ANOTHER LAP - In Air Force NCO Leadership School, all the students were required to run our annual fitness test, which consisted of a timed 1.5 mile run. Our instructors took us to a place and told us that 1.5 miles was five laps around a particular section of the base.  They lined us up, told us to begin, and away we went.  We all paced ourselves so that we'd finish with good times as we finished our fifth lap.  As we crossed the finish line for what we thought was our final lap, the instructors said "You're not done.  One more lap".  ONE MORE LAP?  Had we miscounted?  No, each of us stood there, telling each other that we had indeed been told that 1.5 miles was five laps.  But they told us we had to run six.

Many of us complained.  We got obstinant, saying we had been told FIVE LAPS, and we did as we had been directed, and had run our five laps.  The instructors were resolute: if we didn't complete the sixth lap, we would fail our annual fitness text.

No matter how much we complained, we still had to run.