There are a lot of big track meets in high school but none is bigger than the OFSAA (Ontario Federation of Secondary Athletics Association) meet. This meet was held in
Ottawa in June and in order to participate you had to do well at a local area school meet and then place in the top four at the regional meet. For me this meant running at the Lossa meet (Lake Ontario Secondary School Athletics school meet), and finishing in the top three. From Lossa I ran in the Central region qualifier meet and had to come in the top four to make it to
Ottawa. I ran the 1500 and 3000 meter races and qualified in both. The OFSAA meet has all the best track and field kids across
Ontario representing their schools in events ranging from sprints, hurdles, distance and field.
The hardest thing about running OFSAA was the pressure. Everything is new, traveling, hotels, food and of course the races themselves. Dealing with so many new things and wanting to do well leads to pressure and everyone handles it differently.
Many runners seem to get psyched out just because it is such a big meet, or the fact that they are racing the best runners of their age in
Ontario. What got me the most agitated was the athlete control centre, it is a place that the officials take you before your race to group all the competitors together and check in. You go to the control center at least half an hour before your race and are surrounded by all the other athletes. There is lots of talking between the athletes and it can be a place that can really have an effect on your race.
There are many ways to help you stay in race mode, so you can compete well, and hopefully achieve a personal best time, or even a medal. The things that I have felt are useful in this kind of running, is concentrating on what has worked for you in the past. Trying to have the same race routine away from familiar surroundings is not easy and making sure you have had enough water, have eaten the right breakfast, or lunch, as well as making sure you have stretched and warmed up properly. Many people seem forget about water, water is one of the most important parts of racing, as not enough will definitely not help you during a distance race.
The day I was set to run my first 1500 qualifier race, I was nervous and didn’t really know what to do. When we went out to lunch, I did not eat what I normally did before races, I did not drink enough water, and I do not feel that I warmed up, and stretched properly. I was too nervous to think about doing anything right; all I could think of was running, and moving on to the finals. During that race I did not feel my best, I was lucky to be in the first heat, where no one really had to push it to make the final.
My first time in the athlete control centre was before my 1500m heats. I was really nervous and it seemed all the other girls were too. It was our first time in a place like that, and we didn’t know what to do. I spent most of the time chatting with other competitors and laughing, I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong. After a race where I nearly did not make finals, I realized that the centre was there as a place for us to concentrate, and mentally prepare, without the distractions of non-racers. The best thing I did after the race was a proper warm down as I had the 1500 final the next day and then the 3000 final the day after. I new that if I didn’t warm down properly that my legs would not have recovered and my chances in the 3000 were slim to none.
My 1500m finals were the next day. I made sure I did everything differently. I drank more water, and ate right. When it was approximately 40 minutes before my race, I made sure that I warmed up properly and stretched a little. When I reached the control centre, I made sure that I stretched more, and was prepared to run well. The only thing that I regret not doing is drinking more water during the very hot day. Came in second and got my first ofsaa medal.
The next day was my 3000m. I feel I was even better prepared for this race. I had eaten right that day and the night before. I was completely confident that it was going to be a great race. We started out, and it was a really slow pace, if I wanted a personal best, then I was going to have to lead. After about 400m I was in first and it stayed that way until the last 200m where I was passed by two girls. I finished with a bronze medal as well as a personal best and many fond memories of
Ottawa.
The key lessons I learned is to stay focused on why you are there, try and keep your normal pre-race eating, drinking and sleeping habits even though you are away from home and make sure you enjoy the moment.
