A goose-bump moment at a middle-school meet

HIAWATHA -- Sometimes, the real story of a race happens back in the pack, far away from the leaders and the award winners.I attended a middle-school cross country meet Wednesday at Guthridge Park (my seventh-grade son competes for Harding). The boys' race consisted of, say, 40 kids of all sizes and abilities from the six Cedar Rapids middle schools.After the gun went off and the scramble for positioning ensued, it was clear that there was a definite straggler. While most of the boys sprinted out of the starting box, a boy from McKinley took off in a labored jog. With each stride he took, the rest of the runners -- even the second-to-last runner -- were inattainably further from view.Most of the race, he ran (and sometimes walked) alone.But not all of the race. Not the end of the race.After his more swift, more talented teammates finished, a few backtracked to support him. They weren't the only ones.As the boy ran through the south end of the park, past the tennis courts and through the trees by the splash pad, his entourage included the entire girls' team from Taft.They jogged along, clapping and cheering, encouraging and pleading for the boy to keep going.He did. Two miles and 26 minutes after starting, the boy finished. On his own.But not alone.** A related story from Sports Illustrated's Rick Reilly, 2003:

Worth The Wait **