It started in the summer with him participating in weekly ultimate frisbee games. This was a chance to meet the coach and some of the players. The next event was GO camp in August. It was like a retreat. He was paired up with another team member and they got to know one another. A was teamed up with the best runner on the team whose name is Grant.
The group photo above was taken at a meet in Sultan that A attended but didn't run in because he hadn't attended enough practices to run.
A's first meet was on September 13th at McCollum Park (hosted by Arch Bishop Murphy High School). It was a very small meet which was a good way to get his feet wet. I am proud to say that I was at every one of the five meets that he raced in.
The meet that was the farthest away was in Port Angeles and A didn't attend that one. The largest meet was the Nike Invitational held at a golf course in Marysville. There were 269 runners in A's race.
Some teachers from the school came to this meet with signs to encourage the team.
Here is A running in the rain:
The team had practices every weekday after school from 4 until 6 pm. When I would pick him up, I'd wait to see the big yellow school bus (with the school name on the side) pull into the parking lot and then I'd know he was back. Most of the practices were held at a nearby state park.
One fun memory is the pin awards. At the team dinners the team leadership (a small group of seniors) handed out wooden clothespins with something written on them. They were usually funny. One pin that A received was for being a jester and another was for his one-handed catches.
The team dinners were potluck and were a good chance to meet other parents. A's coach was very dedicated and a fun guy to be around. He is super positive and encouraging.
One fun thing about cross country meets was running into A's former classmates from NCA who now go to other high schools and also run cross country.
Here is A at the South Whidbey Island meet on October 5th.
A's fastest time in the 5,000 metres was 21.22 at his last meet of the season which was held in Carnation, in the rain. This was October 19th. He started the season with a time of 24.55.
The school's team sent one young man to the state championship which was held in Pasco in early November.
I hope that A runs cross country again next year. He made many friends in his grade and challenged himself to persevere.
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