Cistercian sports have a clear, strong emphasis on teamwork. In any sport you play at Cistercian, you will find yourself on a good team with other high school students. But back in seventh grade when I first started running the illustrious sport of track, I had an image of the sport being isolating and individual. Few of the races in track & field incorporate team efforts – the main team races being the relays — But after running track for three years, I know that TrackNation is more of a team than some of the other sports I’ve played.

As the amazing Coach Dotson puts it, everyone who runs track is a member of TrackNation. If you walk around classes the following day with crazy sore thighs and possible shin splints from tons of running on the track and working in the weight room, then you are a member of TrackNation. Though we run as individuals, we compete as a team – we cheer each other on, we challenge each other to do better, we win together, we lose together. Even other schools’ track teams are part of TrackNation, and we all represent the dedication and effort that track & field is all about.

My personal experience with TrackNation has been one that I will never regret. From 7^th grade to freshman year, Coach Dotson has a been a huge help in my formation, both physically and mentally, teaching me proper form when running, sportsmanship, and competitiveness, among many other things. Oscar Parmenter and Patrick Andrews, both seniors, were great models for me when running hurdles. They both seemed to fly over the hurdles, and they gave me a great goal to shoot for in my coming years on TrackNation. They worked with me every step of the way, and I am more than thankful for their help and competition. Unfortunately, I was 2 seconds from qualifying for SPC in my race, 300M Hurdles, with a time of 49 seconds, but I am eager for next year so that I can get another shot, and continue to improve.