Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Greetings and Salutations,
I hope that everyone has had a wonderful summer vacation. I am pleased to announce that MileSplit has asked me to upkeep a blog throughout our season; in which you all may share, comment, or dismiss about around the second or third entry. Nonetheless, I anticipate a memorable season with all of you throughout this blog and in person.
As a novice to blogging, I presume most would begin with how their summers' went. Mine didn't start off as I had planned. Nearing the end of my junior year, it had come to my attention that I was running for the wrong reasons. The sport I grew up loving had now turned into a job for scholarships and collegiate attention. I decided to step away from running. A good part of my break was spent back home in Seattle, Washington, where much hiking occurred. It was not until then that I realized how badly I missed moving my legs. Back in Maine, I blew off the cobwebs of some retired books that nursed me back into the sport; I would encourage everyone to read them: "The Cool Impossible", "Eat & Run", and "How Bad Do You Want It?".
After having turned my back to a piece of me I thought was poisoned, I rediscovered the love for running as a lifelong activity. I'm not going to lie, it was very difficult re-entering the running world after dismissing it for so long. My runs for the majority of the summer never exceeded three miles, but I slowly mended my mental health for the sport and through sweat, tears, and many, many Honey Stinger Organic Energy Chews, those ten mile runs were soon resurrected. I would hope that you all are running not because you feel obligated to for college, but because you love the sport, community, and reward at the end of a hard workout (like ice cream).
Now that we've finished that heartwarming story of me losing and finding myself, let's chat about this cross country season! My plan is to be as real with this blog as I am in life, so when I say that I'm excited for this year, I'm legitimately excited for this year. With our first races right around the corner, I can't wait to see returning runners and rookies. I trust all of your pre-seasons went well and you've made your last salutes to summer.
Don't regret anything, be ambitious, and let's make XC 2017 one to remember!
Your little senior blogger,
-Anneka
