly regarding the fact that I crossed the line safely despite the unique set of circumstances I faced.  I was covered in mud, but filled with joy, so no complaints!  

I turned around to see my teammates finish; four girls in the top 10, five in the top 15, and all seven in the top 20.  I was proud of what everyone accomplished individually and excited to see how we all came together as a team.  This teamwork is ultimately what will allow us to accomplish our goals this upcoming weekend down in Peoria.

Thinking about the State meet on November 9th is honestly somewhat surreal to me.  It doesn’t feel like I wrote about Naperville Twilight taking place on October 9th a month ago.  It doesn’t feel like this will be my last State cross country meet.  Yet, here we are.  I could not be more exhilarated and ready to take on a race.

At this point, we have put in all of the hard work that we’ve needed to get done this season.  I know that we are prepared.  To my teammates reading this blog, thank you for pushing me this fall and sharing an amazing cross country season for my senior year. 

I know that we still have lots of work to get done these next few weeks and hopefully beyond, but I just needed to put that out there.  We are so ready for State; I know that we can accomplish all of our goals.  I am so proud of you ladies, no matter the outcome, but I truly can’t wait to see what we do on Saturday. 

Photos: ©2019 Laura Duffy