A friendly cross-country meet was held on Sep. 6 with Basha, and Hamilton. Traditionally, cross country races have featured individual athletes competing on a single course, striving for personal and team success. Over the years, this format has proven successful for coaches and participants alike. A notable development in the format of high school cross country meets is the introduction of friendly meets. Participating in friendly meets, rather than AIA state-sanctioned events lets participants hone their skills without the fear of their state ranking suffering as a result.
Coach Jeff Gurecki, who leads the Perry XC team, expressed his enthusiasm for this added format. “Friendly races have breathed new life into our sport,” he stated. “They challenge our athletes to push their boundaries and set personal records, all while contributing to the team’s performance. It also allows them to try out new things that they may not try in competitive events. It’s a format that truly showcases their dedication and talent.”
As far as the structure of the meets themselves, the format has remained relatively unchanged. Senior Derek Wong explained, “First, there’s a team meeting to discuss strategy and warm-up. Then, we go to the starting line.” As far as how the race course itself is set up, this variable can tend to vary. However, in general, Wong explained that, “Typically, it’s a 5-kilometer course, but the distance can vary. It’s a combination of grass, dirt trails, and sidewalk.”
At the start of the race, Junior Anuj Iyer explains that, “ Races start with a gun or whistle signal. We usually sprint from the starting line, trying to establish our positions early on.” While this starting signal is standard, at informal meets such as the one on the 6th, the race coordinator instead just shouted when to go with a verbal countdown. At the end of the race, teams are scored on a unique and graduated scale, as is typical of the event’s usual format. Wong explains, “scoring is based on the finishing positions of the top runners from each team. The lower the total score, the better.”
However, just like any cross-country event, strategies are put in place by the runners to pace themselves over the duration of the race to ensure that they don’t burn out and shut down before the finish line. Iyer agrees, “It’s a long race, so we need to manage our energy. Also, finding the right time to make a move and pass opponents is important.” Especially due to the multiple schools coming together for these events, participants can hone their skills against other people that they have little knowledge of and don’t see in practice. By engaging in friendly meets, runners can practice their pacing and train their speeds so that hopefully they can perform better in ranked tournaments and appearances.
