“The First Run-Track”

by Caciques Damian and Elizabeth

The sun had just risen and more than half of the students were participating in the dynamic warm up that involved strenuous lunges, rapid leg lifts, and constant laps around the campus. This morning would be the first of our vigorous training that would soon lead to a half-marathon run at the end of the semester. After a quick jog over to the marina, our buddy sprint relay began. Still half asleep, the first group of buddies slowly but surely lined up on the “Big” bridge ready to sprint to the “Little” bridge and back. The first group took off! In anticipation, the second group watched the runners become smaller and smaller as they made their way down to the “Little” bridge. Some members of the second group conversed amongst themselves while others were getting ready for their shot at the relay. The air around the second group was filling with suspense as the heavy breathing of the first group of runners became clearer. Before long, the second group had taken off while the first group was desperately trying to catch their breath. This cycle continued for three more laps and by that time, everyone was hoping for the run back to base camp. However, the exercise was not over yet. Along the way, buddies paired up and commenced with the buddy sprints. One by one, the last buddy pair in line sprinted with all their might to the front of the-what seemed like an endless-train of runners. Before long, we had entered the conch bordered driveway of The Island School which meant the flagpole: our finish, was soon to be reached. Through the north gazebo, runners emerged with a victorious gleam in their eyes and touched the sacred flagpole with confidence. They had successfully completed their first run track training of the semester.