#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. Throughout the season, he shared his thoughts in this space.
Written 4-28-10
This past weekend’s UAA Outdoor Track Championships marked the closing of my freshman running season. It is such a crazy notion to have already completed three seasons of college running. I still remember my first practice eight months ago, running along the West Side Highway, wondering what the year would entail. Each season seemed so far away that I was only worried about making it through that first week of practice. Now that it is concluding, I cannot believe how quickly it came and went.
Cross country was such a growing experience and the first test of college running. The season was all about adapting; to high mileage, longer races, and having a team striving to be the best in the nation. I accomplished goals I never thought attainable, running workouts I thought I could never finish. Driving out to Nationals in Ohio and cheering on my teammates was one of the most memorable experiences. It showed the commitment of this team, from the runners competing that day to the ones there for support. It gave me the drive and motivation to make it back there next year and be a part of the magic of our team.
Having come from Florida, indoor track was an entirely new concept for me. I was excited, anxious, and curious about the whole season. It was a very new experience for me that I really enjoyed. Instead of waiting around for outdoor track to start, I suddenly had a new season to keep me occupied. I have heard great things about the Armory, and now I feel like it is a second home.
Even though I was not fully satisfied with my outdoor track season, it was still one marked by growth and development. Trying the steeplechase for the first time and racing it for most of the season was an awesome experience. It gave me a new event to try and see some success in. This season also challenged me more than the previous two as all the work I put in throughout the year was finally catching up with me. It tested my determination and will as I just had to fight through it and finish out the season strong. I learned that I can make it through the struggles of running, and how committed I am to this sport and this team.
With the year coming to a close and a break from running beginning, I am able to reflect on this year and next. I cannot wait to train hard over the summer and come back strong for cross country to help keep this team as one of the best in the nation. It has been great being able to share my thoughts on this blog over the past year and I thank you for reading it.
#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. He will be sharing his thoughts in this space throughout the season.
Written 4-13-10
Everybody has heard about a “runner’s high”, the feeling of euphoria when the mind, body and spirit seem to come together in harmony and make you remember why you started running in the first place. It is the feeling you get after a great run or an awesome race where you finally set a personal record.
However, no one seems to want to talk about the lows of running, even though they seem to occur more often than the highs. Your legs just aren’t feeling great that day, your mind is thinking about everything it has to do beside run, or you are just not feeling it that day. Whatever the reason, lows always plague runners. You beg to return to the runs where you felt like you were flying down the streets. It is a feeling of invincibility.
But, runners don’t start running because it is easy. We love a challenge. People already think we’re crazy for picking such a pain-inflicting sport. If running was easy, we’d get bored or find a way to make it more difficult even when we wish it was easier.
It is the lows of running that we learn the most about ourselves. Sure, the highs confirm that our training is paying off. But, it is the lows that remind us to keep working harder. We learn to persevere and, more importantly, how much we truly love the sport. Right when you’re on the brink of giving up, you remember why you started running. You remember those highs, and you know you could not see yourself not running.
It is a feeling that is stuck within us forever.
#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. He will be sharing his thoughts in this space throughout the season.
Written 4-8-10
Going from a large, established meet like the Raleigh Relays (at North Carolina State) to a small, first annual meet like the Roadrunner Invitational (at Ramapo College) allows us to gain new experiences from racing.
While the Raleigh Relays (featuring all Division I schools) taught us what it was like to race against top-notch competition, the Roadrunner Invitational (featuring Division III schools) gave us a better opportunity of actually leading and winning races. Smaller meets put us more in control, brings us down from the high of running against Division 1 competition and back to focusing on the high of winning races.
Coming off the motivation of watching some of our teammates run national best times at the Princeton Sam Howell Invitational (Friday, April 2) the day before, races were won and personal times set at Ramapo (April 3).
The transition from high school to college racing means going from being in the top of the field to the bottom of the field. Therefore, this race was reminiscent of high school, which gives me the motivation and reinforcement to keep on working hard until I am back at the top of the pack in all of my races.
We will have this opportunity once again Saturday at The College of New Jersey Invitational.
#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. He will be sharing his thoughts in this space throughout the season.
Written 3-30-10
Rain, wind, sun, and blue skies…it must be spring track season.
After a week of rigorous training in Florida for spring break, we opened the outdoor season last weekend at the Raleigh Relays hosted by North Carolina State University.
The weather became a factor I forgot to take into consideration after spending my first season with indoor track. Going from frigid, raining conditions on Friday to sunny, spring weather on Saturday, we ran with whatever was thrown at us.
The competition included top teams from Division I, schools such as UNC, Duke, Virginia, and Wake Forest. However, we did not let these schools deter our performance as personal records were set and NYU records fell, including the 4x1500m.
Opening our season with such a prestigious meet gave us experience that we can use as the season progresses. We now know what kind of shape we are in and the work we need to put in to peak at the end of the season.
It was a great start to an exciting outdoor track season.
#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. He will be sharing his thoughts in this space throughout the season.
Written 3-2-10
As the indoor track season is beginning to come to an end with our conference meet this weekend, I am able to reflect back on my first season of indoor track. It was definitely a new experience, one that I took in stride, had fun with and got the most out of.
At first, it seemed bizarre to be doing workouts and racing in January when, in high school in Florida, track didn’t start until March. But, I was certainty excited to get an extra season of track in, especially since running outside in 30-degree weather was not my idea of fun.
Instead, I grew accustomed to the glory of The Armory, got used to training on one of the best indoor tracks, and learned that there is a major difference between a banked track and a flat track. While racing nearly every weekend, I became more comfortable running on a 200-meter track verses a 400-meter track, and realizing that two laps to go really meant 400 meters left and not 800. Each race was a new test and a new adventure as I worked on improving with every event I ran, while also taking in the advice of my teammates and coaches.
I will come away as a more seasoned runner, finally experiencing my first indoor track season and surviving my first winter. The best part is, with outdoor track right around the corner, that means spring is approaching fast and a whole new experience is about to be born.
#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. He will be sharing his thoughts in this space throughout the season.
Written 2-2-10
Running, and especially racing, is a learning process, one that can never fully be mastered as new insights and abilities are found with each new race. In order to have a great day, you need to learn from the days that aren’t so great.
This past weekend at the Metropolitan Indoor Championships, we did not meet the high standards that we set for ourselves. Even though it is early in the season and a time where we are putting in hard workouts, we still expect great things from ourselves and from each other.
But sometimes, a race doesn’t always turn out the way we want it to. The important thing is to be able to look back on that race, figure out what went wrong and work to improve it. That way, the next time we race we are conscious of what made us falter the meet before. Then we need to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
We will take this past weekend as a learning and growing experience. We need to come back this week, train hard, keep focused, and look forward to the next race.
A long season awaits us, and we are just getting started.
#Kevin Bonilla# is a freshman on the NYU men's tack & field team. He will be sharing his thoughts in this space throughout the season.
Written 1-22-10
To the average person, there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference between cross country and track. Both involve running, so therefore people assume that they are the same. However, there are major differences that separate these two similar sports.
Cross country involves one race at one distance, a giant pack of runners moving over hills, grass and mud. Consider track the cleaner, more precise version. An all-day meet, track events range from the 60-meter hurdles to 5,000 meters, and even include field events such as shot put and pole vault. While it is harder to gauge times from one cross country course to another, there is no blaming a “bad course” for a slow time on a track. Some people like to think it keeps you honest.
My favorite difference about track and cross country is being able to watch your teammates compete. When your usual cross country pack is spread out among the various distance events of track, you are finally able to watch them run a race as you cheer them on from the sidelines, waiting anxiously for your race to begin. It opens up another aspect of your team and allows you the opportunity to see the training we all put in together pay off. It helps give you the energy, motivation and confidence to succeed. We learn from each other by watching each other race. And for a kid from Florida where winter meant 75 degrees and no racing until March, I am in for a whole new experience running and watching my first indoor track season.
