On the eve of a math meet

As a member of the math team, I periodically go to "math meets", where I go to another high school with a bunch of kids from my high school who are in search of extra credit in their math classes and take a set of five fifteen minute math tests. While this does not sound like the most fun way to spend an evening, I find it to be a good time where I can compete with other high schoolers. The tests are not conventional math tests: usually the questions are trickier, but if you can see the shortcut to the answer, it is fairly easy. Of course, in order for these tests to be competitive, most competitors need to get most of the answers wrong, and they do.

The five fifteen-minute tests are divided into three individual tests with calculator use prohibited, one individual test where calculators are allowed (and encouraged), and a team round where calculators are allowed. In the individual tests, there are four questions per test: the first question, which tends to be the easiest, is worth 1 point; the second question, which is a bit harder, is 2 points; the third question, harder yet, is worth 3 points; and the final and hardest question in each test is worth 4 points, adding up to a total of 10 points, which means that one can acheive an individual score up to 40. The team test is taken with all the members working as a group to finish the questions. A team can have up to eight members, but only four can be seniors. There are six questions on the team test, all worth 10 points to count toward the team score. Team scores are tabulated using the combined individual scores plus the team score.

Since to most people, a math meet would seem to be a waste of an evening, the math teachers offer extra credit to those who go. However, I do not get any extra credit, as I have completed the highest math class offered at my high school: Calculus. For me, math meets are a recreational event where I can compete against my fellow classmates and other high school seniors as well as a particular junior who tends to get the higest scores at meets. My typical score at a math meet is around a 30. If I do well, it will be more and if I do poorly, it will be less. For the past two years, I have earned the honor of second team all league (the league being the Fox Valley Math League), which means that I was not one of the eight highest scorers overall, but I was one of the five next highest in my grade level. Last year, I was the ninth highest scorer. This year, I hope to earn a place among the first team all league and I think I have a very good chance. While this may not be a great experience for some, I think it's fun to test my math abilities against others in the area once a month.