Sofie Matson is a rising senior at Falmouth High School. She has won three Class A state championships and will be looking to make it a clean sweep this fall.
It is mid-August. June and July have folded together to yield a fall sports preseason postponed (a credit to the global pandemic, of which I needn't say more). Since March, I can imagine many of us have spent one of the longest periods of time in our running careers running, if not completely alone, then without our usual entourages. After all, social distancing of any degree doesn't lend itself to exercising in large groups. Running and training alone poses its challenges, among many boredom and lack of motivation. With the state of fall sports looking increasingly ambiguous, we may spend even more time running alone.
I am a rising Senior, and I would guess that half of the miles I've ever run were run solo. In fact, during my first year of cross country, I often ran alone at practice, to the chagrin of my coaches (who probably thought I was a poorly socialized, arrogant Freshman). But, as someone who enjoys running alone, I know its meditative state well. People - runners and non-runners alike - often ask me what I think about during a workout or race, as if we all don't think the same things. So, here is a list of things I think (and that you, too, can think) about to pass time while running:
The alphabet, backward. It proves just challenging enough to distract an oxygen-deprived brain in the final minutes of a tempo run.
2. Counting by sevens. This is a real puzzle for those of us who are mathematically challenged.
3. Counting your steps. Another counting device, and a great substitute for when your Garmin battery dies.
4. Pretending to be a famous runner finishing a famous race. In the last few miles of a long run, I sometimes imagine I'm Shalane Flanagan finishing the New York City Marathon, or Alberto Salazar trying to outrun doping charges.
5. Lawn sprinklers. On the hottest summer days, I like to loop through large suburban neighborhoods with well-kept lawns. Most people water their lawns before 10 am., and the average sprinkler system cycles through each zone in fifteen minutes.
6. A special or memory-filled location to run by. For me, this is BMV, which, whenever I run by it, reminds me of how I failed my drivers test four times (or, more optimistically, of perseverance).
In all seriousness, this season I look forward to representing my team if and when the opportunity presents itself. Though certainly not this year, there will come the day when cross country resumes in full capacity. For now, I am proceeding with - a phrase we've by now heard far too much - cautious optimism.
