Notes
The race was very intense. When the gun went off I knew that I had to get to the lane farthest in instead of getting stuck outside and having to run more meters by running in the outside lanes. After 400m I was very near last place, but I didn't mind since we were going faster than sub-15 pace and I knew I would have to catch some bodies in the dreadful second mile. We passed the first kilometer at 2:53. By the third kilometer. many of the runners who had gone up with the chase pack were starting to slow down, so I knew that that would be the time to make my move. Little by little I started passing folks, which kept me pretty motivated. Another thing that kept me motivated was the buzz generated by the audience who were constantly cheering for the runners. Eventually, every time I approached the finish line, I could hear some people cheering for me in Spanish, which really helped me out. Throughout the entire race I was feeling very motivated. Oftentimes during races I have this feeling of wanting to drop out of the race because it stinks to have to go through the pain of racing, but not today. I was very thrilled to be there and the last thing I wanted to do was drop out. Eventually, when I reached the final lap I knew it was gonna be hard to be able to accomplish my goal since I only had 60 seconds to get it done. Nevertheless, I started kicking with 300m left so that when I reached the last 200m I had 30 seconds left. The guy who was right behind me started yelling at me, telling me that if I really wanted it, it was within my grasp. I knew he was right, so I just went. I kicked like never before. My legs and my arms and my entire body had gone numb with adrenaline, and in the end I had accomplished my goal.