We ran in straight lines, each on the others’ heels, with less than a forearm length between us. My team wore black warmups with the hoods up. Running for the Élan School didn’t mean team parties or orange slices or bows in our hair. Even at races today, at the starting line, it still roars from speakers. Somehow, the song has embedded itself in the sport’s collective consciousness. When I do tell runners that Eminem’s 2002 hit was my cross-country team’s anthem, they nod, excitedly.
That before important meets, he’d play it on repeat. That most times, he’d demand silence, then blast it over us, the notes beating into our brains. I don’t often tell people about how our coach would load our team into a white van and play the song in a ritualistic, obsessive way. I remember that song-it always comes back around this time of year. Even though I haven’t been on a cross-country course since high school, at 31 years old I can still vividly remember the bottoms of my teammates’ shoes, the bobbing of their ponytails, the smell of Secret deodorant and sweat as we pounded out miles together in a line. It’s late August, the start of cross-country season. This time it’s on a hot evening run near my Pennsylvania home. Retrieved on March 11, 2020.For 15 years “Lose Yourself” has been trapped in the folds of my brain, playing and replaying in unexpected waves.
The couple met while both were in high school, and began a troubled relationship in 1989. Mathers' personal life is well known because of his public persona and a frequent topic in his music, most notably his relationship with Kimberly Anne Scott.