The FHS cross country program aims to develop competitive distance runners and help athletes grow in pursuing Jesus Christ. The team is a fun, encouraging, hard-working group spanning middle school and high school, both boys and girls, from beginning runners to veterans.

What we do: Competitions (meets) are a 5k race for high schoolers and either 2-mile or 4k for middle schoolers (though they may occasionally run up with the high schoolers).

Physical training consists primarily of running daily during the season, including outside the team practice sessions. Practices will also include other activities such as strength training, running form drills, and stretching to improve running mechanics and overall athleticism and reduce injury risk.

Conditioning: These workouts are not required but are highly recommended to prepare athletes for the intensity of training during the season. Conditioning also allows the team to begin building into one another.

July 9 to August 10. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:30-9:30 AM. Saturdays, 8-10 AM.

Locations: South Run Rec Center, Lake Accotink, Burke Lake, and occasionally Fountainhead Regional Park.

Tryouts: August 13-24, same locations as above. Days stay the same. Starting August 20, Tuesday and Thursday times switch to 4-6 PM.

The objective is for athletes to try out cross country as well as for the coaching staff to gauge your commitment. There is not a set number of team members—spots will be offered based on attitude and effort. Compared to conditioning, the training will start to look more like it will throughout the rest of the season. Time trials will be held, but the focus is less on running a target speed and more on simulating the intensity of races.

Season: August 27 to November 2 or 9 (end date will be determined depending on timing of last meet). Possibility of post-season (Nov. 16 or 23) meet for varsity only is being explored, depending on availability of meet. Runners will be expected to train 5-6 days per week, with each week’s workout plans posted on the website and circulated via email and SportsEngine. Each athlete will log their workouts in a simple Google sheet so coaches can monitor progress and give feedback.

• Tuesday 4-6 PM.
• Thursday, exploring use of a track ~6:30-8:30 PM, if not available then practices will be 4-6 PM.
• Saturday, 8-10 AM (excluding weeks with meets)

Locations: Same as conditioning and tryouts, unless a track becomes available.

Attendance policy: Absences should be limited to unavoidable conflicts. If an athlete cannot attend practice, please email the coaches and team manager at fhsaaxc@gmail.com. Coaches will follow up on unexcused absences, with repeated absences potentially leading to ineligibility for meets or removal from the team.

Cancellation policy: Practice will be called off in case of thunderstorms or heavy rain but will go on in light rain. This will inevitably require judgment calls. We will make every effort to provide advance notice.

Meet RSVPs: RSVPs will be through a Google sheet and must be provided by the deadline set by the coaches to ensure participation, and so we can provide the entries to the hosts.

Meets: All team members can typically participate in all meets. Meets are a mix of Saturday mornings, Saturday afternoons, and weekday afternoons. The number of meets will be 7-8, depending on availability. FHS plans to host a meet October 12 in conjunction with FHS Homecoming. Parent volunteers will be needed. Other locations will vary from local to 1-2 hour drive. Parents are allowed to work out their own carpool.

Costs: Registration fee: $50, must be paid before an athlete can participate in conditioning or tryouts.  Season fee: Final fee for the year will be determined based on budget and communicated during tryouts (expect about $250 including uniform fees). Once a spot on the team is offered, the athlete has 48 hours to accept the spot on the team by paying the fee.

Other equipment: A pair of running shoes. Separate racing shoes are not required. Ideally, a wristwatch with stopwatch function. A GPS watch is not required.

Volunteers: Trainers are needed to help us run practices and meets smoothly.  There will be other needs such as "tent family", "water cooler family", "team photo person", and many volunteer roles for the home meet.  Reach out to me if you might be interested in helping out or would like to learn more.