That's Just Grody

Embarrassing things happen to the best of us.  I learned this lesson the hard way at one of my cross country races recently.  However, I also learned that it is only as bad as you make it seem, so it's easiest to get over something that happened quickly because then no one makes a big deal of it.

A few weeks after school started, my cross country team had a race in Cottonwood.  This race is on the same course as the Region race which is at the end of season.  I was excited to get a look at the course and see how fast I could race because I had just taken time off for a calf injury.  The freshman and sophomore race for girls was first, so as soon as I got my shoes on I had to go warm up.  My calf felt better than it had the previous week, so I started to get more excited.  As we lined up for the start, there were not very many girls so I got even more pumped.  For you non-runners, it can be good and bad when there are a lot of people in a race.  I like it when there are less girls because I place better, and you don't get cut off as much.

Bang!

The gun goes off and the runners follow suit.  The course had rolling hills throughout so it wasn't long before me and my teammate (who was running beside me) crested the first hill.  I felt pretty good!  After the first mile I picked up speed and after the second mile I left my teammate.  I came up on another girl who was struggling and then there was this hella steep hill.  I climbed it at a decent pace and regained my speed on the flat stretch.  At this point I was all alone, no one was too close in front of me or behind me.

My sister running in California on a path much like some of our race courses.
Photo courtesy of: me

That's when I started to feel it.  A feeling runners know all too well.  The rising of something in your throat.

Oh no! Not now! I thought as I continued to run.  I could not throw-up right now!  Are you kidding me!

I continued  running until I could no longer hold it back.  Let me tell you something, when you are running as fast as you can for three miles you cannot control a whole lot of other muscles.  It is also frowned upon to stop in a race and I would never do that anyway, even though I had a legit reason to.

So I barfed.  And ran.  At the same time.  It seemed like the only logical thing to do.  It happened about three times.

I moved my head to the left.  I jutted my head out in front of me and did a very attractive ballerina hop over my barf.  Again, I did this all while running the last one thousand meters of my race, which is when you give it all you got basically.  One of the times I wasn't so lucky and I got some of it on my leg because, you know, I was moving and all.  But that didn't stop me, I wiped my mouth and ran.

As I came down the hill I saw two of my coaches.  Absolutely aghast at what had just happened, I squeaked out, "I barfed!"

Of course my coaches, who are all guys, thought this was hilarious.  They screamed at me that I was now a "real" runner and laughed amongst themselves.

I finished the last half mile of the race and got a new personal record!  Yay!  I was extremely happy and once I got all the grody barf off my legs, mouth, and hand and changed my clothes it was even better!

I guess you never know what might make you have a great race.  And barfing definitely isn't an excuse to not do well...

Ciao

Camille