Trackstar Antelope

Trackstar Antelope Volume 41

"M-Maku? Are you okay?" I say, soothingly. He turns around, with a bright smile on his face.

"Who, me?" he cheerfully calls out. "Of course, I am Jamel. It was just some silly interview after all. Besides, I have three State Championship titles under my belt. They'll make up their mind once I win a fourth".

Well, I admire his persistence and optimism, I guess.

"Anyway, we should get to training. How about we race each other on the grass oval?" Maku asks me. I perk my head up in interest. Grass? I did practically all my training on grass, because Whigata doesn't even have an athletics track. "They don't have an actual track here. I know, pretty pathetic. But I guess it shouldn't matter what surface we run on either. Grass, sand, rubber track, asphalt; it shouldn't slow us down".

"Well, I guess you're right..." I say, interested in a race. My results on the athletics track are pretty similar to the grass results, so I guess I won't fall too far behind

"Wait a minute..." Kevin calls out. He and Sam walk over to us "Jamel, you're gonna race Maku right now?"

"Well, we're gonna face each other on Wednesday, so it's good to do a practice race now" Maku tells them. "Besides... if he could beat Sam in a race, I'm sure he would be good competition".

Sam grumbles in response. I agree, that was a bit rude of him. But I definitely could race against him. If I win against him, I'll be hailed as a champion, but if I lose, then I'll still be congratulated. Plus, I'll get to know how he runs.

The four of us walk outside of the gym, where everyone's getting set up for their training. I can see everyone doing stretches, while Maku explains the race to me.

"One lap, around this oval. Winner is the one who touches this bag on the way around" Maku says as he places his bag on the ground.

I look around the oval. This thing has to be about two, maybe two and a half track laps long.

"Ready?" Maku says, as I turn back to him. He's already in his starter position.

"Y-yeah..." I say. I crouch down into my starter position too. All I can really do is try my hardest and have fun.

Chapter 386: Me and Maku; racing at last!

"Sam, count us off, would ya?" Maku calls out for him. Sam is standing off to the side, and I notice a few others watching us as they stretch.

"Alright, on your marks... get set" Sam replies... I don't know why, but I've never felt so prepared for a race, even if it was only called a few minutes ago...

"Go!" he yells out. Maku and I are quick to move out of the positions and quickly move off around the oval. If I remember correctly from what Sam and Kevin told me, Maku likes to start off slow, though builds up momentum, before using the final lap to rush further in the lead. So, I'm sure it will be neck and neck for about three quarters of the way, before he speeds off to the finish.

I can hear him taking short and sharp breaths while he runs, just behind me. He's probably saving energy before he boosts on ahead. I can feel myself running faster than what I usually do, so I must be having a great day!

I slowly hear Maku's breathing get quieter and quieter. Maybe he's getting used to the running and he's controlling his air intake more. I'm tempted to turn around and see how far behind he is, but I can't afford to lose what little lead I have now. The longer I'm in front, the better the reaction will be when I cross the line.

I'm at the halfway mark, and I can see and hear Sam, Kevin and a few others cheering us on in the distance. I must be a few meters ahead of Maku, because I can barely even hear him anymore. All I need to do is focus on my own running. No one or nothing else should be in my mindset, other than how I'm running. I've got nothing to lose if I beat Maku or not, and that's the fun behind doing this event.