Anticipation clung to my twitching legs. A girl nearby hopped; I copied. Another stretched, as did I.
We pretended to ignore the waiting barriers. We’d glance to the nearest, flit to the next and next and next, then end at the finish line.
Too soon, I heard, “Runners, take your mark.”
“Se-e-e-e-et!”
*POP!*
Out of the blocks, I ran to the first hurdle.
Fell.
And sat and crumpled and cried.
Then, felt an arm about my shoulders. Heard a repeated lullaby of encouragement from a onetime friend.
“You won,” she reminded, “By not hesitating.
“And, tomorrow, you’ll run again.”
Written for Carrot Ranch Literary Society’s #2 Contest: Memoir.
Chel Owens 
I remember hurdles with horror.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I enjoyed attacking them, but think the practice a bit riskier for guys than for gals.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It requires too much concentration for me and the unnatural technique of throwing the leading foot forward at the right time. Mine were 100m and 200m straight sprints – you only had to grit your teeth and run fast.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes… Given at least another 99 words for this writing prompt, I initially tried to express how difficult getting the leading foot up was at the right time and the stress therein….
The 400 m hurdles were easier just because of that.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was a miler. Hated it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀 With or without hurdles?
LikeLiked by 1 person
If there’d been hurdles, there would’ve been bodies everywhere…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Guess you should have tried the sprints. -still without hurdles.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nah… I assumed running a mile would be easy… until I actually participated in a track meet. For the first one hundred yards, I thought I was in the wrong race… everyone was going too fast. By the second quarter mile, I realized that we were indeed going to be running the entire mile at that pace.
It wasn’t my idea… I was a science nerd. My father said I would enjoy it. He was ten million light years of wrong…
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ha ha! Definitely wrong! I can’t believe the pace long-distance runners set!
LikeLiked by 1 person