Track and Field Blogs - Leonel Manzano

http://www.leomanzano.com/blog/post

Hey Everyone,

So I'm finally back from Europe and Mexico. It has been a lot of fun and a lot of work, but I have enjoyed it every step of the way.

All in all it was a great season. Thesolaniki is where I left off the last time I blogged. I did really well. It was a very competitive race but i beat out the world champ and the world leader in time, which was really exciting and finished in second.

After the competition we headed back to England and got ready to go home to the US. I was thrilled. It had been a long season of traveling and finally i would come home. But now before one last go around at the 5th Ave. mile in New York. I again ended up in second. But i was happy to of competed and to of been done.

I was home for about a week to see my family. It had been about 3 months since the last time i saw them and about 6 months since i had spent some quality time with them.

RIght after that I left for Mexico for my first real vacation with Abi and Shannon. We ended up on a deserted beach somewhere in Mexico.. just kidding. I went to Playa del Carmen, on the Yucatan Peninsula. It was beautiful. While I was there we visited 3 really cool places Tulum, Akumal and this place called Xplore. I had a lot of fun in all the places, but the one that stood out the most was Xplore. Xplore is a theme park which included: 2miles of zip lines, underground rafting in a cave, and a 400yd swim also in an underground cave.

I had never been on a zip-line, so I was really nervous when Abi and I started climbing what seemed to be a 7 story tower . When we got to the top I could see clearly far into the distance, and feel the cool breeze coming in from the sea. I looked down-it was a long way down!! Good thing we had harnesses. Abi went first, an employee secured her harness to the zip-line, uttered some words Abi picked her feet up and off she went. I didn't know what to think as i saw her flying to the next tower. As soon as she was gone it was my turn. I stepped up, they started securing my harness, I looked back and saw a couple right behind me and as soon as they saw me getting harnessed the women started saying, "I cant do it, its too high, its too high" then the women started panting and looked like she was going to pass out. I was harnessed, jumped off and as I took off I turned around and yelled to them "animo!!!" which is the english equivalent of "have faith" or "have courage". I waited for the couple on the other end. They never arrived...

After my two weeks in Mexico, I came back to the US. I was excited to come home to my home town in Marble Falls/Granite shoals located an hour West of Austin. I had missed my family and friends. I was also home for two special occasions. My home town had a track named after me, and I was baptizing my high-school best friends' child.

On friday the 29th I was honored on behalf the Marble Falls community. I was really grateful and extremely excited that my hometown thought that highly of me. During half time of a Marble Falls high school football game the community commemorated me. I had an opportunity to meet some of the people who made it all possible, members in the Marble Falls Lions Club, and the great people of the Marble Falls School Board. I am still very grateful that all these people came together on my behalf to make this possible. My mother and father and two sisters were present. Jesus (aka chuy) was a bit under the weather so he was unable to attend. This meant a lot, not only for me but to my family and friends. Thanks to everyone who took part. Im happy and thrilled to be part of a community and feel that I am very blessed..

And Congratulations to the Marble Falls high-school football players on their awesome win and performances, it was definitely icing on the cake.

Thanks to all..

The next thing on my plate will be the USATF Junior Cross Country meet at Camp Champions in Marble Falls Tx on Nov. the 7th. This will be the first time Marble Falls has hosted a USATF meet. I hope it will be a success. Stay tuned in to see how it turns out..

Leo