Cross Country Practices have officially begun for both the boys’ and girls’ teams, but there have been slight changes made this year due to COVID-19. Though it is an activity that is mostly spent outside and far apart, the safety of everyone involved is taken very seriously by the coaches and team captains of both teams. Senior Kyle Kendall has spent most of his high school career participating in this team sport and has observed several small changes this year.

“I’ve been participating in cross country for four years now. It’s been a defining activity of my high school experience and joining it was one of the best decisions of my life. This team that has been changing around me for over four years has always been dedicated to each other and has been a community I am most proud to be a part of. Cross country is lucky because we are an outdoor sport with no physical contact that can run anywhere, so we’ve been very fortunate and have been able to practice in close capacity, but can no longer do many of the things that were most special to me and most people,” said Kendall. “My favorite part of being on the cross country team has changed as my role has changed. At the beginning, it was the people I could learn from in both life and running, but as my role has changed, it’s transitioned from small things I like about running and cutting time to seeing other people I have helped and encouraged reach and push through their goals. I will run for as long as my body can physically take it because it’s always been something that has calmed and focused my mind, and is a great thing to do with other people. It really does keep you in great health too. It depends on how my interests develop over college or how seriously I will take it, but at the moment I hope to run things like marathons as an adult.”

Sophomore Elizabeth McClung is in her second year of running on the girls’ cross country team. She has noticed several differences as well, one of the largest being that no meets are planned. Instead, they are casual practices.

“I’ve been running cross country since the beginning of ninth grade. I really like running with my friends and practice is a fun way to get to know people and relax after school. I also love going to meets all together and seeing our progress. So far, we haven’t been able to have an official cross country season, so it has been a lot more laid back. I really enjoy seeing my coaches and teammates there. My favorite part is spending time with my friends and joking around all together. We have been doing a lot of different kinds of workouts to get back in shape. Right now we’re getting ready for a track meet. Last week, we did toe exercises to help with our form,” said McClung. “I am planning on running throughout highschool, and maybe in college too. I look forward to seeing our team’s progress and having a normal season again. The events of this year have made me even more thankful for the season that we had last year. I really miss being able to do everything, like going to meets, team dinners, and having our early morning Friday practices.”

Students on these teams have been doing workouts to stay in shape despite the current events and have stayed united as a team to continue doing what they love together.

“COVID-19 has not changed my view on cross country significantly, but it has allowed me to step back and realize how important it has been to me over the last few years,” said Kendall. Finding the small things that are no longer possible has made cross country so special to me.”