123

HS freshman daughter wants to run cross country next fall (Read 324 times)

Chris Pinney


    Basically looking for anecdotes on what she should expect. I ran XC in highschool but can't remember what times the girls were running. Daughter is concerned about being the slowest girl on the team. She is pretty fit and thin, runs 10 or so miles a week. And ran a 64 min 10k with no training. I have six months to train her and I'm pretty sure I can get her into the 26-27 min range for 5k. Maybe faster. Just trying to encourage her  so anything you can come up with would be helpful. Thanks so much.

      Im guessing her enjoyment of high school athletics will depend largely on the coach and kids ( and parents ) involved. My suggestion would be to stop worrying about her times (and her weight). Maybe have a long talk with the coach to set expectations and open dialog.

      And we run because we like it
      Through the broad bright land

        I had no experience with high school distance running until my daughter joined the xc team 2 fall seasons ago as a freshman. Now, having  two years of watching her, her team, her coach and other girls teams, there seems to be room for all levels of talent on most teams, other than our team as the coach is tough and many girls quit after a couple days or weeks. I'm in FL and most meets here are 30-40 team invites. 7 girls per team race in the varsity races, and an unlimited number race in the JV races, and there can be some pretty slow times in those JV races (and also among the back markers in the varsity). If you go to the milesplit page for your state you should be able to see the times for all girls on your daughter's future team and look at the times for the meets in which they competed last year for comparison sake.

         

        and I agree strongly that the coach will have a huge influence on the future enjoyment of your daughter. Some, like my daughter's coach, are old school and really tough. Some other local coaches whom I have gotten to know are easier and modify practices to suit the talent of his/her runners. That's not to say they don't produce talented runners, but they make an effort to modify individual workouts based on talent and other factors.

         

        And, while I think speaking wit the coach is a great idea for many reasons, I don't think any hs coach in any sport is going to be unduly influenced by what a parent wants for his/her kid. I have 3 kids in hs sports and it's basically the coach's way or the highway, subject to the exception that if your kid is the best on the team and among the best around, then you have more leverage.

         

         

        Hope  this is helpful

        Chris Pinney


          Thanks finding the coach sounds like the next step. I'm not really concerned about her time or weight but as a teenage girl you can understand that she is. I can definitely see how the coach can make or break certain kids. I had little to no guidance when I was her age. Love to try it again. Just so much information out there now.

          Ojo


            Not sure if every town is this way, but my son's team is accepting of kids of all levels including special needs.  In my opinion, cross country seems to attract nice kids to who cheer for each other even if you come in last.  She may not run varsity, but there seems to always be room on the JV teams.

             

            My son made the switch and starting running as a freshman.  He was running a 9 min/mile, and now in the latter half of sophomore year he is running a 5:13 min/mile.  Sadly this still puts him in the back of the pack, but he loves to run and never feels discouraged.

             

            Hard work and dedication will help her to improve.  She should not worry about her times, especially freshman year.

            Sara

            MM #2929

            wbudde


              Just to add my $0.02...

               

              I was a HS/College swimmer, and had zero experience in XC/track until my 7th grade son came home from school last Spring and said he was going to be on his middle school's track team. He followed that up by being on the XC team this past fall as an 8th grader. My son had a lot of fun with track (enough that he even decided to run in USATF age group meets over the summer), but as a parent I found the XC season to be a great experience for him. Similar to Ojo's experience, I found the type of kid attracted to XC was fantastic - all of the kids were rooting for each other, and were consistently positive and congratulatory to everyone, no matter what place they came in. The best kids on my son's team were running about 11:00 (the middle school race is two miles) and the slowest were running around 25:00, so the ability spectrum was really wide. For most of the kids, it will probably be the only time they ever get to compete in anything with their school name across their chest, and they really enjoyed that opportunity.

               

              All of the invitationals we went to over the season had both middle school and high school divisions, and the high school kids seemed to be pretty similar - all of them positive and cheering each other on, wide spectrum of abilities, just an overall great group of kids. The varsity races were extremely competitive, but there was always a JV race (and in two cases there were three HS flights), and it really seemed like there was a place for everyone.

               

              Basically, my advice would be to tell her to just focus on having fun with her friends on the team. If she develops a passion for it, great. If not, it will still be a fantastic experience.

              jerseyrunner


              Half Fanatic 12680

                 

                Basically, my advice would be to tell her to just focus on having fun with her friends on the team. If she develops a passion for it, great. If not, it will still be a fantastic experience.

                 

                This. My daughter also decided to run XC her freshman year of high school after no preparation whatsoever. The team had room for girls at all levels and everyone was included. Over the years, she got better, but was never one of the faster runners. Still, she participated in every competition and the way the scoring worked, sometimes it was the times of the slower runners that made the difference. She learned a lot about being on a team, persevering, managing her time, and making progress. It was also a very positive thing for her to start off high school as part of a group that included older girls as well as freshman.

                 

                As others have pointed out, the coach makes a huge difference. My daughter's coach emphasized achieving personal goals, personal responsibility, and inclusiveness. This certainly wasn't the case for other sports teams where clear hierarchies were formed and girls constantly worried about thier position on the team.

                 

                 

                Chris Pinney


                  Thanks everyone. Can't wait to show her this after school.

                    All the above is insightful and I +1 all of it. On my high school team we had the regional champion, we had girls who were stoked when they broke 30 minutes for 5k, and everything in between. Looking back, it was really a nice supportive group for what was otherwise a very cliquey, kinda snobby high school.

                     

                    in terms of running, I would really emphasize process goals, not performance goals, and the value of being on a team. definitely do some easy running over the summer! Nothing crazy. 30-40 minutes a day of easy running will help.


                    Why is it sideways?

                      HS XC is the best -- everyone plays the same position, so it's really easy to build camaraderie. The kids get the idea that slower is not always easier. You get to spend time with your friends out in the woods, on the trails, talking, running together. She will build life-long friendships and a great practice of running that she can carry with her as long as she lives.

                       

                      If she can run 3 miles straight without walking, she's not going to be the slowest runner out there. She's not going to be the fastest, either. There's a lot more to XC than fastest and slowest. Really, XC is about friendship, hard work, and shared effort.

                        The slowest kids on the team get the most playing time.

                        Yeah, well...sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.

                        Chris Pinney


                          The slowest kids on the team get the most playing time.

                           

                          Ha love it

                            There's a lot more to XC than fastest and slowest. Really, XC is about friendship, hard work, and shared effort.

                             

                            There's a lot of truth in this.  Running is not easy.  It's takes patience, determination and will power to stick with it.  Aside from the friendships that can be gained from it, there are a lot of other tangible skills that can stick with you for life.  I didn't know about XC until the coach talked to me in 8th grade.  I'm glad I ran because it was one of the most gratifying times in HS.  Good luck to your daughter.

                            joescott


                              Not sure if every town is this way, but my son's team is accepting of kids of all levels including special needs.  In my opinion, cross country seems to attract nice kids to who cheer for each other even if you come in last.  She may not run varsity, but there seems to always be room on the JV teams.

                               

                              Yep.  We've been part of high school cross country now for 4 years, and we probably have at least 4 more years to go (since son #3 moves up to high school next year).  I LOVE our cross country teams because of exactly what Ojo said above.  We have some fast kids, but we also have that really heavy kid who almost always finishes last, and we've had those special need kids, and they all are for each other.  It has been a great environment.

                              - Joe

                              We are fragile creatures on collision with our judgment day.

                              Chris Pinney


                                I'm so happy. The coach has a twitter account for the team. Looks like they have a lot of fun. Now I will have an excuse to go to a meet. I almost went solo to regionals to spectate last fall. Thanks again everyone for the input. I will repost here when I have anything to report. It would be cool to talk about running with my daughter but I'm not going to push it.

                                123