Runners line up and prepare their stance. The heat feels sharper, the fans become louder, the stakes are higher, and the pressure is building up. On this very special event, schools come together to compete and to make a name for themselves in the Mayde Creek Invitational. Braylin Byrd takes in his last deep breath and prepares to make Tomball Memorial history.
“PPPAUU” Runners make their leap and begin the race. 10.27 seconds later, Braylin Byrd breaks the record for the 100m dash for Tomball Memorial High School. Shortly after, Byrd broke yet another record for the 200m dash with a time of 21.62s.
“Breaking this record really gave me an idea of what I am capable of. I’m very happy that I was able to put our school in the top competitors,” Byrd said.
On Thursday, March 7th, the Mayde Creek Invitational was held with a variety of schools and competitors. Braylin Byrd took part in both the 100m and the 200m dash along with 8 runners per race and broke Tomball Memorial’s record for both races.
Not only has he made school history, but he placed 1st and 2nd out of 35 and 39 competitors. For the 100m dash, Byrd got a 10.27s time, 0.63s faster than his previous record and got a time of 21.62s for the 200m dash, which was 1.08s faster than his previous record. Tomball Memorials previous record holder for the 100m dash is Mason Melancon, a 2018 graduate with a time of 10.56s. Byrd was able to surpass him by 0.29s and break a 6 year old record.
“I had the record in mind, and I was confident that I was going to break it. My goal for the next competition will be a 10.2s time for the 100m dash.”
This great accomplishment, although celebrated, is not stopping Byrd from breaking the record once again. After speaking with him about his experience and his goals, he made it clear that he has yet to reach the prime of his career.