Cross Country Update #4: Finding Our Feet, Gradual Progress

Dear Cross Country Families,

We have completed our first two weeks of practices and it has been a blast meeting all of your kids and just being outside together. On Saturday, our competitive team participated in our first meet at Belmont Plateau! (See photos on our facebook page). Like any new fitness regimen, we have had to work out some kinks and adjust with the terrain, and I appreciate everyone’s patience and flexibility. I apologize for the meeting spot changes, but we realized we need a neutral location so that we are not stepping on any other group’s toes. When we meet at Challenge Grove Park, we will check in at or near the pavilion, and then we will move to a location that we choose for that specific session. 

Please Remind the Kids:

Please have a conversation with your kids if they feel we are not running enough at practice — we are a team, and we need to progress slowly at first, as a team. But have no fear, we will keep increasing the challenges we present to the kids, AND we will soon begin allowing the kids to form small groups based on ability and interest. Also, please keep in mind that the Sunday sessions are intended to be more about fun, encouraging our younger and newer runners to love running and just being active outside through the fall. Our weekday sessions are where we will do more traditional training for performance. And finally, it might be helpful to explain to your kids that the drills and exercises we do as part of every practice are an essential part of the overall goal of becoming a skilled, healthy runner! 

Locations

Please remember you can check locations for all sessions in the club google calendar. This week, we will be meeting at Challenge Grove for one more Sunday, and then on Sunday, October 10 we will switch to Pennypacker Park for all of the remaining Sundays (this is a slight change from the original plan). The weekday sessions will continue to alternate between Challenge Grove (Tuesdays) and Pennypacker (Thursdays). 

Upcoming Events

Camden County Mile (400m Run, 1-Mile Fun Run/Walk, Open/Elite 1-Mile Race):

As a club, we are hosting the 1st Annual Camden County Mile on October 30th. This event includes a 400m run, a 1-Mile Fun Run/Walk, and an Open/Elite Mile Race. We will also have a fun Run/Jump/Throw expo for kids after the 400 and Fun Run. There is a separate fee for this event, and you can sign up here.

SJTFC Cross Country Festival

On November 14th, we celebrate our cross country season with a fun series of races beginning at 2:00pm. This is a free event for our registered kids, and we encourage them to challenge themselves in one of the race distances. There will be a 100m dash, a 400m run, a 1K, 3K, and 5K. 

This event is open to the public, and for all ages, so friends and family can also participate, and can register here. (A small fee is charged for any non-registered kids or adults). 

Remind App

There are still a few people who have not joined the Remind App groups. This is how we will provide last minute alerts.

PM Remind Invitation Link

PM code: @k9kec97

AM Remind Invitation Link

AM code: @28g37h

Sunday Remind Invitation Link

Sunday code: @86eg7ak

Family Portal

The Family Portal is a website linked to our main club website. You can go to the Family Portal any time to catch up on email updates, to check the club google calendar, or to subscribe to updates from any of our programs. Please be aware: the site loads slowly (I am planning to change service providers when our current subscription ends). You can click on “subscribe to calendar” to add it to your own mobile calendar app. 

Main Website

Family Portal Website

Thanks!

Coach Craig