Cross Country at GCA
It is always an exciting event when a new sport begins at a school. Students wonder about whether they have "what it takes" to participate in a new and relatively unknown sport like cross country. Running for 3.1 miles across a field does not stir up beautiful images in many peoples' minds. However, in season one in 2009, thirteen runners ventured out in its inaugural boys' and girls' cross country season, and the team showed drmatic improvement throughout the fall.
At Grace Christian, student-athletes compete in the highly competitive Metro XC, a conglomerate of primarily $A, 3A, and 2A schools from around Knox, Blount, and Anderson County. Many meets havef 200-400 runners in a boys' or girls' 5k race at such popular cross country venues as Sequoyah Hills, Hardin Valley, Victor Ashe Park, and Melton Hill Park.
Coach Randy Down has coached both boys' and girls' cross country since 1986. He has started cross country programs at four other Christian schools in California, Texas, South Carolina, and now here in Knoxville. Several of his runners have won individual state championships, and he has coached conference and state championship teams in both cross country and track, sending more than thirty athletes on to Division I and II colleges to compete.
Coach Down shares his passion for running with a love of seeing students succeed on and off the field. He says, "I value the relationships that are made in cross country. It is unlke any other sport I have coached, in that the runners forge bonds not only across class lines, but they also make good friends with runners against whom they compete. I also love the spiritual growth these young athletes experience as they endure long and sometimes grueling runs together. I am blessed to have the honor of being a part of such fine student-athletes here at GCA."
For more information on cross country 2010, and if you would be interested in running this fall, contact Coach Down at 865.934.4780 or email him at the school. If you have not yet completed your physical, you can download the forms here. All other forms are contained in this packet of forms (Transportation, Code of Conduct, Emergency Treatment, Informed Consent).
Summer running cntinues at GCA and other locales. Click here for the most current practice schedule. It contains suggested workouts you can do if you are on vacation, are not able to get to practice, or need some extra motivation to hit the roads each day!
Here is also some information on a local cross country running camp that takes place at Farragut High School, Victor Ashe Park, and Oak Ridge High School. This camp, sponsored by Knoxville Track Club and Runner's Market West, incorporates group training, building base mileage, and running mechanics. For more information on this reasonably priced ($65) camp, click on the CROSS COUNTRY RUNNER'S CAMP link here.
CROSS COUNTRY PARENT MEETING - July 20, 2010 in Room 106 at 6:30 pm.
