Lake Zurich Middle School South Campus

silouettes of people running

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Man running

What is Cross Country:

Cross country is a running event where teams of runners race on courses plotted over natural terrain. It's an individual and a team sport because runners will be judged on an individual basis and  as a team.  At practice we usually stretch, do sprints, play running games, and running about 4 miles. Meets are typically a 2-mile course on various terrain.

 

 

 

 

How and When to Join:
 

 

 

 

Coaches:

 The Cross Country season is typically From the middle August to the middle of October.  Listen to the announcements the first few weeks of school to find out when the informational meeting is.  There is an athletic fee of $95.00 and a separate fee for team uniforms (usually around $12).  In order to join you must have a active physical on file.

Mr. KeeganMr. Marston

     Mr. Keegan                            Mr. Marston

    (girls coach)                           (boys coach)

 

Practices:

 

Practices are everyday after school from 2:30-4:00 P.M. and Fridays from 2:30-3:15 P.M.  All practices are mandatory unless you notify the coach one day in advance.  Athletes are allowed to miss a total of 3 practices throughout the whole season.  During practices we usually do 3 or 4 laps of the large loop (you will learn what this is at the first practice) and a sprint game.

silouette of person running

 

A typical practice looks like this:                                                                                                                                                    -Change into running clothes and eat your snack quietly in the 600 hallway                                                  -Once coaches take attendance, we will do a warm up lap around the large lap of the course                                                                                                                                                -When everyone finishes we will stretch and talk about the weeks meets                                                                                                                                                -Then we will run the large lap of the course 3 or 4 times or do a timed mile                                                                                                                                                    -After we will do sprints or play a sprint game                                                                                                                                                 -We always finish practice by stretching

What to Expect:

Expect to be tired and sore from running at practice.  Do not be discouraged if there is soreness in your muscles. The soreness is from a good workout and you will get less sore as you build up endurance.  This is pretty heavy duty running so expect to be tired but also to have a lot of fun.

 

 

 

Materials:
 

 

I love running

 

 

 

Meets:

 Some things you will need for practices and meets:

-Comfortable running shoes

-A loose t-shirt and shorts

-Socks

-MSS cross country uniform ( t-shirts will be purchased and shorts will be handed out)

 

Home meets are held behind the school at around 4 o'clock. Runners have to be at school by 10:55 AM in order to participate in practices and meets. The meets usually begin between 4:00 and4:15 and they usually end by 5:15 or 5:30. The length of the meets will be determined by the number of teams/runners participating. The girl's team usually runs first followed by the boy's team, but this doesn't always happen. For away meets, runners take the bus from South to the meet, but the bus ride back to South is optional. If a runner is being picked up from the meet, parents MUST sign the sign-out sheet.  Each courses at each meet will be on a different terrain and a different distance. Usually the meets are around 2 miles.

  

 

 

 

 
   

Scoring and Point System:

At meets each teams top seven runners' scores will be added up and the team with the lowest total will win, so everyone must run their best to help their team win.

Preparing for Cross Country:

Cross Country is a tough sport because there is a huge amount of commitment and dedication.  Running is not easy especially over long distances and you will need endurance to keep going and finish the courses.  On weekends you should run about 2 miles to build up your endurance and you should always work hard because the harder you train in practices the better you will do at meets.  

Cross Country Websites:   

Finish line

 http://www.brianmac.co.uk/xcountry.htm- This website has tips on how to run and has a brief overview of the sport.  This website should help you to decide whether cross-country is the sport for you.

http://www.tips4running.com/Cross-Country-Running-Tips.html- For ways to run faster and build up your endurance go to this website.  These tips will tell you how to avoid injuries and how to run more efficiently.

http://www.life123.com/sports/cycling-running/running/what-is-cross-country-running.shtml- This site gives more information on what cross country is and what a meet basically is.  It describes how a training day for cross country usually is.

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Created: October 2011
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