Relay Revenge

Mr. Deltoid was waiting for us at the next event on the blacktop, where white chalked lanes ended at the fence.

“Welcome to the relay race, kids!” he said. “Listen up! The first person on your team will run up to the fence and back for a distance of one hundred yards. After you tag your partner’s hand, your partner will run up and back. Whichever team finishes first wins! The South School record for running two hundred yards is thirty-seven seconds. If you miss the fence, you must go back and touch it. Got it?”

“Got it!” lots of us answered.

I wasn’t happy about Sidney and Ida lining up next to us. Sid and Harry were not a good mix right now.

“You run first, Doug,” Harry said. “I want to be the anchorman.”

“Are you sure?” I replied. I noticed Sid was anchorman too. Leaving those two side by side bothered me.

“Definitely,” Harry insisted.

“On your mark,” the teacher yelled. I got ready to run.

“Get set!”

I faced the fence, wondering what Harry might be up to. Did he have a plan I didn’t know about?

“GO!”

I took off!

My eyes were looking straight ahead at that chain-link fence. The steel wire loops were sparking in the sun. I couldn’t wait to touch them so I could turn around and check on Harry!

I could hear him cheering. “WAY TO RUN, DOUGO!”

As I approached the fence, I came in sideways for a landing so that way I wouldn’t lose one second turning around.

Schwisssssssh!

I hit the chain-link fence and raced back toward the other direction. I could see Harry waiting for me at the finish line! I had to get to him before he did anything stupid to Sidney!

I could see my competition as they raced for the fence. ZuZu had a good lead in second place; Song Lee and Ida followed.

Halfway back, my eyes focused on Harry. His hand was waving at me as he waited for my tag. Sidney was kneeling down doing something.

Smack! I slapped his palm, and Harry took off!

Phew! What trouble could he get into now? I had given Harry a really good lead, and he was increasing it.

As I watched Harry accelerate, I noticed his left shoelaces were flapping up and down. I know his shoelaces had been tied before we started the race, so that could only mean . . .

Sidney LaFleur!

That rat! He untied Harry’s shoe!

Harry started to stumble, then looked at his feet and stopped in his tracks. Furiously, he started retying his left shoe. I counted the seconds it took him to do it.

One Mississippi . . .

Two Mississippi . . .

ZuZu tagged Dexter, who took off in his lane! Seconds later, Sidney followed.

Four Mississippi . . .

Dexter caught up with Harry, then whizzed by him.

Five Mississippi!

Six Mississippi! Dexter was almost at the fence.

Seven . . . Now Sid passed Harry.

At last, Harry lunged forward. His shoe was tied! He was a good fifteen yards behind Dexter, but he was gaining on Sid.

Suddenly, Mr. Deltoid called Dexter’s name. He had missed the fence! Dexter had to stop, turn around, and touch it again. What a break!

Harry easily passed Sid, then approached the fence sideways. He lost no time changing directions.

“GO, HARRY, GO!” I yelled.

Everybody was cheering for their partner except Ida.

Dexter was ten yards ahead of Harry, but Harry was gaining speed!

Then Dexter did what good runners never do. He turned around to see who was behind him.

Harry!

He was sprinting toward him! Sid was farther away.

It was going to be close! Very close!

I stepped aside to give Harry room. ZuZu did the same thing for Dexter.

Both boys shot across the finish line!

“TIE for first!” Mr. Deltoid yelled, and clicked his timer. “Forty-three seconds!”

Dexter and ZuZu high-fived.

Harry and I did a knuckle tap as Sid crossed the finish line.

Mr. Deltoid came over to congratulate us. “That was an amazing run! But next time tie your shoes better!”

Harry nodded. He never tattled on anyone. Not even Sid, who ended up placing second with Ida in the relay race.

“Well, Harry,” Mr. Deltoid said. “It was a great race, but you and Doug could have set a new record! That’s too bad.” He walked away, shaking his head.

When Sidney came over to us, Harry had a few words for him. “Wasn’t cool, Sid.”

“No, it wasn’t,” Sid agreed. “My . . . bad,” he said, still out of breath. “You could have cracked your skull in two. I’m . . . really sorry.”

I shot Sid a look.

Then Harry and I raced over to Mrs. Flaubert and her clipboard.

“We’re going to be Room 3B’s champs!” Harry said.

Mary folded her arms and glared at Harry. “We’ll see about that,” she grumbled. “We still have two events left! I may not be the fastest person in Room 3B, but I can sure hit a target with a bean bag!”

The war wasn’t over.