Track and field, whose athletes seem to set PRs every race, are gearing up to compete in two separate invitational events this Saturday.

According to coach Ivan Gomez, the team is “motivated, excited, and working” in preparation for these two meets, which will take place at Irvine High School and Arcadia High School.

Each member of the team will only be going to one of the meets, with both schools being an hour’s drive away.

“For Irvine, it’s more of an open meet, as it’s inclusive to anyone that we registered,” said Gomez. “Arcadia, on the other hand, is a country-wide and elite invitational that you have to qualify for. With over 790 schools registering, you really have to meet their standards.”

According to Gomez, only junior Paul Tranquilla and sophomore Lawrence Kensinger will be competing in Arcadia, with the two participating in the mile race and shot put respectively.

Despite being labeled as ‘invitationals’, the Gondoliers still take these meets very seriously.

“If you miss practices and workouts, you’ll start falling behind. Running consistently is so important as there’s no wiggle room at these races,” Gomez said.

Venice hosted their second meet on Wednesday, with the Palisades Dolphins and the Hamilton Yankees coming to compete.

“Running at home is always a little hard because of the wind funnel that we have here, but we’re used to it,” said Gomez. “But we had the right competition to have a good race, and we didn’t run scared.”

While the team performed well, they hope to challenge themselves even more tomorrow.

“We need to improve our ability to finish strong in races, but it really all comes down to being mentally strong and your physical preparation,” said Gomez.

Exhibiting mental strength is something much easier said than done, however, and due to the individual nature of track, you are truly your own biggest enemy.

“It’s very easy for track athletes to lose motivation,” said Gomez. “If they’re not reaching their records or setting new ones, you only have yourself to blame.”

Nonetheless, Gomez wants the best for his runners and wants to see personal growth.

“I mean, championships are nice, but if I see progress from my athletes, and if they’re satisfied with their season, as a coach, these are my trophies.”