I’ve always been told to push myself to new levels. To go hard or go home. To reach for the stars and no dream is ever too big. For someone to accomplish such high goals and compete to their best ability, they have to run against the best. 
Fortunately I have had the privilege of training and running with the best. Ever since I began my high school season I have been able to race, compete, and practice with some of the best runners in Illinois.
Running at St.T. and being on a team with so much talent is unreal. To be a member of a three time winning state championship team is still unbelievable to me. I can honestly say that I would not be the runner I am today without the help of my other teammates. As much as we come together as a team you better believe we have our own competitions amongst one another.
During my first two years a lot of that competition came from my sister, Ellen. Personally I don’t think anyone understands this until they have a sibling on the team. Yes, sibling rivalries, I love my sister, but we had our fair share of battles on the course. My favorite memory of running with my sister was the one time I beat her at a dual meet at Taylorville! It was the only time I beat her in a race. She made sure it never happened again. Let’s just say it was a quiet ride home... and a quiet two weeks after that. We always challenged each other, whether it was the first to the mile, or first up the hill. We always had that competitive drive.
One of our favorite meets together was El Paso. Both Ellen and I have a thing for the more challenging courses. For those of you who are not familiar with the El Paso course here’s a few things you might want to prepare for if you ever run there: 1.) Hills, it’s not a course of constant hills but you can be sure that they will pop up when you least expect it. 2.) Mudslides, yes everyone’s favorite mudslide that hits us within a half mile into the race that if you’re not one of the first ones there good luck! And last but not least 3.) The four times you cross Panther Creek!! As refreshing as some of these crossings are, they sometimes are a little deeper than you think, what you think is going to be a small splash might actually have you being knee deep and taking a bath. Even though some people may think of this course as a giant nightmare, Ellen and I always looked at it as a chance to push ourselves to the next level. For the last four years now a Devereux has won this meet.
But no matter what place we finished, we always tried to better ourselves and push each other to reach our goals. My sister set some records while she ran at St. T, but my goal is to break them. When everything is said and done, I would not be the runner I am today without the competition and support. She’s not only my older sister and best friend, she’s my role model and one of the reasons I started running. Ellen, this blog goes out to you. Thanks for being my mentor, my competitor and my friend, but most of all, thanks for being my big sis. Who knows, maybe we will compete against each other in college. You never know!
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