Location: Eireen Reinhart Park, Ellensburg, WA Date: 09.10.16
Distance: 1.1 or 2.2mi Conditions: Lo-Upper 70's depending on the race. Sunny. No wind.
Comments: A flat, one lap of a trail around the lake. Girls and boys raced together for Junior High. We’ll use this adapted “reporting” for another week or so and then perhaps return to our charts from the last two years. Experiments abound and great job to all!
Junior High Girls: The future of girls' cross-country at Liberty Bell sure is good! We had 10 female junior high finishers, all looking fast and like they were having fun. We're so proud of first-time racers Mariah, Anja, Stephanie, Payten, Elke, and Stella, who all showed a lot of poise on the start line and throughout the race. And, it's always great to see strong return performances from Liv, Lindsay, Keeley, and Lena. We thought you all showed a ton of grit out there and you raced hard. You also were awesome teammates at the finish line and throughout the day. Liberty Bell definitely had the most spirit out there!
Liv: 6:43, 2nd place overall, 1st place girls, 6:06 mile pace
Excellent run from start to finish. You looked so smooth and your turnover was quick. You also looked relaxed and you still had a solid kick. It's going to be so fun to watch you in a closer race, because we know you still have so many gears of speed left! Nicely done and congrats on the girl's race win.
Lindsay: 7:34, 8th place overall, 3rd place girls, 6:53 mile pace
Great racing, Lindsay. You looked like your mind was focused and you were "in the zone" on the course. You ran strong and you kept a steady (and fast) pace (almost a minute faster per mile pace than the Moses Lake opening race last year). Your strength will be an even bigger asset on hilly courses yet to come! This will be a fun season for you!
Keeley: 7:42, 9th place overall, 4th place girls, 7:00 mile pace
Congrats on your first cross-country race un-injured. You are finding your rhythm with this cross-country racing, rather than the controlled environment of the track. You were fast and comfortable out there and you had a strong finish. Now we just need to get you confident and willing to go earlier! You're going to get better every week.
Mariah: 8:10, 16th place overall, 5th place girls, 7:25 mile pace
Sweet first race, Mariah. Your mile pace was almost 20 seconds faster than when we did the time trial mile on the track just two weeks ago--that's awesome and not necessarily easy to do. That tells us you have lots more improvement to enjoy in the next few weeks. Keep believing in yourself and maybe even experiment with going out a bit harder next week.
Lena: 8:27, 17th place overall, 6th place girls, 7:41 mile pace
We're so glad you're back for another junior high season, Lena. You ran a smart, solid race. You can definitely test yourself by going out a little harder--you are stronger and faster than you think. We'll find some ways to practice a few quick surges here and there and that mile pace will shrink so fast!
Anja: 8:28, 18th place overall, 7th place girls, 7:42 mile pace
Wow! Congrats on the first race, Anja. And race, you did! So fun to watch you pick it up to a really big kick there in the last 400 meters. You quickly figured out how to race! We'll keep keeping an eye on those knees and legs so you can have a full season of racing fun!
Stephanie: 8:50, 20th place overall, 9th place girls, 8:02 mile pace
Super job on the first race. You were literally smiling out there--even near the end. It is so great to see you push yourself and believe in yourself (while still maintaining a smile). You are going to have so much fun setting new personal records (PR's) this season, because we are only beginning to know how much endurance you have. Thanks for being on the team!
Payten: 9:04, 22nd place overall, 11th place girls, 8:15 mile pace
Terrific first race. We loved how you seemed to take the whole scene in stride--you were excited but not overwhelmed. You also looked like your head was in the race. You were focused and working hard the whole time. As the season progresses you'll find your legs want to do more surges of speed at key moments and you'll be flying!
Elke: 9:05, 23rd place overall, 12th place girls, 8:15 mile pace
We sure hope you feel good about this first race, because it was a terrific opener to what will be a really good season for you. You handled the starting line jitters just fine and now that you have successfully navigated your first racing experience you'll be ready to push yourself even more in the next one. Next week we'll work on picking up the pace at each quarter mile or so.
Stella: 9:06, 24th place overall, 13th place girls, 8:16 mile pace
So excited that your shins held up for this race. It was fun to watch those pink socks fly over the hay bales and into the finish. You held your pace well and looked like you were comfortable but pushing yourself---that just right combination. You've got an awesome pack of teammates to work with and by working together you'll all get even faster!
Lindsay: 7:34, 8th place overall, 3rd place girls, 6:53 mile pace
Great racing, Lindsay. You looked like your mind was focused and you were "in the zone" on the course. You ran strong and you kept a steady (and fast) pace (almost a minute faster per mile pace than the Moses Lake opening race last year). Your strength will be an even bigger asset on hilly courses yet to come! This will be a fun season for you!
Keeley: 7:42, 9th place overall, 4th place girls, 7:00 mile pace
Congrats on your first cross-country race un-injured. You are finding your rhythm with this cross-country racing, rather than the controlled environment of the track. You were fast and comfortable out there and you had a strong finish. Now we just need to get you confident and willing to go earlier! You're going to get better every week.
Mariah: 8:10, 16th place overall, 5th place girls, 7:25 mile pace
Sweet first race, Mariah. Your mile pace was almost 20 seconds faster than when we did the time trial mile on the track just two weeks ago--that's awesome and not necessarily easy to do. That tells us you have lots more improvement to enjoy in the next few weeks. Keep believing in yourself and maybe even experiment with going out a bit harder next week.
Lena: 8:27, 17th place overall, 6th place girls, 7:41 mile pace
We're so glad you're back for another junior high season, Lena. You ran a smart, solid race. You can definitely test yourself by going out a little harder--you are stronger and faster than you think. We'll find some ways to practice a few quick surges here and there and that mile pace will shrink so fast!
Anja: 8:28, 18th place overall, 7th place girls, 7:42 mile pace
Wow! Congrats on the first race, Anja. And race, you did! So fun to watch you pick it up to a really big kick there in the last 400 meters. You quickly figured out how to race! We'll keep keeping an eye on those knees and legs so you can have a full season of racing fun!
Stephanie: 8:50, 20th place overall, 9th place girls, 8:02 mile pace
Super job on the first race. You were literally smiling out there--even near the end. It is so great to see you push yourself and believe in yourself (while still maintaining a smile). You are going to have so much fun setting new personal records (PR's) this season, because we are only beginning to know how much endurance you have. Thanks for being on the team!
Payten: 9:04, 22nd place overall, 11th place girls, 8:15 mile pace
Terrific first race. We loved how you seemed to take the whole scene in stride--you were excited but not overwhelmed. You also looked like your head was in the race. You were focused and working hard the whole time. As the season progresses you'll find your legs want to do more surges of speed at key moments and you'll be flying!
Elke: 9:05, 23rd place overall, 12th place girls, 8:15 mile pace
We sure hope you feel good about this first race, because it was a terrific opener to what will be a really good season for you. You handled the starting line jitters just fine and now that you have successfully navigated your first racing experience you'll be ready to push yourself even more in the next one. Next week we'll work on picking up the pace at each quarter mile or so.
Stella: 9:06, 24th place overall, 13th place girls, 8:16 mile pace
So excited that your shins held up for this race. It was fun to watch those pink socks fly over the hay bales and into the finish. You held your pace well and looked like you were comfortable but pushing yourself---that just right combination. You've got an awesome pack of teammates to work with and by working together you'll all get even faster!
Junior High Boys: It was also exciting to field a full (and fast) junior high boys team out there. You all looked solid and confident. Congrats to Zane, David, and Eli on first cross-country races--you made it look easy! And, thanks to Ian, Andrew and Aidan for showing the new runners how it's done. You all were also terrific teammates and supporters of the high school races. It sure looked like you were having fun!
Ian: 6:51, 3rd place overall, 2nd place boys, 6:14 mile pace
An excellent showing, Ian. Almost exactly a minute faster mile pace than your opener last year at Moses Lake. That's a great sign for this season. You made the fast pace look effortless. We're sure that the ending speed you are seeking will come to you as we do more speed work. Enjoy the racing this year!
Zane: 7:01, 4th place overall, 3rd place boys, 6:23 mile pace
Wow, Zane! You are such an experienced racer out there--we had to remind ourselves this was your first cross-country running race. You went out well and worked hard in the middle of the race, which is always a key to overall cross-country racing success. Your overall fitness and strength will serve you well as we compliment it with speed work through the season.
Andrew: 7:09, 5th place overall, 4th place boys, 6:30 mile pace
We'll just call you Mister Improvement, Andrew. According to our records, last year your best mile pace in a cross-country race was 7:09 and you just cruised in at 6:30 pace for the first race of the year! That's incredible an you should feel really proud (and excited about races to come). Glad to see you pick it up in the middle of the race!
David: 7:53, 12th place overall, 8th place boys, 7:10 mile pace
Congratulations to you, David, on a very solid first cross-country race. You ran pretty close to your track time trial mile pace of 7:05--that's terrific. It was great to see you relatively relaxed at the start and now that you know how it all works, you'll be so much more confident next week.
Aidan: 8:09, 15th place overall, 11th place boys, 7:25 mile pace
Great job getting right back into the cross-country racing groove. You worked hard and you raced the runners around you. That's just what we want to see at the first race of the year. Your running stride looks smoother this year and you'll be turning in some personal records, we predict.
Eli: 9:09, 25th place overall, 12th place boys, 8:19 mile pace
We're so glad that you got to race. You showed a lot of determination out there. We know it wasn't the easiest thing since that knee still hurts, but we sure appreciate your dedication and desire to run. You ran well in spite of the injury and kept a good solid pace going throughout. Let's get that knee healed and you'll be surprising yourself!
High School Boys: A shorter and faster course than our opener at Moses Lake last year, but in these early days developing speed is perfect. We handled it well amidst a slew of competitive teams and each and every week will see us headed in the right direction. 11th place overall but only 7 points from moving up 2-3 spots — and still sitting 7 runners on the sidelines. Numbers are great, and we will be even stronger as a team when we have everyone at the line.
Eli: 12:11, 15th place, 1st mile 5:24 - 5:32 pace
5:24 in a noticeably speedy first mile is a good shock to the system - but a great start to the racing. You sensed it from the start, and were wise to not too extend too much, but the adaptations to speed will come over the next few weeks and that excellent summer base will give you strength to build on. Remember too that you have always been an excellent closer — so you have a little less opportunity to reel people in these shorter races.
Cade: 12:48, 31th place, 1st mile 5:42 - 5:49 pace
Super solid give your work-load in the last 10 days — and its so great to have you training and racing with us several weeks earlier than last year. More time for training adaptations across the season. More time for developing a sense of pace and strategy, and more time to set and modify goals for November. Enjoy that Tuesday!
Emerson: 12:50, 33th place, 1st mile 5:42 - 5:50 pace
A bounce-back race after the side stitch in Tonasket for sure. You looked focused in the middle and strong with a surge in the final 150m especially to the line. Our task all season long is going to be balancing work with recovery, so keep thinking about what you need and sensibly monitor yourself so that we can see big finishes like that at the end of the year.
Peter: 13:45, 85th place, 1st mile 6:06 - 6:15 pace
Solid again for sure after a similar outing on Tuesday. You seem to be doing a good early season job of pairing up with teammates and pushing with company in the early to mid part of the race. Keep that up, and your added strength from summer lifting is already noticeable in your form and carriage through out the race.
Lazo: 19:16, 94th place, 1st mile 6:08 - 6:25 pace
Another race where you started strong, and finished even stronger. So great to see that and a great indication that the deeper we go into the season the deeper our team is going to get with even a lesser spread between our times. Running, hiking, biking, whatever it might be, you have a new strength this year to go with your three previous years of XC racing experience. Its a good place to be!
Carter: 14:14, 97th place, 1st mile 5:59 - 6:28 pace
A fast first mile - the theme - but just right I think for this point in the season. Yes, you were 13 seconds faster then your TT, but that is where you want to be and you need to push around the edges until you break it down. Stay patient with yourself. Stay poised, and push through those middle miles. As the training and the season begin to level out you will it will fall together nicely.
Tim: 14:54, 12th place JV, 1st mile 6:32 - 6:46 pace
Welcome back Tim and its good to have you in the game. The 6:30 starting mile is solid, and as both your base and your adaptation to training come along you are going to drop time like crazy in the coming weeks. Steady as she goes and we'll start to develop some opening mile goals plus target to league-competition athletes for your to race/measure your progress against starting with our race at Manson.
Michael: 16:46, 61st place Community Race, 1st mile 7:32 - 7:37 pace
Psyched that you were willing to put in some time for the Community Race. Even being shy a few practices for the high school event, your effort here gives us a good baseline - and you should take some positive from the fact that even in the hottest race of the day you held pace pretty well from your first mile through your overall pace. Your average as a whole is going to drop across the season as you get a little more base and adapt to the training.
Zach: 17:10, 70th place, 1st mile 7:43 - 7:48 pace
A solid start to the season with some good competition in the JV boys event. And your 7:48 pace is much more aggressive then our first outing at Moses Lake last year so stay on that track and keep up the mindset of pushing a bit to start things off.
High School Girls: If the future of LBHS girls XC (see middle school write-up above) is good then the present is looking pretty sweet as well! With only five runners toeing the line, this little school from Winthrop, WA made a nice little statement in comparison to several much larger schools. Please ladies, please, take a moment this week to congratulate each other and to fill your teammates in on what they missed. Be excited, be smart, and this group should have fun with some early season
Gretta: 14:34, 5th place, 1st mile 6:24 - 6:59 pace
Congrats on your first official HS race — and congrats as well on going out strong and even more so for floating back a few places only to get people back at the end! In speed work of late you’ve looked crisp and quick. Keep pushing that tempo and holding form. Big, fast, fields in 2 of our next 3 events and it’ll be great to have even more Liberty Bell racers moving through the pack!
Icel: 14:44, 6th place, 1st mile 6:39 - 6:42 pace
Perhaps a little farther back right at the start but you worked your way up in the first lap and moved well through the middle of the race. Be patient with yourself in regards to that finishing kick. A surging effort in the middle took a little snap from the legs at the end but it will come. You’re in a great spot to start the season!
Rivers: 15:09, 14th place, 1st mile 6:51 - 6:53 pace
And congrats as well on your first official HS race! Good form in the finishing kick and there will be a rhythm and flow to these longer 5k races that you will learn from each and every week. Keep that head down a bit when you start to tire, but great strong/quick arms and nice a tall in the finishing stretch!
Ava: 15:31, 24th place, 1st mile 6:52 - 7:03 pace
Good thoughts on the bus and you looked strong at every part of the course. Be patient with your kick coming into form and know that your summer running coupled with the speed/form of those track 800m races is going to serve you well. Use that strength in these early races to keep launching yourself into the race and holding strong. As the weeks unwind you’ll begin to sense when to push for that kick. You might be a last 200m kicker, but you may also be someone who gets a lot of people in the last 1000m and then doesn’t move as much one way or the other in the last little bit — and either one of those can be great!
Sage: 19:16, 76th place, 1st mile 8:26 - 8:45 pace
Always hard to know how to pace these things, but keep setting that bar high and know that you have more speed and endurance than you think. A great job this weekend of keeping the Prosser runner in your sights and then timing your kick to perfection. In the weeks ahead, try to set yourself up for some mini-races within the race, and pick out one runner at a time that you are going to pass as the race unfolds.
