Personal Narrative: Cross-Country Ski Team

I wanted to kill my brother. Without my consent, he had just signed me up to compete for the position of captain on my cross-country ski team. I know what you’re thinking. There’s nothing wrong with being a ski captain; it would provide me the chance to prove my leadership abilities. However, I was indecisive. On one hand, my running coach had told me I had leadership potential, but on the other hand, I wasn’t prepared to compete with the two more popular candidates. Could I do this? The head ski coach stood up and introduced the first candidate. Like me, the kid had second thoughts about his campaign, and he immediately dropped out. It was my turn. I had to give a speech. My hands were sweaty. My mind went blank. All eyes were on me as, in a moment of panic, I stammered that I also wished to withdraw. Instant relief washed over me like an unyielding wave flooding the beach; I didn’t have to give a speech or face the disappointment …show more content…
The assistant coach told us to start boarding the bus, then asked for help loading the waxing benches, blanket tubs, and other miscellaneous ski gear. I promptly dropped my bag and grabbed a stack of bins, asking where they should go. As I headed out towards the bus, I realized I didn’t see any of the captains helping. Besides being in charge of regions gifts (presents for the girls’ ski team at regions), assisting the coaches with gear on race day was the only duty of a captain. Once the gear was all loaded, I found most of them lounging on the toasty bus. At the race, a few of the captains pitched in; but again, it was a few unsung heroes (including me) doing their work. We erected the tent in the cold, windy, Alaskan morning, while everyone else was relaxing and sleeping in the warm chalet. I was really regretting my decision to withdraw from the captain elections; I wanted to be seen as a dependable leader by the coaches and my teammates, not as some unknown