(Left) Senior Elizabeth Healy competes during an early season meet. Healy also runs cross-country and holds multiple school records. (Right) Sophomore Joshua Elmenshawi winding up for a discus throw. Elmneshawi also plays for Riverside’s football team. Photos by Bryan Vo.
By Cullen McAllister, Diego Juares-Velazquez & Jamari Murphy
Track meets are a test of endurance, not only in races but also during the long waits between events.
Downtime is crucial for track athletes to recover. However, too much can render them unfocused and improperly prepared for their next race.
“It’s like 30 seconds of running versus an hour of not,” said senior runner Meheret Johnston-Krase, who runs the 200m.
Runners must strategically balance and split their downtime between supporting teammates and locking in for their next event.
A typical track meet lasts between 3 and 6 hours. The structure alternates sprinting events with distance events to give runners a break of at least one event between their runs, but the breaks are often much longer.
“I’ve probably waited like seven hours because I’ve run the first and last event,” said senior distance runner Connor Tyrell.
Many athletes have routines to stay fueled and ready during meets. Tyrell eats Pop-Tarts, while Johnson-Craist prefers Goldfish or gummies.
Senior distance runner Elizabeth Healy sticks to a granola bar and Gatorade to stay energized. She also likes to cheer on teammates during their events.
“It’s definitely tough to find the balance between running around and cheering them on, but also trying to stay rested,” she said. “Track’s nice compared to cross country in the sense that you can stay on one side of the track, but also cheer them on.”
When she’s not cheering, Healey’s either participating in team stretches or doing solo stretches to stay loose.
But most track athletes tend to appreciate it. Every athlete interviewed told The Pirates’ Hook they were satisfied with the current structure of track meets, stating they wouldn’t make any changes to the existing downtime schedule.
But Healy said the balance can be tricky. Too much time to relax can lead to restlessness and a loss of focus, while too little can leave runners feeling underprepared and fatigued.
“With too much downtime, I end up getting tired,” Healey said.
