This summer, I attended Nike Cross Country Camp of Champions at Stanford University for five days. During the program, we had set schedules which included morning runs, breakfast, free time to hang out and see the campus, guest speakers, lunch, strengthening drills on the track, team building games/activities and dinner. On the first day we were assigned to groups and we got to design a poster with our group number and a motto, that was fun. We also played a game where our groups had to get in the correct order of what was called out. For example, getting in order from shortest to tallest and oldest to youngest. On the third night, we had trivia night and we split up into our teams to work together to get the correct answers. I felt like besides running, these activities brought us closer together because we could bond even if we had different mile times. Although the program was short, I learned valuable lessons throughout the program, whether it be about running or college life. The guest speakers talked about not being afraid to fail, to see every meet as an opportunity, and to not let your goals threaten you. I thought the last one was very interesting because our goals aren't supposed to be threatening, but they broke it down if I remember correctly. Sometimes we have this one goal on our mind and it's stuck there looming over us so it affects our performance. Because of that, we won't reach our goal. I think the main idea is to run with a clear mind and be confident. We had a college student panel (they happened to be our counselors) on one of the last few days and as the session grew longer I started to realize how much time and dedication these runners put into this sport. They are truly invested in cross country and track and hearing them speak so passionately about their successes and bumps in the road were one of my favorite things about this experience. I also got to meet some pretty cool campers from around the world who are also really passionate about cross country and track, which was nice to experience. They’ve taught me that we are never too young to start something and work to be good at it. All of it almost felt surreal; running on the Stanford track was a great privilege. I really enjoyed this camp and I would definitely recommend it. Thank you to Wishbone, donors, and Ms. Estrada for supporting me this summer, I truly had a great time!

I am very nervous but at the same time very excited to begin these 4-5 days of cross country at Stanford. Running has become a new interest of mine, and I have to admit, I'm mostly nervous about how much I can push myself physically. I'm excited because this is a different academic setting than I'm used to, so there will be a lot to learn and grow from. I would like to thank everyone who donated to give me this exciting opportunity!

Thank you so much for your support in providing funding for Megan to attend the Nike Cross Country Camp of Champions. I know she will use this experience to further pursue her passion of running. She is excited to begin her summer program. Megan will without a doubt take advantage of this opportunity to grow as a young adult and student.