Rice University Athletics
Tomorrow's Leaders: Khayla Patel
Dear Cross Country
10/24/2019 1:27:00 PM | Blog, Tomorrow's Leaders
Dear Cross Country,
Every single time I put my uniform on and pull the Rice R over my head, an unmatched rush of adrenaline takes over. That feeling, putting on the R jersey, is unmatched and one of the greatest feelings in the world. To me, what makes running with the R on my chest even more special is that I never thought that running at a D-1 school would be possible. Cross Country has shaped me into the person I am today, something I want to say "Thank you" for. My life has changed through cross country and it's been a long and fruitful journey since the beginning. I started running as a freshman in high school, but my goal was to meet new people and make new friends for the coming year. When I showed up to my first practice of the season, I didn't know anything about cross country. How do you run? Is it just jogging, but faster? What makes cross country different from other sports? The answers to those questions came quickly, just like my enjoyment for the sport. At the end of my first week of practice, we ran a mile time trial. To my surprise, I realized that I enjoyed the sport and I kept working hard the rest of the season, even qualifying for the state meets in both cross country and track. The experience of being a state qualifier as a freshman has been invaluable, especially as I progress through my collegiate career and run at bigger and bigger meets. My goal was to meet new people and make friends.
With being a freshman, all of the other girls that I raced against knew so much more about the sport than I did. They could rattle off the names and accomplishments of famous runners or talk succinctly about their diet or what their mileage and training programs looked like. After my freshman year, that's when I decided to start researching more about cross country and running, in an effort to improve my performances and become more aware of the environment and "Runner's World" that I was entering. During my junior year, I started receiving letters and emails from college coaches, recruiting me to run for them in college. I was shocked. I had never realized that I might have the opportunity to continue what doing what I love, running cross country, for four more years.It was a dream opportunity, one that I had no idea how far it could take me. Starting my collegiate career at Rice was surreal; in four years I'd gone from a wide-eyed freshman who didn't know anything about cross country to competing collegiately at a D-1 school. Freshman year was so exciting and different. I was the youngest runner on the team, someone who didn't know much about time management, navigating new kinds of workouts, or how to manage getting acclimated to a new set of teammates. But I had so many upperclassmen to look up to, all of whom helped ease the transition to Rice. There were good days and there were not as good days. Racing was my escape, a chance to get in the zone and not have to think about the paper due in a week or the exam that was scheduled for Monday. My teammates were the key, every time I had a bad race, every time I just wanted to curl up into a ball and cry, they helped me back up or let me lean on them for support.That aspect of cross country is my favorite and the most important, being able to form connections with people who love the same things that you do and help you become the best version of yourself that you can be; it's beautiful. There will always be days that aren't filled with smiles and sunshine. And that's okay. It's how you come back from those days that defines you and your teammates are crucial to that.
Together, you share so much. You share the sweat of summer workouts, the tears of a disappointing race, and the blood from falling down and getting back up. Coming together with a team to fight through the pain and experience the thrills of a great race is an unmatched feeling, one I will cherish for a long time. The lessons I've gleaned from cross country will stay with me forever. If I could go back in time and give advice to my freshman self, my advice would be simple: Challenge yourself. Getting out of your comfort zone is necessary to develop as a person and an athlete. Be okay with being uncomfortable. That's how you grow. Cross country has led me to some unforgettable experiences and taught me amazing lessons. Through cross country, my wildest dreams have turned into reality. I never thought that I'd receive so much love and support from a sport. So, to cross country, I have one thing to say: Thank you. Thank you for bringing people into my life who have made me a better person. Thank you for making me understand the true meaning of passion, determination, grit, hard work, and gratitude.
Thank you,
Khayla Patel
Every single time I put my uniform on and pull the Rice R over my head, an unmatched rush of adrenaline takes over. That feeling, putting on the R jersey, is unmatched and one of the greatest feelings in the world. To me, what makes running with the R on my chest even more special is that I never thought that running at a D-1 school would be possible. Cross Country has shaped me into the person I am today, something I want to say "Thank you" for. My life has changed through cross country and it's been a long and fruitful journey since the beginning. I started running as a freshman in high school, but my goal was to meet new people and make new friends for the coming year. When I showed up to my first practice of the season, I didn't know anything about cross country. How do you run? Is it just jogging, but faster? What makes cross country different from other sports? The answers to those questions came quickly, just like my enjoyment for the sport. At the end of my first week of practice, we ran a mile time trial. To my surprise, I realized that I enjoyed the sport and I kept working hard the rest of the season, even qualifying for the state meets in both cross country and track. The experience of being a state qualifier as a freshman has been invaluable, especially as I progress through my collegiate career and run at bigger and bigger meets. My goal was to meet new people and make friends.
With being a freshman, all of the other girls that I raced against knew so much more about the sport than I did. They could rattle off the names and accomplishments of famous runners or talk succinctly about their diet or what their mileage and training programs looked like. After my freshman year, that's when I decided to start researching more about cross country and running, in an effort to improve my performances and become more aware of the environment and "Runner's World" that I was entering. During my junior year, I started receiving letters and emails from college coaches, recruiting me to run for them in college. I was shocked. I had never realized that I might have the opportunity to continue what doing what I love, running cross country, for four more years.It was a dream opportunity, one that I had no idea how far it could take me. Starting my collegiate career at Rice was surreal; in four years I'd gone from a wide-eyed freshman who didn't know anything about cross country to competing collegiately at a D-1 school. Freshman year was so exciting and different. I was the youngest runner on the team, someone who didn't know much about time management, navigating new kinds of workouts, or how to manage getting acclimated to a new set of teammates. But I had so many upperclassmen to look up to, all of whom helped ease the transition to Rice. There were good days and there were not as good days. Racing was my escape, a chance to get in the zone and not have to think about the paper due in a week or the exam that was scheduled for Monday. My teammates were the key, every time I had a bad race, every time I just wanted to curl up into a ball and cry, they helped me back up or let me lean on them for support.That aspect of cross country is my favorite and the most important, being able to form connections with people who love the same things that you do and help you become the best version of yourself that you can be; it's beautiful. There will always be days that aren't filled with smiles and sunshine. And that's okay. It's how you come back from those days that defines you and your teammates are crucial to that.
Together, you share so much. You share the sweat of summer workouts, the tears of a disappointing race, and the blood from falling down and getting back up. Coming together with a team to fight through the pain and experience the thrills of a great race is an unmatched feeling, one I will cherish for a long time. The lessons I've gleaned from cross country will stay with me forever. If I could go back in time and give advice to my freshman self, my advice would be simple: Challenge yourself. Getting out of your comfort zone is necessary to develop as a person and an athlete. Be okay with being uncomfortable. That's how you grow. Cross country has led me to some unforgettable experiences and taught me amazing lessons. Through cross country, my wildest dreams have turned into reality. I never thought that I'd receive so much love and support from a sport. So, to cross country, I have one thing to say: Thank you. Thank you for bringing people into my life who have made me a better person. Thank you for making me understand the true meaning of passion, determination, grit, hard work, and gratitude.
Thank you,
Khayla Patel
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