Who the heck knows about all these abbreviations? At work, there are a ton of them; sometimes I even forget what they mean. When texting, there are another bunch; I’m still not sure I know what all of them represent. I found out about another one this Friday. XC is short for Cross Country; I guess that makes sense. I like it. Friday was my son’s final XC meet of the year.
Quick recap for those not following along. He started running last year for the first time; it was the school’s first time having a team. His best finish was 22nd; his first finish was in the 50s. Not a bad improvement for his first go around. This year, he shocked us, finishing in 4th place right out of the gate out of 110 kids; we worried he had set the bar too high… nah! In his 2nd race of the year, he came in 3rd place! What would his final race bring?
One of his classmates finished in 2nd place in the last race; they talked about a strategy for catching the 1st place kid, who they referred to as Usain Bolt. That kid was good… I mean, he’s been way out there, although last time out, my son’s classmate did close the gap; could they catch him on this final Friday meet?
The race began as normal, with all 100 or so racing out from the starting line after the gun was fired. After taking that initial video, my wife and I made our way to the middle of the course. Soon after that, we realized that catching the first place kid may not happen; he had built up another huge lead. After him though, was a pack of 3, including my son and his classmate; they were in good position again. As they came down the homestretch it was only my son and his classmate, who was slowly pulling away. Yep, they did it again, finishing 2nd and 3rd place; their team earned the 2nd place trophy thanks to this, as well as, some other best times for their teammates. Many of us went afterwards to celebrate with some pizza; it was a really good day.
4th, 3rd, and 3rd… If we were shocked after the first race, we shouldn’t have been after that. My son is a good athlete; I really can’t put anything past him… he can accomplish a whole lot, that’s for sure. We asked if he was satisfied with his performance; he was. I told him good, he should be; I told him you should be proud of yourself, because Mom, I, and everyone else are very, very proud of you. He got another plaque, his third of the season, this time, with a big XC on it!
OK, that’s the end of my bragging… for this season… haha. He’s already been practicing for swimming, and basketball is right around the corner, with baseball to follow, and maybe even volleyball and track! These are the days…
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