As meeting manager of the Whanganui Secondary Schools Championships on Wednesday, it is impossible to gain more than a few snapshot images of the action unfolding.
The six and a half hours of action with 82 events over three grades for both genders (that does not include heats) contested by athletes from the nine schools in the region provided some memorable moments.
Until there is time to consider and analyse results the snapshot images must suffice.
There were many great races and head-to-head contests, with none better than the battle in the intermediate girls 800m between Rebecca Baker (Whanganui High School) and Emma Osborne (Wanganui Collegiate), where both sliced huge margins off their previous best performances.
Baker ran from the front making a break with 250m to go.
The gap widened and as the two entered the final bend it looked like the gap was going to be decisive.
But that elastic did not break and Osborne rallied with an impressive sprint to take the title with a six second personal best of 2m 17.76s with Baker gaining consolation with a WHS record of 2m 18.10s.
Baker went to win the 1500m and Osborne the 400m - two outstanding athletes with exciting athletic careers ahead of them.
The battle between Makaia Matthews (Cullinane) and Georgina Duncan in the intermediate sprints saw Duncan winning the 100m and a determined Matthews holding on to take the 200m - a just reward for the promising Cullinane athlete.
Cody Hemi (Collegiate) and Matt Kleinsmith (WHS) had close races in the senior boys sprints, with Hemi coming out on top in both.
Kleinsmith challenged strongly over the final stages of the 200m - Hemi's less favoured sprint.
The Maples sisters were in the thick of the action and even this busy meeting manager could not help but see them as both handled an impressive number of events.
Older sister Lexi used the day to hone her heptathlon skills - competing in six of the seven disciplines - and with her run in the successful Collegiate 4x100 relay team, she did her seven events in one day as opposed to the usual two days.
Maples will be especially pleased with the long jump personal best of 4.92m, a 23cm personal best which if repeated in a heptathlon will significantly lift her points tally.
She departs for California in ten days time to compete in the prestigious Arcadia Combined events meeting in Los Angeles.
Younger sister Genna Maples was arguably the athlete of the meet - demonstrating huge versatility in winning six titles.
The 13-year-old not unexpectedly dominated over the 100m and 200m, where she took respective gold and silver at New Zealand Schools in the Under 16 grade in December, but added two new events to her repertoire, winning both the shotput and hurdles.
Her best effort, arguably the performance of the meet, came in the long jump where Maples added 26cm to her personal best in a national class 5.74m.
This also set a Collegiate senior record - eclipsing the old mark by nearly 20cm.
Maples has a quieter weekend at the New Zealand championships, where she has had dispensation to compete in the Under 18 long jump and 4x100 relay.
Hayley Artz (Ruapehu) was busy and at one point was involved in three events at the same time - winning one of them in the long jump with a 4.80m effort.
The Ruapehu jumper clearly has potential in the jumping disciplines.
In the throwing events, Tayla Flight (Whanganui Girls College) impressed in the javelin with a great 34.09m effort, some 4m further than second placed Mary Laki (Rangitikei College).
Meanwhile, former New Zealand Schools medal winner Opetini Dryden (Collegiate) made a welcome return to the javelin runway with a winning 52.95m throw in the senior boys.
Jessica Pfefferle (Nga Tawa ) once again impressed in the senior discus (32.06m).
Some athletes who competed on Wednesday are back in action at the weekend at the New Zealand Track and Field Championships in Hamilton.
I will report on this next week along with a closer look at the Whanganui school's performances.
The Secondary Schools Championships are completed at Tuesday's Club night with the open 300m hurdles, steeplechase, hammer and pole vault.