Jambo Team!!
As runners, you’ve probably heard and/or seen inspirations
for racing drawn from cheetahs or lions, drawing on the speed and strength of
these well known charismatic mega fauna.
This is not going to be one of those inspirations. As cross
country runners, you hardly want to arouse the speed of a cheetah…we all know
that insane sprints at the beginning of a race does not bode well for the other
5-7km. You also don’t really want to evoke the lion because…well…you can do
better. Lions and cheetahs are what are called ambush hunters…they lie and
wait, and wait, and then burst, pounce, and kill with a mighty bite to the neck.
Coach would never approve of waiting, and the pounce/kill bite just might get
you disqualified.
Who you want to channel for Conferences tomorrow is...can
you guess where I’m going ; )…the SPOTTED HYENA! Since Walt Disney didn’t do
this magnificent creature any favors, please let me share why racing like a
hyena is your best animal strategy.
Hyenas are what are called endurance hunters – they chase. A
spotted hyena can lope tirelessly for miles upon miles, can hit top speeds of
60kph, and can pursue prey for several kilometers at close to that top speed
(50kph). Most animals are unsuspecting of the hyena’s speed and especially
their endurance, falling prey to the hyena’s prowess through sheer exhaustion.
Hyenas can hunt alone, even taking down a bull wildebeest, but also can hunt
cooperatively in packs and will do so to ‘circumvent the determined defense of
herds/families’.
Are you seeing why channeling the spotted hyena will be your greatest advantage tomorrow? Not wasting time with waiting, not putting full energy into one burst, (not using a kill bite…) but rather calling forth endurance, bursts of high speed, determination, the element of surprise, and strength when alone but far greater when as a group.
Coach has told us all to “Be an eagle!” and to “Fear the
Gopher”. Tomorrow, be that eagle, strike fear in the
other teams as the Gophers you are….and channel your Spotted hyena spirit for
the calculated, passionate, grueling and rewarding race you’ve all worked so
hard for.
Whooping (the infamous Spotted hyena vocalization) for you
from Kenya,
Hadley
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