The Meet of Champions

By: Stuart McLaughlin

Last Saturday, Regis, along with 48 other teams from 1A to 4A, competed in the Meet of Champions. This meet is already one of the most competitive events that Regis attends each year, but this year it was even tougher. Unlike last year, the Oregon Relays—a major meet that usually runs at the same time—wasn’t happening, which meant that all the top athletes in the state were able to compete at the Meet of Champions. As a result, not only were the entry standards higher, but the finishing times were incredibly fast.
Unfortunately, I was the only athlete from Regis competing this year, but it was still an amazing experience, especially the 3k. It was an unbelievably fast race with two meet records broken. Clayton Wilson from Siuslaw ran a phenomenal 8:38, and Carter Bengtson followed with an equally impressive 8:48. I ran a decent time of 9:53, which was a 7-second improvement from last year, even with more tired legs. I'm proud of the progress and grateful for the opportunity. I am especially grateful to Coach Bauer and Coach Wiltsey for coming to the meet just to support me.