A poem for Red Smith

Here's another draft of the poem that I'm going to do in the first round. Now we'll see how close I can get to memorizing it.

A poem for Red Smith

The great sportswriter Red Smith once said, “Writing is easy. You just open a vein and bleed.”
This is a poem for Red.

“Somebody may beat me, but they’re going to have to bleed to do it.”
Pre said that.
Pre said that.
Steve Prefontaine said that.
Skinny kid from Coos Bay, Oregon.
I used to get winded just saying his name.
Steve Prefontaine.
Runs like a maniac.
Runs like a work of art.
Runs like the will of God
If God would will a man
To leave all doubt of victory behind.
Somebody may beat me, but they’re going to have to bleed to do it.
Somebody may beat me, but they’re going to have to bleed to do it.
Damn it.
I want to be that somebody.
I want to bleed.
Do you want my blood?
Do you want my blood Steve?
I’ve got blood to give.
I’ve got heart.
I’ve got desire.
I’ve got passion.
What do I think about when I’m running?
You mean
What do I think about when I’m training?
I think about nothing.
Nothingness.
Emptiness.
Heart beating fast,
Spitting up blood on the track
Until I’ve got nothing left to spit
And then I dig deeper.
Because I’ve got blood to give.
I’ve got a life to live.
I’ve got a race to run.
Yeah, I know
The sun is going to shine
It always shines for Steve.
Parts the clouds at Heyward Field
Steve’s amazing.
Steve’s special.
And I?
I’m just a nobody
With a dream
And an imagination.
But listen.
You want my blood.
You want my blood Steve?
I want to give it to you.
I want to give you the race of your life.
And I know I’m going to have to bleed to do it.
Because I realize it's not really even about Steve and I
It's about about I and I
and I know I can't sacrifice the gift,
I can't give less than my best
And I'm not going to go easy.
I’m going to go until I bleed.
I’m going to bleed for a reason.
I’m going to bleed for a dream.
I’m going to run until I can’t walk.
I’m going to run until I can’t stand.
I’m going to run until I can’t stand myself.
I can’t stop when the sun goes down.
I can’t stop when I’m tired.
I can’t stop if I can find a way to keep going.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
I can’t stop.
Because nothing good ever comes easy.