Tanisha tried to brush it off. “Nothing. Why would you say that?”
“I can see it on your face,” Janet replied. “What’s bothering you?”
Tanisha let out a big sigh. “It’s … the climbing wall. I-I-I’m afraid of heights,” she managed to get out. “I didn’t realize it before we started training, but the wall is so tall, and it freaks me out. I’ll be the reason we lose Rugged Reaper.”
“Why didn’t you say something about this sooner?” Janet asked, looking concerned.
Embarrassed, Tanisha looked down at her feet. “I don’t know. It’s just … I didn’t want to admit I was afraid,” she said. “I didn’t want to let Derek down. I’m supposed to be the athlete.”
“You’re supposed to be a team,” Janet replied.
“I know,” Tanisha said. “And now when we reach the wall I’m going to freak out and not be able to do it.”
Janet put her arm around Tanisha’s shoulders. “You know, it’s OK to be scared, Tanisha,” she said. “We all get scared about certain things. When I was your age, I was terrified of the water.”
“Water?” Tanisha repeated. She was confused. “Why?”
“I thought I would drown,” Janet replied. “I wouldn’t go near a swimming pool or beach for a long time. It wasn’t until I decided to face my fear that I was able to overcome it. I didn’t do it alone. But I did it. And you can too.”
Tanisha nodded skeptically. She wanted to believe Janet, but …
“Is it OK if I tell my mom to wait a bit? Do you have time to help me on the climbing wall?” she asked.
“Sure thing,” said Janet. “We’ll get through it together.”
Tanisha went to tell her mom she needed more time. When she returned, Janet was at the climbing wall putting on her equipment. Tanisha got into her harness too.
“When we start climbing I want you to focus on your hands, feet, and the wall in front of you,” Janet said. “Focus on those three things and don’t look up.”
“But what if I get—” Tanisha started to say.
Janet read her mind. “If you get scared, close your eyes, take a deep breath, exhale, and calm yourself. Then continue to move up the wall and focus on those three things,” she said.
Tanisha nodded and took a deep breath. She began to climb slowly, with Janet climbing right next to her. At first it was slow going, but about halfway up the wall, Tanisha began to move a little faster.
“You’re doing it!” Janet yelled.
Tanisha smiled as she looked at Janet. But then she looked upward. Her fear of heights came rushing back.
“I’m right here with you, Tanisha,” Janet said. “Don’t panic. Remember what I told you to do if you get scared.”
Tanisha stopped looking up, looked at Janet, and then closed her eyes. She took a deep breath, exhaled, and looked directly at the wall. She began climbing again.
Tanisha and Janet finished climbing the wall, then made their way back down. At the bottom, Tanisha gave Janet a big hug.
“It was scary, but I did it,” Tanisha said. “Will you climb the wall with me again?”
“I’d be glad to,” Janet replied.
CHAPTER 6
THE RUGGED REAPER
The big day had finally arrived. Derek and Tanisha met up at the Newville Fields Park and Reserve early that morning. Before long, the stands were filled with Rugged Reaper fans, along with the families and friends of the contestants.
Derek and Tanisha took their places at the starting line. The rest of the contestants lined up as well.
“Can you believe the turnout? There must be hundreds of kids waiting to take this course on!” said an excited Derek.
“I had no idea it would be this big,” Tanisha said. “Look at all the TV cameras. This is wild!”
Just then a couple contestants walked up to Tanisha and Derek. “Hi, I’m Blake,” one of the boys said. “This is my friend, Austin.”
“I’m Derek, and this is Tanisha,” Derek replied. “Nice to meet you both!”
“Is this your first extreme obstacle course?” Blake asked.
Tanisha nodded. “How about you guys?”
“This is our third,” Austin replied. “When we found out that Rugged Reaper was coming here, we couldn’t miss it.”
“Any advice you can give us?” Derek asked.
“Accept that you’re going to get dirty immediately!” joked Blake.
“And never leave your teammate behind,” Austin added.
