By Matthew Romero
Cross-country, is one of the most mentality based sports that exists out there today. It’s essentially made up of runners who run a timed 3.1 mile distanced race also known as a 5k. Cross-country is considered a team sport and an individual sport because of the diverse times that many runners of the same team have. The point system is literally based off of the place that the runner takes place in after finishing a race. For example, the person that finishes in first place will score 1 point for their team and someone who finishes in 44th place will score 44 points for their team. Some might ask why the runners that came in late score more points than the others, but the irony with the scoring system is that higher points mean a lower place and the team with the lowest points will actually come out on top. This is only one of the few factors that make Cross Country a unique sport as there’s much more to it than just running for a long period of time.
What’s It Like Racing In a 5k?
Many Cross Country runners have diverse approaches to how they run a 5k and have a unique way of functioning. Some runners use their shoulders to pick up the pace, others use their arms, and many just focus on keeping track of their consistency. Speaking of focus, a handful of these runners like other athletes use their mentality to literally and figuratively stride to reach the finish line. Experienced runners from Eisenhower High School such as Angel Pantoja and Joshua Cid prefer to mainly focus on their breathing when running a 5k race. Other runners like Matthew Romero choose to relax their shoulders so that they don’t end up wasting more energy and it allows them to preserve a good pace. The main obstacle for these Cross Country runners isn’t just being able to run for a long period of time, but it’s having to run up hills without slowing down which is very tiring and requires consistent weeks of practicing. It may sound like a tiring sport, but one of the best aspects of Cross Country running is that it gives the runner the opportunity to mentally train themselves on a consistent basis and they get to celebrate with their teammates as well.
Martin Tudor Park 5k Race
Recently, one of these 5k races was hosted in Martin Tudor Park with a terrain full of steep hills and dirt trails that runners have to race each other on in order to reach the finish line. Ike crushed it, coming out in first place three times with JV Boys earning a score of 22, JV Girls with a score of 18, and Varsity Boys with 22 points against Rialto, Colton, Notre Dam, Kaiser, Grand Terrace, and Jurupa Hills. The fastest 5k time Ike’s top runner got was 18:25:0 by Manuel Perez who was neck and neck with Javier Villegas from Rialto High School throughout the whole race. One of the top ten runners Aidan Keo stated, “Oh it was great, the hills were tough I’ll tell you that” which is something many of the other runners could relate to as well. Ike’s Cross Country team has been working hard since the summer with coach Bibian, Lopez, and Tomas having them practice even during the 100 degree weather heat wave on a daily basis so it’s no wonder why Ike is killing it. They’ll be running many more future races this season, so wish them good luck.