We signed Riggs up for the St. X Tiger Run the very last second of the deadline day. It is a middle school and high school meet but we thought it would be a good way to see where he is this season and to be a good confidence marker for him...in a middle school race of elite competition no matter what he did....it would be great. Looking ahead we wanted him to have this race to look back on and since it is a longer race we knew it would be a good one to start out his season with...the longer the race the better he is. At practice on Thursday he said he didn't feel well but he ran anyway...and actually ran pretty well. He threw up all the way home. He was pretty darn sick on Friday and stayed home from school. He spent a lot of time rehydrating and relaxing in the bath...and we were unsure if the Tiger Run was a go or not. We would leave it up to time and to him...he knows his body.
On Saturday morning he wanted to run....
It is a big meet.....so many teams....so many people.....he took it all in....
he saw the medal table ....and we all thought....one day.....hopefully.....
My big 5th grader suddenly looked like a tiny peanut compared to these middle schoolers.....
Running shoes were taken off.....
and new, carefully picked by Riggs, spikes were put on for the first time this season....
He warmed up.....
lined up with hundreds of other kids......and the gun went off for the first time this XC season for Riggs
I waited at the one mile marker for him....the first time I saw the Gator I truly felt like I was going to throw up....these kids just seemed so big and they were coming so fast.....we eat, sleep and love XC so I knew all the kids in front by name....I clapped and cheered for them like they were my very own...oh it was so exciting! I wondered how long it would be before I saw my Riggs.....
and sooner than I thought there he was....right behind 2 North Oldham boys....his one mile time at 5:50...
He was small but he was mighty....I could tell he was giving it all he had and I was so proud of his heart and will to try so hard.....
At the finish line I waited....I cheered as Josh sped by with his time in the 9's.....
and then Logan....
and a few more runners came by and then came the pack...and I could not believe it.... but Riggs was in this pack....one of the first 20 for sure.....
he was pushing....giving....trying...
It was almost as if I could feel his heart beat.....
and he put his heart on the line...all the way.......
until he crossed the finish line...and his race was over...
and then and only then...did he think about stopping....and it set in that his hard work at every practice was worth something....
He was quiet after the race and high fived every runner he knew...telling them good race....I watched him do his thing because he was doing everything I hoped he would all on his own....
We were happy Coach Jeff was there to see his first race of the season....
and then we were off in the blink of an eye to our first soccer game of the season......having no idea how he finished or what his time was...but happy because no matter what he tried his best...and that's all you can ask for....
When we reunited with Daddy later in the day he had a little something for Riggs....not something he had bought for Riggs but rather something Riggs has earned....
A medal from the Tiger Run....one of the medals that had been on that very table he saw that morning... his "one day" was today....and it meant the world to him....
He had a t shirt.....he had a medal...
He had a new 3K PR...placing 17th with a time of 11:00 flat
But more than that he had a great beginning to a new XC season....something that means so much to him....running feeds his soul in a way that amazes me and fills me with love for him. Let the 2012 XC season begin! Every season is always its own adventure....and I can't wait to see where this one takes us!
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