Members of the Hidden Valley Girls Varsity XC team including: [Left to Right] Leila Ramey, Grace Kinzie, Lauren Murray, Fiona Ramey, Maggie Bryant, Lydia Novick.

The Varsity Cross Country Team ran a Cross Country meet in Bristol, Virginia on November 1^st. While the day after Halloween was a rest day for many other titans, the Varsity XC team was off and away running. Not only did the Varsity XC team sacrifice their precious day to sleep in, but along with it they bore Bristol’s frigid morning temperatures at a high of 38.

Other than frosty, what was the meet like? As according to information provided by the Hidden Valley Cross Country team coach, Mrs. Stevens, the team left at 8:45 for a 2 hour and half hour trip on a bus with the Northside Varsity. There were 8 other teams present, including Northside.

“Bristol didn’t do as much as I thought, the course itself was really nice and was well maintained, but there were no concessions. From where they had set up our area, you had to walk very far. It was all in the shade, it was freezing cold, and the wind was whipping through the trees,” said Stevens. Perhaps a smidge on the disappointing side is what could be gathered.

Despite this, the course did have rather unique scenery. Built off an old dam, much variety was present in the course. There were some scaling hills, as well as sections around a parking lot. As the course was a loop, there were also many opportunities for spectators to cheer on their teams and take pictures. Precisely, the course was good for all.

“We prepare all season for meets like these. The best thing to do is run a lot of hills: Steep uphills, and fast downhills,” Stevens added.

One question might remain, how did the Varsity perform? Scores in Cross Country are measured by team runs and individual runs. Team runs are averaged of all individuals in a team and individuals are a person’s solo performance. There were 2 significant individual placements, with Jacob Steward (11) making into state in 4^th and Leila Ramey (11) close behind in 6^th. As for Hidden Valley’s team scores, the boys’ and girls’ Varsity teams scored 5^th and 7^th respectively.

“Cold weather is usually a little better for running. You don’t have to worry about overheating,” says Varsity member Micah Prosser (10).