The day of the race I was scheduled to be in the second day of a complicated three day mediation. Fortunately, the attorneys for the parties are friends of mine and agreed to end mediation for the day at 3:45 p.m. so I could get to the race. I rushed out of the office about 3:50 p.m. and beat feet to get to Percy Warner Park in time for the varsity race at 5:30 p.m. Traffic and parking weren't a problem, thankfully, and I arrived in time to fist bump JP as he was warming up, just after the junior varsity boys' race and before the varsity girls' race.
I mingled a bit before the race, checking in briefly with JP's coaches and amiably chatting with a few friends or parents of JP's teammates. As start time approached, I removed myself from the crowd as I typically do at races, too nervous and intense to carry on a conversation with anyone else. In that moment, I don't have the patience for exchanging niceties and pleasantries with others. It's crazy and weird but I just don't.
Brentwood Academy's team was at the race. They're strong, so I knew it would be a tight team race, and it was. BA grabbed the first two spots, followed by an Ensworth runner. MBA grabbed fourth, fifth, sixth (JP), eighth, and tenth. Overall, the Big Red edges Brentwood Academy by three points to take home the first place trophy for the 2023 Metro Nashville Cross Country Championship.
JP finished in sixth place overall (16:10:13) and was the third MBA runner. In his group of runners, which included his teammates, Mitchell and Gabe, there was some jostling during the race with a BA runner. I was proud of him for for the way he ran but I was prouder of him for finding one of the BA runners he ran against, and beat, after the finish to tell him he ran a good race. In my view, that was a leadership move and something a sportsman would do. I loved it.
The leadership the seniors and co-captains on the MBA team - Samuel and Mitchell - have provided has been invaluable, especially to JP and Gabe, both of whom are freshman. There is no chance the team could have had the success it's had thus far without Samuel and Mitchell setting the tone for them. JP admires and respects both of them tremendously. They have treated him - and Gabe, I think - like peers and teammates, not freshmen, and that has meant everything.
It's a close knit and special group of boys that comprise the varsity cross country team at MBA. I'm proud - very proud - for JP to be a part of the team. I'm also a bit sad that the season is winding down.
No comments:
Post a Comment