Liberty Bell XC: Manson Invite -- 9/11/2021

Course length: 1.5 miles.

General Notes –The course was mostly flat with only a couple hills to deal with. Most of the course was gravel with the rest being run on grass. The weather was warm and sunny with minimal wind. Everyone ran really well, particularly for the first race of the season (and for many, the first cross country race ever)! We hope everyone is proud of what they accomplished, because you all should be!

This year, we’re going to highlight a few athletes each week with a quick race write-up. Everyone who ran will still see some pictures as well as their mile split, finishing time/place, and average pace. The highlighted athletes will be first.

The girls were the only scoring team and therefore won. There were 22 athletes in the girls' race.

The boys were second out of 4 teams with 39 points. Okanogan won with 30 points. There were 37 athletes in the boys' race.

Highlighted Athletes

Josie – One mile: 7:19. Finish: 11:32, 4th place. Average 7:41.

You had some nerves going into the race, but you had a fantastic race! Way to push hard up the hills and pump those arms. You looked smooth coming down the hills and on the flats. You got a bit tired towards the end, but that's totally fine! You still found a way to finish with everything you had. Nice job!

Anja – One mile: 7:27. Finish: 11:38, 6th place. Average 7:45.

You did a great job of maintaining your speed and intensity throughout the race, which is super awesome to see in your first race! Running with your teammates in a pack always makes it easier to keep going, and you instinctively found your[LD1] niche. Nice job digging deep when the going got tough!

Freya W – One mile: 8:17. Finish: 12:55, 11th place. Average: 8:36.

A few nerves never hurt anyone, and I think they helped you for sure! You went out fast then managed to hang on while running by yourself, which is not easy to do. Plus, I heard you had quite a bit of fun while doing it!

Elsa – One mile: 8:54. Finish: 14:09, 17th place. Average: 9:26.

Before the race you seemed calm, and that translated to how you ran. You looked cool and collected the whole way through the finish. You powered through the pack and up the hills. You found that extra little bit at the finish. Nice job!

Keira -- One mile: 13:02. Finish: 18:36, 21st place. Average: 12:24.

Congratulations! I know you had some doubts, but you proved what you're capable of. You spent some time running by yourself and with a teammate, but that didn't matter at all. You were able to get faster after the mile, which is super awesome! Plus, you looked smooth and steady the whole time. Way to go!

Oliver – One mile: 6:40. Finish: 10:23, 12th place. Average: 6:55.

Good work Oliver! You did a great job, even if you might have gone out hard for that first mile. Its superb that you were able to run with Landon and find the strength in you through the second part of the race. I have total confidence that you’ll find an even more steady pace at the next race!

Sawyer – One mile: 7:29. Finish: 11:35, 19th place. Average: 7:43.

It was so much fun to see you working with your teammates throughout the race! It can make racing a lot more fun when you run with people. And you were able to keep moving up through the second part of the race – which shows a lot of determination and grit. Way to work hard and race well!

Hugo – One mile: 7:32. Finish: 11:49, 22nd place. Average: 7:52.

Yippee! You finished your first ever XC race! And you did great. We’ll work on finding our race pace more before the next meet but even though you ran that first mile hard, you used your teammates around you to help you continue to work hard and have fun all the way to the finish.

Ben N – One mile: 7:33. Finish: 12:38, 27th place. Average: 8:25.

Great job finishing the first race of the season! It’s difficult to go out at your own pace but you stayed steady and ran with your teammates which makes racing more exciting. You put in a hard effort and had fun which is awesome!

Elliot – One mile: 10:57. Finish: 17:30, 37th place. Average: 11:40.

You did it! I know that you’ve had some tired legs but you still found the fight to keep up the strength and energy and finish with a lot of heart. I could see the determination on your face and it was inspiring! Keep up the hard work!