While school officially started on September 3rd, the cross-country team had already begun preseason two weeks prior. Since August 19, the runners have been training hard almost every day.
Most importantly, however, the team has gotten to know each other quite well and has improved in aspects of teamwork and holding each other accountable. As their Head Coach Mr. Brian Long has stated on multiple occasions, the goal is to work hard and work as a team.
Fast forward a month, and the season is heating up for the Fords. While team results have been up and down, Coach Long remains optimistic about the upcoming season. Some of the biggest contributors to the team have been their Third Formers.
“Right now, the most exciting thing about our team is our freshmen. We have probably the strongest of freshmen we’ve had in the last ten years,” Coach Long said. “Colin Park is our top freshman right now, who I think is probably running the fastest times of any freshman we’ve ever had, followed by Munashe Kachidza and Alex Peter.”
EA Day is the next big challenge for the Fords. With this year’s race at home, the team is ready to meet that challenge head-on. Coach Long has already begun preparing for the big race.
“Right now, we’re trying to find a good rhythm with the choppiness of our schedule: the Third Form trip to Camp Saginaw and some holidays coming up,” Coach Long said. “We want to get into a good, solid rhythm of workouts plus our long runs, which will help boost our case.”
“The best part of cross country is the team aspect. Running in solitude can be quite unpleasant, while running with your teammates can make the experience significantly more endurable and easier to enjoy.”
Colin park ’29
Cross country is a sport that requires consistent training to achieve a high level of success. The two main causes of missing practices have been injuries and sicknesses.
“I think the key to doing our best day-to-day is getting through the bulk of our season healthy,” Coach Long said.
Coach Long has put in a tremendous amount of effort into planning and implementing his training sessions and race strategies. One of his most successful approaches has been a compact group mindset, where he groups runners, allowing an entire pack of runners to pass an opposing runner every time, instead of one runner passing the other.
With the Third Form playing such a large role in the team, the Fords are hoping for a strong showing at EA Day.
“The best part of cross country is the team aspect. Running in solitude can be quite unpleasant, while running with your teammates can make the experience significantly more endurable and easier to enjoy,” Third Former Colin Park said. “Having an easy conversation with a friend as you run and taking the insight from older students is really what cross country is about.”
The transition from the middle school team to the upper school team has had many positive benefits from an athletic, academic, and more general perspective.
“I have realized an exponential growth in my discipline and physical fitness. While I had previously run cross-country in middle school, being on the high school team truly takes it to another level, with higher expectations and intensity in training,” Park said. “I have also seen physical improvements in my additional extracurricular activities and have been able to better hold myself accountable, not just with running, but with school and my life in general.”
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