I did mathcounts and math team stuff in middle school/HS and it never once occurred to me that the goal was to get into a good college. It just seemed fun. I w

I did mathcounts and math team stuff in middle school/HS and it never once occurred to me that the goal was to get into a good college. It just seemed fun. I wasn't great at it, but I was pretty good considering that I didn't get any training, and I always thought it would have felt amazing to actually get good at those tests and feel like a math wizard. I guess I'm a bit bitter about it; it's a shame the special opportunities go to people who are depressingly minmaxing instead of people who would really love to have them. Although I also know that at some level if I had 'resolved' to get good I could have, so I can't be too resentful.