Big Race in Cottonwood, Big Races to Come!

What a great effort by our Hawks this weekend at the NorCal Striders Meet! It was a long drive, but most of our athletes were able to make it and experience real cross country for the first time this season! They competed in their age groups, fought hard on uneven trails up and down steep hills, and finished strong! In this coach's opinion, the 2k was a little too easy, the 4k was super tough, but that 3k course was a perfect cross country challenge - not sure if all our Hawks would agree though!

Across 8 races we earned 6 medals (top 5 finishes) with Elias and Pier winning their age groups, Natalie coming in second in her race, Mia finishing 3rd, and Josie and Audrey nabbing 5th place finishes. That is a great showing for our team!  But beyond those, we had a bunch of other notable top-ten efforts. Sonia and Hadley finished just out of the medals in 6th place in their respective races, David finished 7th and Jack 10th in their race, and Max was 9th in his race.  The coaches couldn't be happier with where the team is at midseason, and we continue to have high hopes for the team as we move into the second half of our campaign. Remember, while we have a number of upcoming meets, our ultimate goal is to peak for the Association Championships on November 19th (which coincidentally will be on the same course we ran this weekend).

This week we have the second SRA meet on Friday afternoon. It will be at American River College again, parking will be $5 and remember that parking gets backed up so try to arrive early to make entry easier. To the extent we can, we need the runners at the tent by 3:45 to get their bibs and start warmups, as the first race begins at 4:45. 

With a meet on Friday, this week's practice schedule is a little lighter than last week. We are now transitioning from building our strength endurance to sharpening into strength and then speed - metaphorically honing the edge of the blade we have crafted through our hard work so far this season. Here is our schedule:

Monday - Intervals at Marshall Hills
(Meet at the Boathouse)

• 10min Warm Up & Cool Down
• Marshall Hills 3-5 x 800m Intervals - full rest between efforts

Tuesday - Rest & Stretch

Wednesday - On your own

• If you're healthy, try getting in an easy run - 3-4 miles

Thursday - Swamp Tempo
(Meet at the Boathouse)

• 10 min WU/CD
• 20 minutes Swamp Monster* Tempo
• *Various strength exercises between laps

Friday - SRA Meet #2

• American River College, 4700 College Oak Drive, Sacramento
• Please plan to be to the tent by 3:45

​Saturday or Sunday - LONG Easy Run

• Find a friend, Find some hills, enjoy the weekend.
• Newer/Younger runners: 3-4 miles
• Returners: 4 - 7 miles
• ALL: 6-10 Strides afterwards and Stretch.

REMEMBER: What you put into your training will dictate what you get out of your races. Train Hard, Win Easy!

Coach Eric