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Third-grader Jonathan Taylor ran a 6:40 mile Wednesday. That’d likely best all but the most hard-core grown-up runners. Today it was just good enough for ninth place.
That’s the vibe at this beloved Wake County tradition. Everyone tries their best. If they win or place, great! If not, also great! “We tell them, ‘No. 1, have a great time,’” says Cindi Parker, the physical education teacher at Yates Mill for the past six years. “They left school knowing they're a winner. When they come out here and do their best, that's all we could ever ask for.”
Each competitor was the best in their event for their gender and grade level at their school. Winners, indeed. December try-outs led to two 30-minute sessions per week with the competitors through January and February, aided by parent volunteers.
March 21, 2016
Third-grader Jonathan Taylor ran a 6:40 mile Wednesday. That’d likely best all but the most hard-core grown-up runners. Today it was just good enough for ninth place.
Jonathan, who attends Yates Mill Elementary (see photo at bottom), was competing against the top mile-runners from about 20 southern area Wake County elementary schools in the 34th annual First in Fitness track and field event
But Jonathan wasn’t bothered by not placing in the race against the cream of the third-grade crop. He doesn’t run for the ribbons. “Running helps me in other sports,” he says. “Like, I’m a fan of tag. I don't want to get hit.”
That’s the vibe at this beloved Wake County tradition. Everyone tries their best. If they win or place, great! If not, also great! “We tell them, ‘No. 1, have a great time,’” says Cindi Parker, the physical education teacher at Yates Mill for the past six years. “They left school knowing they're a winner. When they come out here and do their best, that's all we could ever ask for.”
Each competitor was the best in their event for their gender and grade level at their school. Winners, indeed. December try-outs led to two 30-minute sessions per week with the competitors through January and February, aided by parent volunteers.The stands Wednesday were filled with school teams wearing matching shirts, their coaches and plenty of parents. There’s a buzz of excitement, but not tension. “First in Fitness is just the best,” Parker says, “It's a competition where we get to celebrate everything that's great about athletics - sportsmanship, encouraging each other as a team, effort, trying to do your best.
Yates Mill had two pairs of siblings competing in the same event. Jonathan’s older brother Jacob, a 5th grader, also ran the mile. He holds the school record this year with a time of 6:03, but didn’t fare quite as well today. Was he disappointed? “Well, no, not really,” he said.
Sisters Jazzi and Sammi Lazer (below, with Jacob and Jonathan) represented Yates Mill in the pull-up competition, 3rd and 4th grade, respectively. Jazzi matched her personal best of 7, while Sammi, who’d been battling illness, only mustered two. Was she disappointed? “Not really,” she said, almost as if she didn’t quite understand the question.
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First in Fitness 2016
Posted by Wake County Public School System on Monday, March 14, 2016
