Asics/UC Irvine XC Invitational

The start of the girls 5k race

Coach Jason giving the girls high fives after the race

This past weekend we had our 2nd race at UC Irvine. Being that it was our only 5k of the season, I felt tremendous pressure to run a fast time. I am not sure entirely why I was so worried at the thought of a 5k instead of a 6k, but mentally it was tough to fathom the idea that the race would be shorter and I wondered if I would able to build off of the successful race the week prior.

I did feel like I had an advantage going into the race because we had already run the course a couple times as a workout during cross country camp in Newport Beach a few weeks ago. I knew what the hills felt like, knew where I would have to be mentally tough in the race, and already had a plan of when I was going to start my final kick. The course started on a grass field and after 2 laps around the perimeter, the course narrowed immensely. I knew that I had to get out quickly and get a position if I wanted to run a fast time.

I finished the race in 23rd place at 19:12 and in all honesty, I was initially disappointed when I heard my time. I had expected more out of myself and although I had given the race everything I had, I was hoping to run at least sub 19. As my teammates finished, I tried to shove the negativity aside and focus on my team. After the post race talk with Coach, I knew that I had no reason to be upset. We had accomplished the goals we had set for the race and exceeded everyone's expectations.

I waited for a few days after the race to blog about it because I needed time to think it over. As I recapped my freshman cross country season in Florida, I realized that the time I ran this past weekend was better than any race I had last year. My race splits were consistent and I even finished my last mile in a strong 5:42! I am starting where I ended my season last year. This is only the start of a long season; I have plenty of time to improve and run faster times. I can only be grateful that I have been blessed with an amazingly supportive team and coaches that care about me. While I didn't run the time I was hoping for this weekend, I am happy with my performance overall. As a team, we established that we are here to compete and I cannot wait until our next race in a couple of weeks!