Month: September 2017

2017 Fulton County Invitational Info

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

2017 Homecoming Hill

UPDATE: This is a high school only meet. Middle school will have regular practice after school.
Fulton County Invitational Tue. 9/26 (High School only)

Results available at http://www.baumspage.com/cc/fultoncounty/2017/

Course maps:
High School Course
Middle School Course

Homecoming Park
Parking Info: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/fultoncounty/2017/Fan%20Parking%20information.pdf

3:00pm – Bus leaves from High School (est. arrival 3:30pm)
5:00pm – HS girls race
5:30pm – HS boys race
6:00pm – Two mile open
6:20pm – Awards ceremony
7:00pm – Estimated return time
Meet Notes – This is the inaugural running of this invitational and a chance for Wauseon to go through the process of hosting a meet prior to hosting the NWOAL Championships on October 14.  The high school and middle school runners had an opportunity to preview this course a couple weeks ago, and this is an opportunity for us to run a full race on the course before competing at leagues.  We don’t typically run full invitationals in the middle of the week, but Wauseon had to accommodate the fact that many schools already had invitationals booked on these weekends in advance and indicated that they will be looking to host on a Saturday next year (likely the weekend after Widewater).
Based on what we saw at the preview, this promises to be a pretty fast course so we’re looking forward to a chance to run it a couple times (for those of you familiar with Homecoming Park: no, we do NOT have to run up Homecoming Hill!).

 

Parking will be a little tricky so please refer to the information linked above as there are several designated locations.  It will also still be pretty hot Tuesday and the start/finish area is in an open field, so plan accordingly.  There are restroom facilities at the main pavilion/finish as well as near the starting area.

2017 Widewater Invitational Info

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

2016-widewater-ashley-katie
Liberty Center Widewater Invitational Sat. 9/23 (High School & Middle School)

Results available at http://www.baumspage.com/cc/libertycenter/2017/

Course schedule and maps: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/libertycenter/2017/Course%20Schedule%20and%20Maps.pdf

Widewater Retreat Center
4050 Old US24
Liberty Center, OH 43532

*Parking Note – Do not go to the main park entrance. Parking is off of County Road 4 west of the park and should be marked.  There is a $5 charge for parking, and it’s a bit of a hike from the parking area to the starting line so plan accordingly.

Schedule:

7:00am – Middle school bus leaves (est. arrival 7:45am)
9:00am – Middle School girls race
9:30am – Middle School boys race
10:00am – Middle School awards
11:00am – Estimated return to EHS

 

9:15am – High School team bus leaves (est. arrival 10:00am)
11:30am – High School girls race (Black Division)
12:15pm – High School boys race (Black Division)
1:00pm – High School awards
2:00pm – Estimated return to EHS
Meet Notes – This course is a perennial favorite.  It offers a little bit of everything: fast/flat first mile, grassy and rolling second mile, and the third mile includes wooded trails, a water hazard followed by a steep hill, and a flat, open finish.  From a spectator standpoint, here is pretty good viewing of the start, one mile mark, and the finish (as well as “the hill” near the finish).  Most of the rest of the course is accessible, just be prepared to get some exercise!
It’s going to be HOT Saturday, so please dress and plan accordingly.  There is shade to be found, but the main field with the start/finish area is a wide open field so it will be toasty!

2017 Fayette Eagle Invitational Info (EMS)

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

2016-fayette-girls-start

Fayette Eagle Invitational – Sat. 9/16 (Middle School only)
Harrison Lake State Park
26246 Harrison Lake Road
Fayette, OH 43521

Results online at http://www.baumspage.com/cc/fayette/2017

7:20am – Leave from High School (est. arrival at Harrison Lake 8:00am)
9:00am – Girls’ middle school race
9:30am – Boys’ middle school race
11:00am – Estimated return to Evergreen

Notes – One of the most beautiful courses we run with a few moderate hills and lots of wooded trails. This course has been pretty fast for middle school runners over the years, with nearly every runner setting a personal record at the meet.  From a spectator standpoint, the start and finish areas are fairly close together, with the finish being a long stretch great for cheering.  The course has been modified several times over the years, so double check the start and finish locations on arrival in case they’ve been moved again.  The graphic below gives an approximation of where they’ve been in the past. Be sure to give yourself extra time to find a parking spot and walk to the start/finish area.

Harrison Lake Start/Finish

2017 Ottawa-Glandorf Invitational Info (EHS)

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

DSC_0860Ottawa-Glandorf Invitational Sat. 9/16 (High School only)

Results and info available at http://www.baumspage.com/cc/ottawa/2017/

Course maps:

High School Course

Ottawa Memorial Park
730 N Locust St
Ottawa, OH 45875

6:00am – Meet at High School (bus leaves 6:15am sharp, est. arrival 7:30am)
9:30am – HS Varsity boys race
10:30am – HS Varsity girls race
1:30pm – Expected return to Evergreen

Meet Notes – O-G, Take Two.  Last year we traveled all the way to Ottawa only to be told the meet was canceled due to rain because they were concerned about jeopardizing course conditions for the upcoming District meet hosted five weeks later.  Disappointed but determined, we jogged the course anyway just to gain some familiarity and we’re looking forward to competing on it this season.  This is widely known as a very fast course, and while it will feel small compared to Tiffin we will have some great competition to contend with.

From a spectator standpoint, the course (linked above) weaves back and forth across the park and offers numerous opportunities to cheer on runners.  Several areas have the runners coming through one direction and back the other, so there are plenty of spots to watch from.  The one mile and two mile marks are very close to each other and not far from the finish line.

 

Otsego Invitational Recap

P.Schwan 2017, Race Recap

2017 Otsego Augie

Recap: The Viking high school runners had a good meet last Saturday and did some solid work. Our strategy for this meet was more about place than time as this course doesn’t usually lend itself to speed despite being mostly flat (there are just enough speed bumps and sharp turns to really disrupt rhythm). With that strategy in view, both the boys and girls teams did well.

The Lady Vikes kicked off the morning shorthanded, with Hannah still out and Kennedy and Katie both at the fair, so there wasn’t a full team on hand from a scoring standpoint. That said, the girls executed the strategy VERY well. Sarah led the girls again, letting the rabbits sprint out quickly before methodically passing them one by one. She crossed the mile mark in sixth place and continued to surge up to challenge the leader by the final half mile before finally securing a strong second place finish. Trin and Ashley mirrored the effort in moving from 27th to 23rd and 39th to 31st, respectively, over the last two miles. Being able to pass runners after the first mile is a sign of strong running and makes a huge difference in the outcome of meets.

For the varsity boys, they followed up with a similar effort. In their case, they had league rival Swanton to compete against and they matched up well. Three of the top five runners fought through the race and came in just ahead of a rival, and our fifth man came in just after one despite struggling with cramping. This is the type of competition that reminds us this is a team sport, and it’s a great example of teamwork in action. From an individual perspective, the boys were led by Kyle Bowser with a strong top 20 finish, but the day belonged to Augie. In this same meet last year, he dropped a significant amount of time off his PR, catapulting him from the JV squad onto varsity for the rest of the season. He followed up this year by taking nearly a full minute off his personal best and breaking 20:00 for the first time. Alex was right on his heels…just five seconds back…and Kevin, Chan, Tommy and Drew all finished within an 36 second span.

In the open race, Kyle Smith had one of the faster opening miles of the day but stepped funny on the way through the water hazard and had to fight through leg pain the rest of the race. He gutted it out, but Evan took advantage and wound up leading the Vikings in the race. Gavin followed up a 31 second PR last week by taking another 27 seconds off this week and running 4:10 faster than Otsego last year. Chris and Nick also improved their times from last week’s meet.

Here are the results for the High School:

Last Name First Name Finish Place
Bowser Kyle 19:08 20
Tipping Augie 19:59 34
Majewski Alex 20:04 36
Crisp Kevin 21:04 42
Ruetz Chandler 21:30 46
Pollard Thomas 21:39 48
Donnald Drew 21:40 49
Pennington Evan 21:58 16
Smith Kyle 22:22 18
Rhodus Gavin 22:58 26
Ruth John 23:02 27
Hartzell Chris 23:09 28
Hassen Nick 23:53 30
Utz Ashton 25:20 38
Simon Pete 30:51 43
Schwan Sarah 20:26 2
Welch Trinity 24:38 23
Garlick Ashley 25:27 31
McCormick Alexis 33:46 52

Full Event Results are available on Baumspage.

Up Next: The high school team travels to the Tiffin Cross Country Carnival while the middle school competes at the Archbold Invitational.

2017 Archbold Invitational Info

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

2016-archbold-owen

Archbold Invitational Sat. 9/9 (Middle School only)
Archbold Reservoir
502 South Street (parking)
Archbold, OH 43502

8:00am – Bus leaves from the Middle School (est. arrival 8:30am)
10:00am – Middle school girls
10:45am – Middle school boys
12:00pm (est.) – Bus returns to Middle School

Archbold Course Map

Meet Notes – This meet involves loops around the larger and smaller reservoirs, with hills in between and a downhill finish. The middle school makes one loop around each reservoir, while the high school adds a second loop around the larger reservoir. Spectators can see pretty much the entire race, although individual runners can be a little hard to make out when they’re on the far side of the water. This is not a fast course despite being mostly flat; in part, because it’s so open and flat. It’s much harder to push your pace running a one mile long circle around the reservoir. Still, all the runner have to run the same loops, so it’s a chance to get out and compete against some of our NWOAL rivals.

*There will be concessions available. However, we ask that athletes have a healthy breakfast that morning and NOT eat concession food until after they have competed. We will have healthy snacks provided by parents; athletes are strongly encouraged to partake of these after competing.

Tiffin Carnival Info

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

2016-regionals-start

Tiffin Cross Country Carnival Sat. 9/9 (High School only)

Results available at http://www.baumspage.com/cc/tiffin/2017/

Course maps: High School Course

Hedges Boyer Park
491 Coe St.
Tiffin, OH 44883

6:30am – Bus leaves from High School (est. arrival 8:00am)
9:35am – Girls’ Div. III Varsity
10:05am – Boys’ Div. III Varsity
11:25am – Boys’ Div. III Open
3:30pm – Estimated return time
Meet Notes – This meet is truly something to behold.  One of the largest meets in the country, this carnival is in its 49th year and features most of the top teams and individual runners in the state. The first race of the day kicks off at 8:30am, and the last race doesn’t start until 5:25pm.  Most of these races will have upwards of 240 runners, making it a pretty intense and unique experience for each participant.  This also happens to be the same course on which the Regional meet is run, giving us an opportunity to preview the course without making a special trip in late October.  The course is challenging to be sure, but also ripe for some very fast times so it’s a great opportunity all around for the Viking runners.
Parent/spectator information is available here: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/tiffin/2017/2017%20Parent%20Info.pdf
A few things of note:
  • Tiffin is about 90 minutes from EHS, so give yourself plenty of time
  • Parking can be challenging. Plan to enter on Summit Street (the “bottom” of the park) and walk to the upper area.  You can enter off Coe Street, but you have to pass through several areas that are blocked off during races, making it very difficult to get through. Again, give yourself plenty of time.
  • They run a VERY tight schedule. If they say the boys’ open race is at 11:25 AM, that gun will go off at 11:25 AM.
  • The side of the start area near the finish is typically very crowded, as are several other areas on that side of the course. There’s a lot of people here, so bring a dose of patience 🙂
  • Cell coverage is really bad. Calling, texting, tweeting, etc. is a gamble at any given time.
  • The t-shirts for this meet are usually pretty cool, and you’ll often see runners wearing them at other meets throughout the year. This meet is somewhat legendary among the high school cross country community.
  • We are planning on stopping for lunch during the drive back. We welcome anyone to join us, just be advised it may be crowded with 23 runners plus coaches and parents. We’ll let everyone know Saturday where we decided to stop.
This meet has always been held the same day as the Archbold Invitational, and so Evergreen has always graciously declined the invitation to attend the Tiffin Cross Country Carnival.  We are very excited to make our debut this year and give our runners a taste of a meet like no other in the area.  They’ve worked hard, and they deserve it!
*There will be concessions available. However, we ask that athletes have a healthy breakfast that morning and NOT eat concession food until after they have competed. We will have healthy snacks provided by parents; athletes are strongly encouraged to partake of these AFTER competing.

Otsego Invitational Info

P.Schwan 2017, Race Info

2016 Otsego Ashton

Otsego Invitational Sat. 9/2 (High School only)

Results and info available at http://www.baumspage.com/cc/otsego/inv/2017/

Course maps:

High School Course

Mary Jane Thurston State Park
1466 State Route 65
McClure, OH 43534

8:00am – Bus leaves from High School (est. arrival 8:45am)
10:00am – HS Varsity girls race
10:40am – HS Open girls race
11:20pm – HS Varsity boys race
12:00pm – HS Open boys race
12:40pm – Adult Run (open to anyone for $5 entry)
2:00pm – Expected return to Evergreen

Parking – Parking is limited at Mary Jane. Overflow parking will be located at the Marina located ½ mile west of Mary Jane. A shuttle bus will shuttle spectators to the park and back. Spectators are also welcome to park in Historic Downtown Grand Rapids and walk the scenic tow path to Mary Jane. You can enter the tow path behind Rita’s Dairy Bar, just west of LaRoe’s Restaurant or at the town park. To park in town you will continue straight at the Marathon station instead of traveling left to stay on Rt. 65.

Meet Notes – This is our second time running this course, and hopefully the experience will help!  This course can be very confusing; we had one runner get lost and have to back track, and others watch multiple runners go outside the (somewhat poorly) marked course.  Still, it’s another traditional cross country course with grass flats, wooded trails, a steep hill, and even a water hazard. This race marked a turning point for a few new runners last year, and hopefully will provide the same opportunity again this year.

This meet does have both a varsity and open race, meaning for the boys team the top 7 from Defiance will run in the varsity race and the rest will run the open race.  They also provide an adult open race at the end of the meet where any adult can register for $5 and run the course for time, so it’s a great opportunity for spectator-parents who always wondered what the courses our athletes run are really like.

*There will be concessions available. However, we ask that athletes have a healthy breakfast that morning and NOT eat concession food until after they have competed. We will have healthy snacks provided by parents; athletes are strongly encouraged to partake of these after competing.