Track and Field
I LOVE TRACK, even though I'm not in it. There are two reasons for that:
#1 - It hurts really bad when you round that second curve - only halfway around.
#2 - My sweet old track coach isn't at our school anymore.
Even if you're not athletic, there has to be something for you. In the field events, we have shot put, where you throw a heavy metal ball as far as you can. Then, we have discus, where you throw a metal disc as far as you can, like the ancient Greek did at the Olympics. If you are athletic, the field events include the triple jump, where you take three steps and jump as far as you can. The long jump is where you run and jump as far as you can. High jump is where you run a semicircle up to a mat and jump over a high rope. Polevaulting is where you vault over a high bar with a, well, pole. I tried vaulting, and, not to scare you, almost snapped my back. It hurt REALLY bad when I landed.
For the runner, you can run the 400 (1 lap around track; quarter of a mile), the 800 (2 laps; half a mile), 1200 (3 laps; three quarters of a mile), or 1600 (4 laps; FULL MILE). Those are for distance runners, who can run a long time without getting a stitch (that was my problem) and can pace themselves.
For sprinting, you'll have to be able to run fast for short distances. The events are: the 100 (1 full curve or one straight), the 200 (half a lap), the 300 (three quarters of a lap), or the 600 (one and a half laps).
Relays include the 4 by 4 (1 lap per person; 4 people) and the 3200 (2 laps per person; 4 people).
Have fun!
#1 - It hurts really bad when you round that second curve - only halfway around.
#2 - My sweet old track coach isn't at our school anymore.
Even if you're not athletic, there has to be something for you. In the field events, we have shot put, where you throw a heavy metal ball as far as you can. Then, we have discus, where you throw a metal disc as far as you can, like the ancient Greek did at the Olympics. If you are athletic, the field events include the triple jump, where you take three steps and jump as far as you can. The long jump is where you run and jump as far as you can. High jump is where you run a semicircle up to a mat and jump over a high rope. Polevaulting is where you vault over a high bar with a, well, pole. I tried vaulting, and, not to scare you, almost snapped my back. It hurt REALLY bad when I landed.
For the runner, you can run the 400 (1 lap around track; quarter of a mile), the 800 (2 laps; half a mile), 1200 (3 laps; three quarters of a mile), or 1600 (4 laps; FULL MILE). Those are for distance runners, who can run a long time without getting a stitch (that was my problem) and can pace themselves.
For sprinting, you'll have to be able to run fast for short distances. The events are: the 100 (1 full curve or one straight), the 200 (half a lap), the 300 (three quarters of a lap), or the 600 (one and a half laps).
Relays include the 4 by 4 (1 lap per person; 4 people) and the 3200 (2 laps per person; 4 people).
Have fun!
