CHAPTER 8
It didn’t take long for Riley to make some friends on the swim team. And it didn’t take long for him to see why Mr. Casey was so excited to have him there. Before long, Riley loved the swim team.
There were a lot of very good swimmers on the team. When they worked on special strokes, like the breaststroke, backstroke, or butterfly, Riley was amazed at how good some of the other swimmers were.
When they worked on the freestyle, Riley could see there were two big holes on the team. There were several guys who could swim the middle distances well. Those were the 100-yard and 200-yard races.
The problem was, there wasn’t a great sprinter on the team for the 50-yard races. And most of the swimmers got tired before they finished the 400-yard races. The team needed a sprinter and a long-distance swimmer.
Riley decided he wanted to become the long-distance swimmer on the team. It took him some time in practice to work up to the 400-yard distance, but soon, no one could beat him. At the last practice before the first meet of the season, Riley won the 400-yard race by almost a full length of the pool.
“Now you see why I wanted you on the team,” Mr. Casey said after practice. “You were exactly what we needed. It’s just too bad we couldn’t convince Blake to join the team. We need a sprinter, too. Do you think he’d change his mind now that you’re on the team?”
“I don’t talk to him much,” Riley said.
* * *
The first swim meet was at another school on the other side of town. Riley felt nervous. The 400-yard race was one of the last events at the meet. The longer he waited, the more nervous he felt.
He watched the other swimmers in their events. His team was doing really well, but the meet was close — Riley knew he had to do well so that his team had a chance to win.
Before the 400-yard race began, Riley shook his legs out to keep his muscles loose. He stretched and re-stretched. Finally, it was time to step up on the blocks.
All the other swimmers on the team cheered as Riley got into position in the blocks. He smiled and waved at his team.
I can’t let them down, he thought.
When the horn sounded, Riley pushed himself off of the blocks and flew toward the water. His body hit the pool, and he felt all of his nervousness wash away. He was where he belonged.
Riley knew what he had to do to win the race. Just like in gym class, he started out slowly. He didn’t pay attention to the other swimmers. He just got comfortable in the water.
His stroke was long and smooth. His legs pumped evenly. He felt strong as he pushed through the water. Soon, he sped up.
After the first four lengths of the race, Riley was in third place. He was only about a half-length behind the leader. As the race wore on, he sped up more and more. He concentrated on keeping his stroke long and smooth.
With four lengths to go, Riley was in second place. He moved closer to the leader of the race. He knew it was time to really speed up.
Riley kicked harder. He sped up his stroke slightly. But the swimmer in first place was an experienced swimmer. Every time Riley sped up, the other swimmer sped up too. No matter what, Riley stayed in second place.
When there were two lengths of the pool left, Riley decided he couldn’t wait any longer. He used all of his strength. He caught up to the other swimmer by the final turn. When he pushed off the wall for the last length, he was slightly ahead.
Riley and the other swimmer raced to the touch pad at the end of the race. But Riley got there first.
He popped out of the water and took a deep breath. He had won his first race!
“Wooo!” his teammates called. “Great race!”
Mr. Casey grabbed Riley’s hand and helped him out of the pool. Then the rest of the team came over to congratulate him.
For the first time, Riley was the center of attention. He was a winner.