State Track Championship The pit of my stomach felt as if it had been eaten away by the bugs gnawing at my insides. These were not just ordinary butterflies, but insects that bit badly. I stood eagerly on the track, quickly sliding to the inside as the oncoming runner completed his handoff. Yelling encouragement, I waited for Rachel to walk the final stretch. We successfully completed our baton exchange and I left. We arrived at Dutch Clark Stadium in Pueblo, Colorado, our normal two hours early, on a dark and rainy Friday morning. Our team brought along a large tarp, a blue tent, cooler bags full of energy food, and several cases of water to keep us hydrated throughout the day. The sight of the huge red rubber track gave me that familiar tingle in my stomach. “It's the same size as any other track, but we run in the opposite direction,” I heard Coach Dirst joke to the ever-gullible Erin. Shortly after setting up camp, I heard the familiar words, “Get out of here!” come to coach Dirst. Our team descended the mountain of irregularly spaced concrete stairs to the runway. After running through our routine warm-up of two laps of running, stretching and form running, the team spread out, some preparing for their event, others just hoping to catch a few more z's. As I was walking back to camp, I noticed that everyone's red-stained T-shirts and sweatshirts were stretched out on the damp trail, not realizing that those stains would in time become memories I would never forget. excellent start. The medley relay qualified for the final, and Kendal became a two-time state high jump champion, earning the team's first ten points. The rest of the day went equally well. After placing fourth at......middle of the card......horrible! Hearing Coach Dirst say that made the whole experience even more special. All the hard work we had put in all year had finally paid off when it mattered most. As we ran our final winning lap of the 2002 track season, we realized we had accomplished what every team dreams of. After sharing many hugs and obviously happy tears, I headed back to camp to gather my things. Then I walked slowly towards the parking lot wanting to savor the incredible sensation. As I looked up at the pitch-black sky, a drop of rain fell on my forehead. In the blink of an eye, I was in the middle of a downpour, taking it all in while thinking, “This is the best!” All the emotions, the triumph, the thrill and the excitement I felt acted like a bomb against the evil insects that were once eating away at the pit of my stomach.