2024
Coach Green’s Info/Philosophy
Season/Attendance
Practices
Races
Weather/Gear
Health/Diet/Fluids
Varsity/JV
Captains
Expenses
Rules & Guidelines
Parents/Volunteer
Banquet
Lettering
Directions
Schedule
2024 Cardinal Boys and Girls Cross
Country Running
Coach
Any questions, please call
Coach Green.
We also have a blog spot that
will be updated on a regular basis with important information (race times,
directions to meets, review of previous meets, etc): coonrapidscc.blogspot.com
Lauren Erie, Jerlie Jensen, former Cardinal runners, as well as William Kosgei will be
assisting with the team this year.
Philosophy
Many
challenges lie ahead, as an individual you can meet those challenges with the
confidence of knowing those around you will support and help you. As with any
team sport there will be times of celebration, disappointment, frustration, and
a great deal of exhilaration. Together, as a team, these experiences will build
character and forge a bond of friendship and respect that will last a lifetime.
The coaches will work you hard and expect a high level of dedication, while at the
same time promoting running as a life sport. Smile, work hard, and have fun!
Season/Attendance
Our season goes from
mid-August until the first weekend in November.
About 11 meets are held in September and October: several invitationals,
Conference, Sections, and State Meets.
Many of the runners gather informally over the summer to stay in shape
by running together. The majority of our
meets are Thursday afternoons or Saturdays, but occasionally on other days as
well. Runners are expected to attend all
practices and meets except for illness, family or religious commitments. Be sure to speak to the coach before hand.
Practices
Once the school year begins,
we practice daily at 3:15, to allow middle school students (please be no later than 3:25) to travel and high
school student’s time to take care of academic needs. We typically finish between 5:00 and 5:30,
depending on the day’s workout.
Practices WILL be held in most weather conditions except electrical
storms, as are meets. PRACTICES ARE
IMPORTANT, especially if you plan to compete.
If there are conflicts with family needs, religious schedules or
homework concerns please call or send a note to Coach Green signed by a parent,
teacher, doctor, etc. If we do not
receive a note, it will be considered an unexcused absence. 1st unexcused absence, the athlete
misses the next meet; 2nd unexcused absence, the athlete misses the
next two meets; 3rd unexcused absence, the athlete misses the rest
of the meets, but will be allowed to still practice with the team and be a
manager.
Meets
About 11 meets are held in
September and October. Distances vary
between 1 mile and 3.1 miles (5K). We
travel by school bus, leaving school between 1:00 and 3:00. Races start between 3:30 and 4:00, and we
return between 5:00 and 7:00. Runners
will be given the bus boarding time the day before each meet. In some cases we’ll leave shortly after
school is out, sometimes we leave during 5th hour, depending on race
times and driving distances.
Runners are expected to board
the bus in uniform, with whatever extra layers of clothing they may need and
water or sports drinks for after their races.
Most of the meets are held in the metro area at golf courses and
parks. Races have a mass start. Meets may have one race with all runners, or
separate races for Varsity, JV, and Middle School events. The team’s faster runners start at the front
of our group at the start line. They run a course that often circles two or
three times and ends near or at the starting line. This makes it possible to cheer for runners
several times. The runners will do
stretches and a warm up run before and a cool down run following the race. This is important to keeping muscles flexible
and healthy. All team members are
expected to ride to the meets and back to CRHS as a team. Talk to Coach Green if there are unique
circumstances to be considered.
Scoring: Points are awarded by place: 1st
place = 1point, 2nd place = 2 points, etc. The lowest team (top 5 team scorers) score
wins the meet. A perfect score is 15
points for the first five places.
Gear/Weather
Runners will need assorted
shorts, t-shirts, wind pants, sweatshirts, windbreakers, hats and gloves to
make the transitions through the varying fall weather. The weather varies considerably from August
to November and this requires flexibility.
We run in most conditions, except electrical storms. At the beginning of our August training we’ll
be scheduled for the cool hours of the day.
By the end of October we usually need to be layering. It can feel cold before and after the
workout, but during the run you will warm up more than you might expect. In very cold temperatures, remember that
synthetic fabrics will wick away the moisture better than cotton and keep you
warmer. Uniforms will be issued for
meets. The team will have the opportunity
to purchase team warm, in which the captains will be putting together.
Varsity runners must wear
matching uniforms to qualify at races.
If the weather turns cold enough to need long sleeves under the uniform
tank tops for racing, the team must wear the same color. Most of the veteran runners prefer running
spikes for meets, bur they are not necessary.
An athletic locker is made available for the athletes in the team locker
room. Water or a sports drink are important
following practices or races. Water
bottles or small insulated containers travel well.
Health/Diet/Fluids
Plenty of sleep, healthy
diets, lots of fluid and maintaining your school work are also important to
doing well in Cross Country. Each runner
will need to learn what works best for them in regards to breakfast, lunch,
supper, snacks, and fluids before running a race. Be sure to bring a snack or lunch with if
we’ll be gone all day or until late. We
will also post things on our blog page as well to help. Examples of suggested
foods might be: fruits, bagels, sandwiches, granola bars, vegetables, banana
bread … If you have questions or concerns about your current diet please fill out the form under Health and Nutrition called "Nutrition Assessement" or ask myself or one of the other coaches so we can help. Nutrition and hydration are very important and we want to make sure everyone is staying healthy and getting the foods they need to be at their best and recovering efficiently! Please also read through the articles on Iron Depletion and Ferritin Levels on the right side of blog to help us make sure our athletes are not dealing with those issues as well.
Varsity/JV
The Varsity roster varies
with times from the previous race determining who will represent CRHS at the
next race. 7-10 team members will run
Varsity and the others will run JV or a Middle School race if offered. This year our team includes over 50 boys and
girl runners from grades 7-12. EVERYONE
PARTICIPATES!
Captains
Captains are chosen by the
runners at the season’s end for the following year. Their duties include organizing summer
workouts, unification of the team, assisting the new and younger runners in
various ways, setting up team apparel, and providing positive leadership. This year the Captains are Lachlan Demmer and Cole Burnett for the Boys, and Megan Fuller and Kendall Martinek for the Girls.
Expenses
Expenses include a $250
activity fee, optional team apparel, an optional team trip, and a good pair of
running shoes. Fees, Minnesota State
High School League and medical forms must be turned in before starting practice
to the CRHS athletic secretary (Jacque Lacy, 506-7307) in the main
office. Physicals are good for three
years. Be sure to get all necessary
items taken care of prior to August practices.
There is no need to delay.
Rules/Guidelines
Cross Country runners must
always demonstrate personal discipline and integrity. Please read through the Team Rules for the guidelines that the current runners would like for the team to follow. We also follow the MSHSL rules
and good etiquette, including cleaning up any areas we’ve used following
practices and races.
Player Participation (From MSHSL):
Daily Limit: None
Season Limitation: No participant may run in more than a total of 1 and 1/10 of the total number of meets allowed, exclusive of League tournament play.
The race distance for both girls and boys varsity cross country meets and all MSHSL postseason tournaments shall be 5,000 meters (3.1 miles) unless the meet director or games committees adjusts the distance because of weather or some other unforeseen reason. The race distance for lower level high school meets may be less than 5k.
Road Races: A cross country runner may run as an individual competitor in road races, fun runs, marathons and races for a cause of any distance through Labor Day. If they run in these kinds of events after Labor Day, the distance run in the competition must be significantly different in length than the distance run in high school cross country. Significantly different is defined as one-kilometer difference in race length.
Parents/Volunteers
Parents, family members and
friends are invited to be involved on race days by cheering for our “runners in
red and white,” sign up to send snacks, or help with timing and gear at the
start/finish line. Warm cider is good if
it becomes cold towards the end of the season.
Traditionally Pasta Parties are hosted by interested families on the
evening before several of the meets.
This is not school sponsored, but is fun social team building, as well
as providing energy for the meet.
If you are interested in
helping out with anything, please call Coach Green or one of the captains if
you would like to host a Past Party.
Banquet
A team banquet (usually pot
luck) for the team will be held on November 4. Special awards and letters will be handed out by the coaches, as
well as a season’s statistic booklet.
There are often photos of the season to see. Families are invited to attend this special
evening.
Coon Rapids Cardinals Cross-Country Running
Lettering Criteria
Standards: 300
Points in one year
450
Points over 2 years
600
Points over 3 years
700
Points over 4 years
This is how one may letter.
You Must reach one of these standards to earn a letter. Once you earn a letter, your point’s
accumulation starts over at zero for the next year. You can and will earn points in the following
ways:
100 Points for running 18:00
minutes or faster for 5K for the Boys;
21:00 for the Girls
30 Points
for 3.0 GPA or higher during fall quarter
30 Points
for recruiting a runner that completes the season
10 Points
for running varsity in regular season races
10 Points
for running a personal best (PR) in a race
30 Points
for running varsity in the conference
40 Points
for running varsity in the section meet
2 Points
per practice that you attend (for 7-9 grade only)
25 Points
for a running journal that covers the season
75 Points
for a journal that covers the summer and the season
100 Points for a journal spans a
full year of training (including other sports)
Other Points Available:
Being a Top 12 Placer in the entire
field of any race of 4 or more teams – 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, etc in order of finish
Team Ranking: (Varsity) Depending
on the number in the Varsity Race, but will usually consist of 7 on the team
and points will be determined by where one finishes on the team – 7, 6, 5, etc.
(JV) Will also be determined by the
number of athletes participating divided
by two – (1st on JV with 10 runners = 10/2=5 Points)
Percentage Points for meets (Varsity Only) (% behind the leader depending
on the size of the meet)
Place <10 Teams <20 Teams >20 Teams
Top 10% 10 15 20
Top 20% 8 13 18
Top 30% 6 11 16
Top 40% 4 9 14
Top 50% 2 7 12
Running a sub 17:00 minute 5K for the Boys and 20:00 for the
Girls is an automatic Letter (300 Points)
Qualifying for the State Championships is an automatic
Letter (300 Points)
Seniors that are in good standing that don’t have enough pts
will also be highly considered.
Cross Country Meet Directions
(Watch for more information, times and
any new directions)
Anoka (District 11 Meet and Section
Meet 7AAA Championships): Highway 10 west to 7th ave., go north
(right). It’s 2 miles to the school,
located on the left side of the road.
Park in the school parking lot or at south (left) side of the
building. Course is south of school.
Bauman/Rovn Invitational: Gail Woods: 7210 County Rd 110 W, Minnetrista, 55364. Highway 10 east to Hwy 610 and continue to Hwy 169 South. Take 169 South to I94 West and follow to I494 South. Follow to Hwy 12 West, then exit onto Shoreline Dr, which is actually County Road 15, and continue going west. Shoreline Dr will take you in and around Lake Minnetonka, and continue to Mound, where you will take a left onto Bartlett Blvd/County Rd 110W The park entrance will be a couple of miles after you take a left, on the right side of the road. The WRA Park will be on the left side of CR 110W. There is limited parking at Gail Woods, so consider parking at WRA Park, near the park.
St Francis Invitational: The Ponds Golf Course: 2881 229th Ave NW, St. Francis, 55070. Take Hwy 10 West to Round Lake Blvd and go North to St Francis (will change to Lake George Blvd north of CR 22). Take a right at the round-a-bout for CR 24 and the golf course parking lot will be on the left side of the road just shy of a 1/2 mile.
Roy Griak Invitational: U of M Golf Course. Take 35W South to Cleveland Avenue South
to West Larpenteur. Turn right and follow for
a ½ mile on Larpenteur and you will see the Driving Range
and Golf Course on the right.
Osceola Invitational: Osceola Intermediate School. 969 Education Ave Osceola, WI.
Directions: Take Hwy 10 East to North I35W and merge onto North I35. Exit at Hwy 97 and go east/and follow to Forest Lake and continue through the round-a-bout to and through Scandia. Hwy 97 will T with Hwy 95 about 2 miles past Scandia and you will take a left to go North on Hwy 95. Go North on Hwy 95 for about 5.5 miles and you will take a right onto Osceola Rd/Hwy 243. Follow Hwy 243 into Osceola. At the stop sign, Hwy 35, you will take a left into town. Continue through town to Middle School Rd, take a right and follow to Oak Ridge Dr and take a left and then take a right onto Education Dr.
Cambridge Invitational: Purple Hawk Country Club: 36300 Highway 65 NE, Cambridge, 55008. Take Hwy 65 North to Cambridge. Continue on Hwy 65 about 4 miles north of Cambridge to Purple Hawk, which will be on the left side of the highway.
Elk River (Conference
Championships): 20015 Elk Lake Rd. Highway 10 west to Proctor Ave. in Elk River, go north (right). Go 2 miles to the Elk River Country Club,
which will be on the right. Additional
parking will be available at Woodland Trails, just north of the Country Club.
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