If people only knew what I listened to while running

"Everyday is a good day when you run."

-Kevin Nelson

If people actually knew what I listened to when I was running they would think I was crazy.  I listen to my music blasting loud, the loudest setting available without deafening myself.  I need music that has a fast beat, a lot of bass, and from time to time a few curse words.  I should invent in App where runners can share their playlists- except then everyone around me would be appalled.  

I don't think there was an exact date or time when I started running competitively.  I was an active child, god bless my parents for carting me around to various practices, typically two different sports per night all throughout middle and high school.  Looking back now, I'm not sure how they did it and still managed to have a life of their own.  My mom never missed a single game or event I ever participated in until college when I was too far.  Oh, except that one basketball game where I finally scored my first ever basket.  I've forgiven her for that, I was treated with a lobster dinner :) Thanks mom and dad!

I started playing soccer at the age of 5 which was the first organized sport I ever participated in.  There was a lot of running, or if you're familiar with 5 year old's playing soccer, there is a lot of chasing.  I'm sure I ran around like a goon with the rest of the kids; I distinctly remember the time they made me play goalie, I was so bored I was doing cartwheels.  I'm a busy body, what can I say.  As I got older I learned how fast a runner I was.  I could out-sprint any of the girls on my team.  And my endurance was surprising to even myself.  Running sprints, running a mile, running up and down the field I was fast and I was proud.  I hated basketball, one because I was short and two because there wasn't enough room to run.  The court was too short and I didn't have the best ball handling skills.  

It wasn't until my senior year of high school that I began running competitively.  I had suffered too many concussions and injuries to be cleared to play any "contact" sports and because I loved running and needed something to do with my time, I chose to join the track team.  I excelled fairly quickly.  Within the first 4months my 4x800 running team qualified for the New England Invitational and I placed top 10 in the state of Vermont for 50 yard dash.  And although I was short, I did pretty well at high jump too, clearing 5'10" while I only stood at 5'2".  

I ran my first marathon when I was a senior in high school.  When I got to college I was recruited to play lacrosse and because my past medical records weren't required to be released to the university, I played.  Unfortunately during spring training in Florida my freshmen year, I fractured my pelvis and was forced to take some time off.  Once recovered I joined the rugby team where my speed was my weapon.  You couldn't get passed me.  My senior year of college I fractured my face in 3 places.  Maybe you're beginning to sense a trend with my injuries, hence why running turned out to be the best activity for me. 

It turned out that running was a strength of mine.  It never really required much effort, just loud, obnoxious music to fuel the mileage.  Running became an outlet- a delightful activity with a chaotic mix of loud sounds.  If you only knew what I listened to while I was running.