Sunday, April 16, 2006

Victories Within a Victory

I have a lot of respect for track and field athletes. The discipline to train and prepare for competition is often grueling and lonesome. During competition, in a sense, they compete more against themselves than against their competition. Sure, there are event and meet winners, but in the end...was it the athlete's best? For many events, the chance to achieve such an accomplishment only lasts seconds...the pole vault, sprints, throwing events and jumping events...all the training and preparation comes down to peaking within a timeframe that lasts no longer than it takes to tie one's shoes. To achieve, it takes focus...it is the results of disciplined training and preparation. If an event doesn't go so well and the results were not as the athlete desired...then it's back to hours of training to prepare once again for those brief moments of peak performance...and the quest for the next PR.

Here are a few shots from a recent dual meet between Hillsboro and Beaverton held at Hare Field. The Beavers edged out the Spartans in the boys competition 76-69, with the Beaverton girls following suit with a 78-67 victory over the lady Spartans.