How College Recruiting Helped Me Transition Into Adulthood

Wow, that title was a mouthful.
Anyway.  The fall of my junior year, I began my journey into the college recruiting process with an email from Coach Weese at Montana State.  I had received letters previously, but they didn't seem quite as serious, as they were all the generic letters that colleges send out to long lists of high school athletes.  This was my very own personalized message from a coach who actually wanted me to come to his school.  It was definitely a very interesting process.  I had to learn how to talk to coaches, and how to reject coaches from colleges I had no interest in-that was probably the hardest part.  It was completely different from talking to high school coaches.  With high school, you just get what you get.  With college, it's like a choose your own adventure book.
For most of my junior year, I was in contact with several different coaches.  Jim told me that it was best to get to know coaches early on so that you can establish a relationship with them, and better choose which will be the best fit for you when the time comes to pick one college.  Come July 1st before your senior year, coaches can start calling you.  The most stressful thing about that day for me was trying to talk to coaches I'd never spoken to before.  It's much easier talking on the phone with those you've already been in contact with for some time.  I also had home visits from three different coaches.  They all presented great things about their colleges, and made my decision even harder.
By last fall, I had my choices narrowed down to three, and it was time to take official visits to their campuses.  My first visit didn't feel quite as serious, as I went with my dad, and it was only a few hours from my house.  It felt more like my home visits did, fairly laid back.  I got to meet the team, and visit with some academic advisors, as well as go for a few runs to see how I would like training there, but for the most part, it was more like a family trip than an actual college experience.
My second and fourth visits were probably what made me feel most like an adult.  It was the first time I had traveled anywhere completely alone, and was out in the world without my parents or teammates.  I was having what felt like a college experience, and I was able to actually envision myself at the schools.  I got to converse with advisors and coaches on my own, and feel like I was more of an adult than a child sitting in a high school being instructed on how to make my future.  It was awesome.