It was a hot day, and a hot race at the Aurora City Championships.
Luke Sundberg hovered 10 feet beyond the finish line, still breathing from the effort. The sun beat down on his face and tiny drips of sweat dropped from his chin. Despite finishing just a minute or so before, he was already up on his feet, bright red spikes still on, giving high-fives and hugs to the long line of competitors who were crossing the finish line.
The bodies of the many who he just vanquished dropped to the bright green grass, sprawled out, and sucked in sweet, sweet (hot) air in defeat. But Sundberg was quick to give them a hand, help them back up on their feet, and direct them toward shady spots nearby, which there weren't many. It was hovering just under 90 degrees in Aurora Thursday afternoon, which seems fitting for the first race of the 2018 season, when it's still clearly summer.
Sundberg was the first winner of the 2018 season, and his act of camaraderie highlighted the day. We've got over two months of racing ahead of us, and clearly, we'll all need a hand getting up from the grass, and help finding some shade at some point.
Sunberg's victory was dominating, and it wasn't the only impressive performance of the day. There were repeats and new winners, and all in all, an exciting start to the season.
On that note...
Aurora is the ancient Roman goddess of the dawn, naturally, it does makes sense that Aurora - the city - held their City Championships at dawn of the 2018 cross country season.
Next Page: Sundberg highlights, and Smoky Hill takes the team W