The Observation Deck

I took the day off last Friday to go down to Edgewater Park to watch the LHS Cross Country teams run their annual Sand and Hills workout.

Took a few pictures - http://lakewoodobserver.com/photoblogs/ ... -and-hills

Both the Boys and Girls teams were there. However, you'll notice I've only included shots of the boys. At the request of one of the girl runners I stopped taking pictures of the girls. I also decided not to post any of those pictures here to honor her request. I'll probably continue not to during their season.

The Cross Country Schedule is:
8/25 Canton Glenoak HS
9/1 Lorain County Community College (good one to go to - easy to find!)
9/8 Walsh Jesuit HS
9/15 Forest Hills
9/22 Strongsville HS
9/29 Genesse Valley New York
10/6 Trumbull County Fairgrounds
10/13 Strongsville HS - NEO League Championships. Be there to cheer them on!
10/20 LCC District Meet - This is a big meet - help cheer them on! Easy to get to.
10/27 Tiffin
11/3 OHSAA STATE MEET - SCIOTO DOWNS Columbus - Hopes are high!

11 opportunities to see them compete.

Joe--

Since very few of us have ever seen a cross country meet, can you give us a little tutorial?

For example, how long do meets last?
Do fans only see the start and finish?
Do the runners take off in small groups, or do they all take off at once (like a marathon?)
How are meets scored?

Thanks

Mike Deneen wrote: For example, how long do meets last?

Depending on the venue (boys and girls, or just boys, or just girls) the meet usually has 2 races for each gender. Each gender is typically broken into 2 groups; one varsity race and one open race (open being the rest of the runners-non varsity). Some large meets have Junior varsity races. Usually the genders are staggered.. boy girl boy girl. Each race is roughly 45 minutes apart. Some meets begin at 8:30 in the morning.. or some 7 at night. Race length is 5k or 3.1 miles.

Mike Deneen wrote: Do fans only see the start and finish?

You can say that being a spectator is a sport too.
The start and finish are the best parts naturally, but there are 3.1 miles in between. Many courses, if not all, are spectator friendly. The courses loop back on themselves, allowing the viewers multiple views of the competitors. Cross Country is for active spectating. If you want to watch the race, you must follow the race. Many courses have maps for the spectators, so you can choose where along the course you want to see the runners. For each race, a spectator might even run a mile or two themselves... or walk.. Generally, you can see the start, finish, and other parts of the course from one spot, so you don't have to move far if you don't want to.

Mike Deneen wrote: Do the runners take off in small groups, or do they all take off at once (like a marathon?)

Very rarely are there time trials. For each race, all the runners line up with their team in the assigned "alley" (a marked box for each team on the line). For a varsity race, the top 7 or 8 of each team race. Most meets are 7. So, for each race the runners do start like they would in a marathon or any other road race. The top 7 or 8 varsity runners can change from week to week depending on athletes abilities the previous week, injuries, and so on. The coach makes that decision.

Mike Deneen wrote: How are meets scored?

Meets are scored as so:
The top 5 runners from each team are scored. 1st place in the meets gets 1 point. 2nd gets 2 points, 3rd 3 points and so on. Up to however many runners there are in the race. The team with the least amount of points win. Basically, you want to have all your runners up front, or as close as can be. For example: In a dual meet (where two teams face off, no other teams) you have team A and team B.
Team A gets the following positions: 1, 5, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14
Team B gets the following positions: 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 11, 12
To find out which team won, you add up the scores..
Team A scored 30 points. (remember.. only the top 5 from each team score.)
Team B scored 25.
Team B won the meet. Even though Team A's top runner won overall.. Team B's runners were group closer to the top of the field.
This is the most typical scoring method. In some cases, full teams(5-7 runners) aren't in the field.. and there are only individuals from each team who aren't going for the team win. In this case, the individual runners don't score any points. If you look at scores you might see the guy in 10th place receive one point because the nine guys in front of him aren't on a full team. In other words, there is a race within a race. The individuals and the teams. It can get confusing...


Jacob Ott
L.H.S Junior

Thanks for the low down, and welcome to the Deck!

Cost to attend a Cross Country Meet......FREE!!

Except the OHSAA STATE MEET....but that meet is worth every penny!

Cross Country is a great spectator sport (emphasis on sport as mentioned above). Typically, we watch the mass of runners leave the start, trot over to the next open area (trying not to spill my coffee) and cheering for our runners as they zip past, and repeating this until the finally head to the finish!

LCCC is actually a great place to watch --- lots of open space. And, like Stephanie mentioned --- -FREE!!!!!

It's a really great group of kids who would appreciate the support!

It is going to be a great year for the LHS Boys Cross Country Team, they're as strong as last year, even without the talented Paul Verga. If you get a chance come watch them run! Also, the girls runs the same day and location as the boys.