Ah yes, Track Hack. It is just one of the many unique features of the indoor track season.
If you’ve ever run indoor track you probably know what I’m talking about. It’s that dry cough you get after running indoors. I find it especially potent after running an 800 meter race, but I’ve seen people hack away after running a two-mile, or have a coughing attack after a hard 400 meters or even a warm-up. It’s quite an epidemic, but you do get used to it. Freshmen especially suffer at first since many have never even seen an indoor track let alone raced on one. I recently met a girl originally from California who didn’t even know indoor tracks existed. She is now getting acquainted with the lovely aspects of indoor track, including the track hack.
Another thing about indoor track is just how many times you have to go around the dang thing. We are very lucky to run on some great 200 meter indoor tracks in the area like the ones at Proviso West, York, and North Central. But even these great facilities are eight laps to the mile, and I know athletes whose hips and shins get sore from all the tight turns. Of course it’s great to have the opportunity to race inside instead of being stuck out on ice all winter long, but the small tracks make me long for when we can finally get outside on a 400 meter track.
There are many other tracks that are even smaller than 200 meters. I know space and money come into play, so a 160 meter track is better than no track at all even if you have to run more laps.
What I don’t understand is odd distanced ovals like Glenbard East’s track. I think it’s something like 179 meters? They have a great fieldhouse and the people are really nice there, but the track is certainly unique. Maybe the engineers wanted the biggest possible track they could fit into the floor plan, but they didn’t consult “track people” about normal sizes. The outside of the track is right up against the wall and the long jump lane is on the track, so the jumps have to be done ahead of time. And the lap counts are all out of whack. I ran the 3200 there last year and I think it was the convenient 17 and 7/8 laps. To be completely honest, I lost track of the laps halfway through, but I think it ended up helping me. I just kept pushing because I thought we were almost done…even though we weren’t, but I ended up running a fast time. That made it fun even though there were so many laps.
Now all the slightly annoying things about indoor track always end up being worth it because it’s a nice way to get races in before the outdoor season. But let’s not forget there are some things we love that can only be found in indoor track.
With such tight space on the track indoors, and it often being cold or slippery outside, athletes are often stuck doing their warm-ups for races around the halls of the school. I know a lot of people who don’t like this, but I actually find it really fun to explore all the schools. I have favorite spots in all the schools where we run.
Additionally, in indoor track I’m always at a loss if I would rather run the 4x400 meter relay or cheer for it because both are amazing. Nothing’s better than running in an indoor 4x400 when all the teams line the track and are cheering so loud. My first meet freshman year I ran in the 4x400 at a co-ed meet and the fans were so crazy I couldn’t even run straight because it was so loud. However, I also love being one of the people to lead all the cheers and chants.
We recently had our first meet at Proviso West where I enjoyed running the 4x400 while my teammates chanted my nickname as I ran by. Last weekend we had a co-ed meet Friday night at St. Charles East and we came back Saturday morning for a meet at Downer’s Grove North. I want to send a shout-out to all my teammates who are probably sore and tired after this tough back-to-back. You guys did awesome! Also shout-out to my teammate Morgan Balog for finding her doppelganger at the St. Charles meet and taking a picture with him.
Hack on, my friends.