More on XC Camp

The registration form for the camp is now available here:

I believe I have set up the permissions properly for everyone to view / print the document.

The instructions say you can register by sending it to the address on the form, but you can also deliver it to Zach at a Captains' practice (I would expect the other Captains would accept it as well).

Summer Camp Is For Boys, Too

Contrary to the listing in the Webster School District newsletter that was sent out recently, the Webster Distance Runners XC camp is open to boys as well as girls.  All runners entering grades 7-12 are encouraged to attend.  Here are the main details for the camp:

Who:       Open to all runners entering 7^th thru 12^th grade.

What:      A Cross Country camp dedicated to fully preparing athletes for the 2013 season.

Where:   Webster Park, in the field south of the pier parking lot (near the Beeches shelter).

When:    Tuesday and Thursday evenings, from 5:30-7:30pm.

Why:       To learn more about the sport of Cross Country, to mentally and physically prepare for the 2013 XC season, and to have fun!

Cost:        $50 – contact Coach Lyons regarding need-based scholarships – checks payable to Webster Distance Runners may be sent to 20 Sanfilippo Cir Rochester, NY 14625

Details:   Each session will include a brief clinic on a different aspect of the sport of Cross Country, and the sessions will include a variety of training exercises that will help the athletes understand how the different components of a training program come together to help them achieve their goals.  The camp will be led by Coaches Mike Lyons and Cathy Brust from Webster Schroeder, and will include instruction and exercises appropriate for all ages and abilities.

Questions?  Contact Coach Lyons at mclyons at frontiernet dot net 

Silver at Nationals for Val!

A beautiful day in Greensboro, NC was the setting for Val's second place performance in the Steeplechase at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals.  Keelin Hollowood led early, then Val took the lead on the third lap.  With 450m to go, Keelin made a strong move and opened a gap that she would not surrender.  Val ran 6:47 to place second, comfortably ahead of the heated battle for third, which Hannah Cole lost by just 0.01 seconds (the officials originally awarded Hannah the bronze medal).  So, a very nice ending to a wonderful high school career for Val, who is looking forward to continuing her running at Duquesne in the fall.

The Boys Steeplechase did not go exactly as expected.  First, a runner from Colorado Springs ran away from the field in the first heat, coming within 0.13 seconds of the meet record (and was just 5 seconds off the national record).  Then Brennan Root and Tyler Ranke were running 1-2 in the second heat, with a shot at the win, when Brennan caught a barrier with about 800m to go and did a tumble.  Tyler then opened up a bit of a lead, but was passed with about 100m to go and finished second in the heat, and third overall, as the time from the first heat held up for the win.  Brennan should great heart, as he popped up and finished just a couple of seconds back, sprained wrist and all.

The Girls Two Mile Run was an excellent race with Katie Lembo and Eileen O'Hara in the Championship Section of 13 girls.  The pace was a little hesitant at first, so Katie went to the front to get things moving, and was co-leader for most of the first mile, before a group of three pulled ahead.  Eileen started to fade, but Katie stayed in the mix for fourth for a while before finishing 8th in the very talented field, just a few seconds out of an All American spot.

The Boys Two Mile followed immediately, and went out very quickly (perhaps 2:07 at 800m).  Mickey Burke was in the second pack that formed when the top three runners pulled away.  He seemed to struggle a bit on laps 6 and 7, drifting back to 7th place, but he rallied nicely on the last lap, and wound up 4th, just 0.2 seconds from the bronze.  He almost broke 9 in the two mile, going through 3200m in 8:57.

The East Aurora girls closed the evening in the 4x800m relay, with a very strong performance, knocking six seconds off of their NY State Meet time, running 9:17, to capture 3rd in the first heat, and 11th overall.

State Champions!

The girls distance races at the NYS Track & Field Championships were swept by girls from the Webster-Penfield area, as Katie won the 3000, Val was victorious in the Steeplechase, and Eileen pulled off the win in the 1500.

More later...

No Golf Today

The best laid plans, and all that...

With the rain falling steadily, and showing no sign of letting up, the weather really put a damper on today's plans, canceling the planned round of golf with Coach Graf, and reducing the amount of time I'll be able to handle at the track.

We did visit the track, and they have a nice facility, although there is no spectating anywhere except the bleachers lining the home stretch; the backstretch has a high, covered fence.

I'll definitely head back in time for the 3000, but will have to look at the schedule to see what else I'd like to catch.

One Hot Evening

Since I went straight from State Q's to a hotel and then on to a 24-hour orienteering event, I had not made time to write about the meet.  So, here goes a belated story...

With the temperature above 90 (and "real feel" close to the 96 degree "no go", per NYSPHSAA, and a chance of thunderstorms, there were a couple of ways the meet could be delayed or postponed, but the thermometer stopped rising and the clouds mostly stayed away, so we were on.

The first thing that I noticed upon arrival, was that the steeplechase barriers looked a little high.  After a rough measurement, they appeared to be 33", which is not the correct height for girls (30") or boys (36").  After the coaches meeting, we got that straightened out.

After an arbitrary delay for the sportsmanship awards, etc., the Pentathlon hurdles went off, with the runners in the wrong lanes, which screwed up the scoring for a bit.  Meanwhile, unbeknownst to me, Sarah was missing the start of the high jump, because the meet program handed out to the coaches said that the open high jump was after the girls pent high jump.  Oops.  She recovered to clear 5', but missed a chance to go to the State Meet, based on misses.

The first track event for our girls was the Steeplechase, with hopes of running good times despite the heat.  Val had Hannah Cole behind her for a couple of laps, but as Hannah dropped back, it was clear that the heat would prevent a fast time for Val, who relaxed to enjoy the win.  Meanwhile Julia kept moving up in the pack and did wind up posting a PR, finishing just over 8 minutes.

The next distance event for us was the 3000m.  Although Natalie wasn't prepared for one more week of racing, Amanda certainly was.  After Kennedy Jensen went chasing after Katie Lembo, with Eileen O'Hara following behind, it left Amanda in a small pack with "little Amanda", and girls from Penfield and HF-L.  After a fair amount of shuffling for the first 5.5 laps, Amanda took command and gradually ran away from the others.

Conor was the next WDR entrant, in the 800.  His goal was to break 2 minutes and he came very close (2:00.13), with a strong effort offset by a small error (cutting in too quickly and sharply after the break) that could have been worse if a Fairport runner hadn't allowed him to take the inside passing route on the backstretch during the second lap.

The girls 4x800 relay saw 3 PRs, but it was not quite enough to beat Chuchville-Chili, but we did beat Hilton.

The girls 4x400 relay was next, and Emma got the team off to a great start.  Alex, showing great resilience after her unfortunate Triple Jump result, broke 62 to keep us in second.  Colleen's best time was overshadowed by the incredibly strong third legs by Fairport, Mercy and especially Rush-Henrietta, so we had to settle for 4th.

The final distance event was the Pent 1500 with Nick running fine, but Adam lighting things up with an awesome finish to win in 4:40.