I'm a College Athlete?

I sincerely apologize for not writing about this sooner. College is very clingy and wants all of my attention, but we've been having some talks and agreed to give each other some space. I hope that joke makes you smile, otherwise I'll feel weird for writing it. Anyway, I moved into school 2 weeks early for cross country camp and haven't looked back! It's still a little strange for me to think that I'm a college athlete. I never thought I would get the opportunity to do something like this, but God opened the door and I went through. And I am LOVING it!

My team is amazing. I can't believe how well we all get along, but we really do. Everyone is so supportive of each other and encouraging during practices. I love being able to spend time with them every day. And my coach is awesome. I couldn't ask for a better coach. He's so encouraging and really brings out the best in you. This is the part where I would post a picture of the team, but unfortunately I don't have one of all of us yet.

Our first race wasn't exactly an official race. It was more like a scrimmage. We didn't run a full 5k course. Usually, the girls run 3 miles and the guys run 5 miles. In this case, the girls ran 2 and a half miles and the guys ran 3 miles. It was at Kenyon college and we faced Denison, Ohio Wesleyan, and of course, Kenyon. Our times weren't scored so no one officially won the meet. It was a good way to kick off the season, especially for someone like me who hasn't run a cross country race since my freshman year of high school. It was extremely hot that day and I don't run well in the heat. The course wasn't too bad. I was doing ok as I ran down a hill....and then I went the wrong way. I started around a bend when I heard someone yelling at me. I turned and it was the Kenyon girl who had been behind me, who was now beating me, telling me to come back the other way. I grumbled my frustration and got back on the right part of the course. I wasn't crazy about the time I got, but I was very proud of the fact that I successfully finished my first college race.

Our first invitational was at Ohio Wesleyan. Well, it was hosted by them. The course was at a park. I was really nervous, but after a good talk with my coach (and a little nap) I felt a lot better about the race. The weather was beautiful. Nice and cool, perfect for running. The course had a strange layout. There were a lot of twists and turns and all of us were pretty sure they hadn't measured it out correctly because it felt like we had run more than what we had to. It wasn't my favorite course, but I could tell I was stronger during this race and I felt really good when I finished. Afterwards coach took us to Noodles and Company for lunch (if you've never been there, stop reading this, look up a location near you and go. Now).

I love being part of this team. There will most definitely be more posts to come about my running adventures. Stay tuned!