Hey ya’ll! You know how it goes..Kendall Ellis here with my weekly blog. I promise I’ll start switching it up. Last week STA’s dual meet at Hallandale got rained out, just like the seniors got rained on at Grad Day. Unfortunate. But no worries, we still managed to get that work in at our own track and the seniors made the best of Grad Day. Last weekend we had an optional meet at the Miramar Invitational. Your girl got a break and did not participate, but was out there supporting.
Last Saturday was in fact my 18th birthday and I appreciate the birthday wishes and those who celebrated with me. It was a nice break but it’s time to get back to work because we all know the grind never stops. This week Saint Thomas has a dual meet at South Plantation and this weekend we’ll be going to Jacksonville for Bob Hayes.
I love going out of town. The last minute packing (and when I say last minute I do mean that morning), going out to dinner with the team, the bus ride up there, it’s just fun. It’s the ultimate bonding time with teammates and my coaches. Speaking of coaches, I love mine to the fullest. So much so, I even brought them the rest of my birthday cookie cake. That’s real love when you share food, especially cookie cake. It’s important to have confidence in your coaches. The same confidence I put in Coach Armenteros and his training is the same confidence he puts in me and my abilities. A few weeks ago I was stopped at a meet and was asked, “Who coaches you ladies at Saint Thomas? You guys are looking really good this year”. It says something about an athlete-coach relationship when you can respond with pride, “Alex Armenteros. He’s a great coach”. It’s sad to think that I’ll be graduating and won’t get to be around my coaches every day but they’ll always be an integral part of my life for years to come.
Over the summer and throughout the year I’ve learned some important aspects of the sport. Your competition can in fact be your friend. Hate on your competition all you want but at the end of the day it won’t change what they’re doing. From personal experience I know it’s not the easiest and most natural thing to do, but once you figure it out it’s such a blessing. One of my biggest competitors in South Florida is Deja Parrish from American Heritage. She’s been my rival since I was 7 years old. I can say this girl made me run my little heart out and still does. We were never really friends but we were always cordial. We’d speak, a wave here or there, but definitely never anything hateful or malicious between us, no dirty looks, no stares, none of that because it’s never necessary. We just didn’t talk because we were each other’s competition. Who wants to be BFFs with the girl who’s trying to beat them? But over the summer that all changed during our recruiting process. As the top two quarter milers in the state Deja and I were recruited by a lot of the same schools. We were going through the same thing and it helped a lot to have someone knowing how you feel. We really became good friends over summer, sharing laughs and advice. Track conversation turned into regular conversation and I can now say that Deja and I are good friends, even though we’re still competition. Trust me there’s no harm in being friends, our performances on the track haven’t suffered any because of it.
Even more recent, last weekend at the Miramar Invitational, Deja, Erin Ford, and I were in a circle just talking. Imagine that - some of the best quarter horses in the state holding friendly conversation. It was a cute sight to see and reiterates my point that you should love your competition; they push you to be the best you can be and there’s no harm in having a friend with a common bond.
That’s all for this week. Follow me on instagram and twitter to see pictures and videos from our trip this weekend @kandii_kendall. Good luck in your training and upcoming meets and remember to go for the gold. Why? Because victory is best served gold.
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