Preparing for the Race

Walking onto the track,
I feel so free.

Seeing the other teams preparing for their different races,
I don't feel initimidated.
Instead I feel my adrenaline start to pump and my body start to come alive.

As I begin run my two warm up laps,
I get the feeling of how fierce the competition is.

I start to feel my muscles go into a trance,
One that they have gone into so many times before.

Rather than my muscles begging me to stop,
They beg me to keep running,
To push them as hard I can.

After my laps are run,
I sit down and stretch my body.

I spend all my time focusing on what hurts and what doesn't,
and then I put myself into a zone.

My zone consists of one thought: stay calm.
Nerves are pushed away,
And are replaced with a pair of running shoes with a fresh set of spikes.

I barely hear my race being called,
And I try to keep myself in the zone.

As I find a set of blocks and set them to my comfort,
I feel all sorts of emotions,
But the most consistant one is anticipation.

When my heat comes to the starting line,
I don't tell myself to go and win.
I tell myself to beat one person: me.

I hear the starter tell me to get on my marks and I place myself in the blocks,
Never moving in fear of jumping the gun.
The next word/sound are the only things I will hear for the next 30 seconds.
And they are "Set....POP!"

I run as hard as I can and without realizing it,
I am at the finish line,
Hearing a time being told to me and a great job from my coach.

And you want to know what I do next?
I get ready for another race the same way as before.