State Cross Country Race Simulator

30 minutes until the gun goes off. You are fully prepared for this race up until this point. You are hydrated and at the peek of your training. [[Warm up and scout out the course]] [[Rest in the shade and eat a power bar.]]

You loosen up your legs and stretch out your calf muscles that you strained earlier in the season. You also spot a large root blocking the trail at mile 2. 6 minutes until the gun goes off. [[Head to the starting line]]

You have added more rest to your fully rested body and satisfied your hunger. 6 minutes until the gun goes off. [[head to your team's starting block]]

You look around and see other teams running strides and stretching. You're about to tighten your shoe laces when one guy calls you a #@$%. 5 minutes until the gun goes off. [[Talk smack]] [[Ignore him and do some strides]]

You look around and see all the other runners doing strides and stretching. A few have taken a knee and are mentally preparing. 5 minutes until the gun goes off. [[Stretch and do some strides like everyone else]] [[Go off by yourself and remember an inspiring quote from you grandfather]]

The starter calls everyone to the starting line. He holds up an orange flag in his right hand to signal for the runners to take their marks. Then he holds up the gun in his left to signal for the runners to get set. 2 seconds until the gun goes off. [[Bolt out as soon as you hear the shot.]] [[Settle in behind a faster teammate]]

The starter calls everyone to the starting line. He holds up an orange flag in his right hand to signal for the runners to take their marks. Then he holds up a gun in his left to signal for the runners to get set. 2 seconds until the gun goes off. [[Bolt out as soon as you hear the blast]] [[Place yourself behind a quicker teammate]]

The gun goes off. Your severe lack of warm up at all causes you to pull a calf muscle and fall to the ground where you are trampled by your own teammates.

You bolt out with astonishing speed and hang with the top runners for nearly half a mile. It is exhilarating. Then your body realizes it can't take that pace, and you slow down to a pace below what you planned on running. Your're out of the race half a mile in.

There is a little bit of jockying at the start. One runner calls you a @#$%, but you settle into the race in a good competative position. Half a mile into the race. [[Continue on pace]]

You reach mile one with a solid 5:07 split. You see the time and your confidence soars. [[Stay on pace]] [[Pick up the pace]]

Good. You kept your pace. That's a good strategy in cross country. Unfortunately, not scouting out the course during your warm-up was a bad strategy, and you did not know about the massive root at mile marker 2. Since you failed to avoid the root, you crash to the ground and break your knee cap. Your team loses and you finish the race 2 hours later.

Sometimes, it pays off to be aggressive and take risks on the trails. Since you did not scout out the course in your warm-up, you did not notice the massive root at mile marker 2. After tumbling over 3 times, you are back in the race at your usual pace. You pass the second mile marker at 10:40. [[Continue running as if nothing happened]]

It's a tight race for the last 1500m. One moment, it's you, the next, it's him. Teammates are cheering you on. His mother yells obscene language at you. Neither of you can get a firm lead. You round the corner on the final straight away. Your whole school lines the open trail. Adreneline and intense panic take over as you desperately sprint to the finish line. [[Run like you're being chased by a cougar]]

Normally, this would seem smart. But unfortunately, that was a key runner for the other team. He has gained more confidence after seeing you fall back and continues to charge ahead. When you round the corner on the final straight away, he is far out of reach, and you cannot catch him. Your team loses and they never forgive you for "letting the other team win".

Suddenly, your rival, your nemisis for 6 years, the one man standing between you and a state ring passes you on the outside of a turn. [[Go with him because you have no choice]] [[Hang back and stay on pace]]

You idiot. Because you failed to prperly warm-up and stretch out your calf that you injured earlier in the season, you reinjure your calf with a few meters to go. The other runner beats you by .4 seconds, and you miss the podium by one place.

Congrats. You managed to set a bad example for your younger teammates. The starter calls everyone to the line. He holds up an orange flag to signal for the runners to take their marks. Then he holds up a gun to signal for the runners to get set. 2 seconds until the gun goes off. [[Settle in behind a faster runner]] [[Sprint out in front]]

Well played. You have set a good example for your younger teammates, and your opponent has embarrassed his coach. The starter calls everyone to the line. He holds up an orange flag in his right hand to signal for the runners to take their marks. Then he holds up a gun in his left hand to signal for the runners to get set. 2 seconds until the gun goes off. [[Time the motions of the starter and guess when he'll pull the trigger]] [[Wait until you hear the shot]]

Since you wasted your time, you were not able to get you heart rate high enough to maintain that kind of start. Your pace dies after half a mile. You can't compete with the other runners, and your team loses.

From the very beginning, you are in the lead. Everyone can see you. The runner you were talking smack to sees you in front of him too. Without warning, he makes an aggressive slash with his spike at your heels and takes you down. He is disqualified and you are out of the race with a huge gash in your leg. Your team loses.

Sometimes this can work out perfectly. Most of the time, however, it is a race ender. You jumped out too soon and are disqualified from the race and everyone laughs at you. Your team loses.

Way to go. You've done everything you can possibly do to successfully win this race with your team. You follow steadily on pace for the first mile. Your girlfriend asks you to the senior ball at the half mile mark. You feel amazing. [[Keep on truckin']]

When you reach the first mile marker, you see somehing wrong. The pace you were running is a lot faster than you thought. Instead of a 5:07, you fly by at a swift 4:56! [[Realize the horrible mistake and slow down a lot to stay safe]] [[Keep up the energy and go with it]]

This may have seen like the right decision, but it will hurt you later in the race. You slow down far too much and can't find the energy or motivation to pick up the pace. Your time is horrible and you blame it on "going out too fast".

Smart. A good racer is not intimidated by the times he sees on the clock. He simply uses them to make stategic calls about his race. You go with the new found race pace and find yourself competing with a new field of runners as you pass the second mile marker. You pass the second mile marker at 10:25 [[Try and stick with the leaders]]

You manage to stay in a cometative position with the leaders. However, not far up ahead, you spot a teammate who appears be falling in his placement. [[Fight to make up for his lost position]] [[Trust your teammates and stay where you're comfortable]]

Incredible! You can't believe it, but you are actually headed for a PR! You have basically traded places with your teammate and are now running unattached. You round the corner on the final straight away. Thousands have gathered lining the wide trail to the finish line. Animalistic intensity and raw adreneline completely consume your mind and body as you sprint towards the red tape. The clock changes from 15:55 to 15:56. [[Try to break 16 minutes and win]]

Cross country isn't supposed to be comfortable. Since you were not there to look out for your fellow teammate, his lost positions gave your opponents the edge they needed to win. Your team loses and even though you know you could have saved the race.

15:56 15:57 15:58 Almost to the finish! 15:59 ...Suddenly your foot is ripped out from underneath you, and you crash to the dirt. You had forgotten to tighten your shoe laces. 16:00 Two of the opposing team's runners cross the line and your team loses with 8m to go in your race.