Dual Meet #2 - vs. Weston, 10/1/24

Meet Site: Burchard Park, 269 Concord Road Weston Ma

*NOTE: the meet is NOT held at Weston High School* 

 

Bus Time 3:30 (hopefully) more likely around 4:00

Order of Races - First race start no earlier than 4:45

Girls varsity - Rent, Rice, Samaratunga, Tam, Wang

Boys varsity- Baker, Chisum, Ciccarelli, W. Conley, Fallace, Foley, Hopps, Jackson, Narvaez*, Schaff, Spence, Tan, Williams, Young

Combined JV race - A. Conley, Gandhi, Golanova*, N. Goldstein, Goode, Hopper, Lehmann, Ma, Nicholson*, Potashinsky, Salahuddin, Sondey, Sun, Wheeler*, Yu

*TBD

Course Map: 

• The varsity course is 5k in length and consists of two loops. 

• The JV course is also two loops, it cuts off the eastern section of the loop (the part that heads east almost to Merriam Road). The overall distance is 2.43 miles, just under 4 km.

The 5k course covers about 1.2k of grass, 3k of dirt trails/dirt road (with a few sections where there also is some gravel on the dirt), and 800m of asphalt (mostly sidewalk and a bit of the driveway which gives access to the parking lot). If you're wearing spiked shoes they should be fitted with blanks or 1/8" pyramids. The course is fairly flat. The athletes will run about 200 m across the grass fields before hitting the trails, 2 times a 2.4k loop in the trails, then a 200m finish back across the field

Trails are quite wide, should be no issues with passing except for one 40 meter stretch (which is run twice, near the mile mark and then at about 4k).  

 
Meet Information:

• Weather forecast: partly sunny, temperature in the mid 60s with light west winds 5-10 mph. Bring clothes to wear at the meet besides your uniform.
• You'll need to wear your assigned bib number.
• There will be a course tour soon after we arrive.
 
What to Bring:

• uniform
• everyday training shoes  

• racing shoes if you have them  
• warmup clothes
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one  
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival)

For parents:

• As a reminder, the meet is NOT held at Weston High School.

• Spectators at the field can see the first 300 meters, a 300 meter section in the middle of the race, and the last 300 meters without having to leave the ball field area. 
• There is parking next to the baseball fields where the course begins and ends.

Week 7 Training Plan, 9/30-10/6

This week the dual meet schedule continues with a visit to Weston on Tuesday, whose course is located at Burchard Field. There's no school and no organized practice on Thursday. There's no long run scheduled this week, it will return next week. 

Note that the four levels that have existed up until now have been consolidated into three groups; Levels 1 and 2 have become Group A, Level 3 is Group B, and Level 4 is now Group C. 

Mon 9/30 - Warmup including BURPEES and strides followed by a short run which in turn is followed by run throughs and bounding over cones. The cones will be set up on the softball field. We will again be practicing running around tight corners. Total length of the run today is as follows:

Group A: 26-30 minutes
Group B: 32-36 minutes
Group C: 42-46 minutes

Tue 10/1 - Dual Meet #2 v Weston. More information on this meet will be forthcoming. Today is a medium length day in terms of training volume as follows:

Group A: 36-40 minutes
Group B: 44-48 minutes
Group C: 52-56 minutes

Wed 10/2 - Warmup including BURPEES and strides followed by a MEDIUM length recovery run at an easy to moderate intensity with hill drills. We will most likely be doing the hill drills on the Hultman aqueduct where it crosses Cedar Crest Road. The length of the run today is as follows:

Group A: 36-40 minutes
Group B: 44-48 minutes
Group C: 52-56 minutes

Thu 10/3 - No practice today. If you're not observing the holiday and would like to do a short run on your own at an easy to moderate pace you can do so.

Fri 10/4 - Warmup followed by either a medium length run at an easy effort for those who will be attending the practice in Lincoln tomorrow OR

Group A: 8 minute jog then 4 minutes, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute with 2.5 minute jog recoveries, 8 minute jog.
Group B and C: 8 minute jog then 2 sets of 4 minutes, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute repeats with 2.5 minute jog recoveries, 8 minute jog.

The 4 minute repeats should be run at a good pace (tempo). The 3 minute repeats should start at a good pace and end at a hard pace (race effort) over the last 30 seconds. The 2 minute repeats should be split evenly between good and hard pace. The 1 minute repeats should be run entirely at a hard pace (race effort). There's a good to very good chance these repeats will be done in the neighborhood next to the practice field.

Sat 10/5 -  Either a medium length run at an easy effort for those who did the repeat workout yesterday  OR

Practice 9 AM at Lincoln Station (145 Lincoln Road, Lincoln MA):

Group A: 8 minute jog then 4 minutes, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute with 2.5 minute jog recoveries, 8 minute jog.
Group B and C: 8 minute jog then 2 sets of 4 minutes, 3 minutes, 2 minutes, 1 minute repeats with 2.5 minute jog recoveries, 8 minute jog.

The 4 minute repeats should be run at a good pace (tempo). The 3 minute repeats should start at a good pace and end at a hard pace (race effort) over the last 30 seconds. The 2 minute repeats should be split evenly between good and hard pace. The 1 minute repeats should be run entirely at a hard pace (race effort). 

Sun 10/6 - off. If you were observing the holiday on Thursday and didn't train as a result, you can do a short length run on your own at an easy to moderate intensity if you like.

Ocean State Invitational Results, 9/28/24

 The 9th grade contingent put their best foot forward and then some at the Ocean State Invitational held at Goddard Park in East Greenwich RI. The 9th grade races were run over a mostly flat 4 kilometer (2.5 mile) course, most of it in the trees next to Greenwich Cove. In the boys race, Cyriaque Schaff patiently worked his way past most of the early leaders to wind up in second place overall, followed closely by Ryan Foley who finished sixth about 11 seconds later. Grady Spence was the third Wayland finisher in a time just under 16 minutes. Archie Baker and Ryan Young followed close behind and Daniel Sondey rounded out the Wayland team. When the team scores were tallied, Wayland had the winning score of 60 points, 19 better than second place Parker Charter School. 

The girls race started soon after the boys race wrapped up. After hanging in the top five in the  first couple of minutes, Mia Rent took over and ran away from the rest of the field to win going away, with almost a minute margin over second place. Karis Tam came through in 16th place, earning a medal for finishing in the top 30. Overall it was a day of well executed racing with strong finishes from the Wayland runners. In addition to the medals won by Schaff, Foley, Rent and Tam the boys team won a plaque for the team victory. 

Boys results

Girls results

Ocean State Invitational, 9/28/24

Meet Site: Goddard Park, 1095 Ives Road East Greenwich RI

Bus time 12:45

Start Time: 

3:25 Boys race - Baker, Foley, Schaff, Sondey, Spence, Young

3:50 Girls race - Rent, Tam

4:00 Awards Ceremony

 
Meet Information:

Meet website

Weather: Cloudy, temperatures in the mid to high 60s with ESE winds 5-10 mph.

From the meet directors:

 Please review these important race day reminders as we head into the weekend. 

• Runners must wear bib number with THEIR NAME on the back. 

• There are more bathrooms towards the beach end of the park, about 1/4 mile away from the start/finish line. Use those on your warm up!

• Medals are given to the top 30 individuals, and plaques to the top 3 teams. Medals will be distributed in the awards tent as soon as results are confirmed.
  

• Please use the trash bag to clean your area. We must leave Goddard Park as clean as when we arrived.

 
• Course map

What to Bring:

• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• warmup clothes
• plastic bag to store sweaty clothes

 • water bottle - including a second (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have an extra

• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival)

for parents:

• There's no mention of any charge for parking, nevertheless carpooling would be recommended if possible.
• If memory serves, most of the teams (and their tents) are located in the area of the start/finish lines. Since we're there for a relatively short time and the weather forecast indicates no rain, we won't be bringing a tent ourselves. I'm going to try to find a spot for us in the area east of the start and finish lines if possible. Look for us there. If we have to set up elsewhere I'll have your child inform you of this.

• Snacks are welcome, but due to allergy concerns the Athletic Director has asked that any snacks be individually wrapped and ideally have the ingredients written on the label.

Dual Meet #1 vs. Bedford, Waltham results - 9/25/24

Results below for Wednesday's dual meet, the first of two on the home course. The girls did well in a shorthanded way while the boys started off the season with a pair of dual meet victories. Remember when crunching the numbers that the layout of the home course has a fair amount of climbing and challenging terrain in the second mile, meaning the overall pace per mile (ppm) will be slower than the first mile split for someone who's spreading out their effort evenly over the entire length of the race.

score sheet with all times and places

splits and pace per mile for WHS athletes

Dual Meet #1 vs. Bedford, Waltham, 9/25/24

Meet Site: Wayland High School. The first of two home meets this season.

Start Time: First race 4:30 PM unless you hear different from me. Girls race will precede boys. Please arrive no later than 3:15. We may need help setting up the course. Don't forget about the team picture at 3:30!

Girls race - Conley, Kotzampaltiris, Ma, Rice, Samaratunga, Sun, Wang 

Boys race - Chisum, Ciccarelli, Conley, Fallace, Gandhi, N. Goldstein, Goode, Hopps, Hopper, Jacob, Kheir, Lehmann, Maali-Pohl, Markey, Narvaez, Potashinsky, Salahuddin, Sondey, Tan, Wheeler, Williams, Yu

Meet Information:

• Weather forecast: cloudy, temperatures in the high 60s with ENE winds 5-10 mph. Bring clothes to wear at the meet besides your uniform.
• Don't forget your assigned dual meet bib number. At the conclusion of your race, please remove the bib number from your jersey and return it to the large ziploc bag where the bib numbers will be stored between meets. Leave the safety pins on the corners of the number.
• Be prepared to help out with setting up and/or breaking down the course before and after the meet. This mostly involves the placement or removal of cones and small flags. You may be asked to help by one of the coaches or one of the captains. 

 
• Course map

There are a couple of minor changes to the Field Loop portion of the course not shown on this version of the map. I'm working on an updated course map. These changes include a dogleg between the back edge of the baseball outfield fence and the back corner of the practice field. This is done to avoid an overgrown section of the field. In addition, we no longer have to detour on to the corner of the track, instead going directly from the SW corner of the practice field into the connector path leading to the soccer field next to the softball field.

• course description

• Soon after the visiting teams arrive, there will be a tour of the course. These tours will be separate tours for boys and girls to keep the size of the tour groups manageable. Wayland athletes that are new to the team and racing are required to join the course tour; any returning athletes who would like to join the course tour are welcome to tag along.  

• Once the course tour has begun, all balls, frisbees, etc. will be put away for the duration of the meet.

What to Bring:

• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• warmup clothes
• plastic bag to store sweaty clothes

 • water bottle - including a second (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have an extra

• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival)

for parents:

• If you stand near the start/finish line area (just off the corner of the student parking lot, near the JV baseball field) you can watch most of the first half mile and the last half mile of the race.
• Snacks are welcome, but due to allergy concerns the Athletic Director has asked that any snacks be individually wrapped and ideally have the ingredients written on the label.

Week 6 Training Plan, 9/23-9/29

This week features the first home meet of the season, on Wednesday when Bedford and Waltham will visit. Please arrive by 3:30 and be prepared to help with breaking down the course (removing cones and flags) when the meet is over. There's also a second meet on Saturday, for 9th graders only. 9th graders will be getting an email on Monday about this meet.

On Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. we're going to curtail the team warmup just a bit by omitting the runouts and instead do a series of "strides" at faster than race pace. This will occur between the warmup and the day's run. The details will be explained on Tuesday. 

Mon 9/23 - Practice 3:30. Warmup including BURPEES followed by cyclic long length run. The total time of your run will be broken down into 12 equal segments. The first segment is run at an easy (40% or so) effort. The next is run at a "fresh" (60-65% or so) effort, and the one after that at a "good" (80-85%) effort. Then the easy-fresh-good cycle is repeated three more times. Today we'll be heading east along the Hultman Aqueduct towards Weston, some people will be heading back the way they came while others will make a loop of it.

Level 1: 36 minutes (3 minute segments)
Level 2: 48 minutes (4 minute segments)
Level 3: 60 minutes (5 minute segments)
Level 4: 72 minutes (6 minute segments)

Tuesday 9/24 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup followed by a short length run at an easy to moderate effort level. Upon your return to the school we'll be doing high stepping run throughs (high knees) and bounding over cones on the softball field and a few short race speed runs incorporating turns. 

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Wednesday 9/25 - Dual Meet #1 vs Bedford and Waltham. More information including a time schedule, lineups and a course map will be forthcoming soon. Remember today should be a medium length day in terms of total running time, including warmup and cooldown. For Level 1 and 2 athletes this will impact how we approach the course tour which doubles as a warmup jog for most people. The team picture will be taken today at 3:30.

Level 1: 28-32 minutes
Level 2: 36-40 minutes
Level 3: 43-47 minutes
Level 4: 52-56 minutes

Thursday 9/28 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup including BURPEES, followed by a short length run with hill drills. The drills will be done on the Hultman Aqueduct where it intersects Cedar Crest Road.

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Friday 9/29 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup followed by either 

Level 1 and 2: 6-8 minute warmup jog, 2x7 minutes at a "good" effort (80-85%) with a 4-5 minute break, 2 sets of (200,100) at race pace on top of the aqueduct, 6-8 minute cooldown
Level 3 - 6-8 minute warmup jog, 2x9 minutes at a "good" effort (80-85%) with a 4-5 minute break, 3 sets of (200,100) at race pace on top of the aqueduct, 6-8 minute cooldown
Level 4 - 10 minute warmup jog, 2x11 minutes at a "good" effort (80-85%) with a 4-5 minute break, 4 sets of (200,100) at race pace on top of the aqueduct, 10 minute cooldown

The good effort portion of the workout (the pair of long repeats at 80-85% effort) can be done on the practice field loop of the home course or in the neighborhood just beyond the edge of the school fields that includes Charena, Cameron, Kelsey and Clarence Roads. The break between this and the short fast repeats is a jog/hike to the top of the aqueduct. There is a possibility we might do the short fast repeats on the track instead if it's available.

OR

a short length run at mostly an easy effort level, picking up the pace a bit in the last 10 minutes of the run:

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Sat 9/28 -  For those attending the 9 AM Lincoln practice, warmup to Mt. Misery field loop followed by 

Level 1 and 2: 6-8 minute warmup jog, 2x7 minutes at a "good" effort (80-85%) with a 4-5 minute break, 2 sets of (200,100) at race pace on top of the aqueduct, 6-8 minute cooldown

Level 3 - 6-8 minute warmup jog, 2x9 minutes at a "good" effort (80-85%) with a 4-5 minute break, 3 sets of (200,100) at race pace on top of the aqueduct, 6-8 minute cooldown

Level 4 - 10 minute warmup jog, 2x11 minutes at a "good" effort (80-85%) with a 4-5 minute break, 4 sets of (200,100) at race pace on top of the aqueduct, 10 minute cooldown

OR

for those who did the timed repeat workouts yesterday, a medium length run at mostly an easy effort level, picking up the pace a bit in the last 10 minutes of the run:

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

OR

For 9th graders only, The Ocean State Invitational at Goddard Park in Rhode Island. More details forthcoming in a separate post.

Sunday 9/29 - off 

Frank Kelley Invitational Results, 9/21/24

The second invitational of the season yielded impressive results, with many athletes achieving new personal best time or setting a high level of achievement in their first try at the fairly flat Wrentham Developmental Center layout. The 9th grade races went first and were the only ones without rain. Everyone got to experience a delightful north wind that blew consistently at 10-15 mph with gusts over 20 mph. The ground had become quite dry over the previous month or so of dry weather and was soaking up the rain like a sponge. As the day wore on the footing got a little slippery but on the whole wasn't too bad throughout. 

There were multiple WHS athletes who won a medal by finishing in the top 25 overall. Mia Rent took the top spot overall in the 9th grade girls race, winning convincingly over two other athletes who comprised a trio far ahead of the rest of the field. The 9th grade boys race featured four medal winners, led by Ryan Foley in 3rd. Brandon Hopps, Grady Spence and Ryan Young also won medals. This is the most medal winners ever for a Wayland team in a single race at this meet. 

There were 3k races for both 10th and 11th graders as well, in the boys 10th grade race Mustafa Kheir and Iniyan Gandhi both raced well in their first time on this course. Cassie Sun ran a strong race in the 11th grade girls race passing multiple runners in the middle portion of the race, while Jamie Markey raced well in his first run on the 3k Wrentham course. Edge Wheeler improved on his previous best time from last year. 

In the Girls Championship 5k, co-captains Arya Samaratunga and Naomi Rice both had solid races in what was probably the heaviest rain of the entire day. The Boys Championship 5k had over 200 finishers and was front to back a very competitive and deep field. There were tightly bunched packs throughout and plenty of back and forth in the latter stages. Moving up steadily throughout the race, the duo of Luke Chisum and Will Jackson worked their way into the top 20 and picked off multiple runners (including the entire Concord-Carlisle top five) in the second half of the race. Matthew Tan raced with metronomic consistency to set a personal best by over 20 seconds, with Leo Ciccarelli and Morgan Fallace rounding out the team which finished 19th out of 23 teams. 

The Wrentham site has been in use in its current configuration since 2010, with a two loop 3k course and a three loop 5k course. As of today, there's a new top WHS performance for three of the four all-time lists. The link to those lists is below. 

Overall results by event

Results and splits for WHS athletes

All-time performance list for Wrentham Developmental Center 

Frank Kelley Invitational, 9/21/24

Live Results

Meet Site: 

Wrentham Developmental Center. The address is 131 Emerald Street, however the race course is located a little further down the road, in the large field at the intersection of Emerald Street and Shear St. This is across the street from the William A. Rice Recreation Area.

Bus time 7 AM

Remember, no eating on the bus. 

Race Schedule and Entries:

9 AM 9th Grade Girls 3k - Rent

9:20 AM 9th Grade Boys 3k - Baker, Foley, Hopps, Lehmann, Spence, Young

9:40 AM 10th Grade Girls 3k - none

10 AM 10th Grade Boys 3k - Gandhi, Kheir

10:20 AM 11th Grade Girls 3k - Sun

10:40 AM 11th Grade Boys 3k - Markey, Wheeler

11 AM 12th Grade Girls 3k - none

11:20 AM 12th Grade Boys 3k - none

12:00 PM Championship Girls 5k - Rice, Samaratunga

12:30 PM Championship Boys 5k - Chisum, Ciccarelli, Fallace, Jackson, Tan

Meet Information:

• Weather forecast: Mostly cloudy, temperatures in the low to mid 60s, SSW winds 10 mph. Have dry clothes for after your race.
• Bib numbers will be assigned to you specifically for this meet; these numbers have an RFID chip attached to the back side which interacts with a conductive mat at the finish line to record your time. The meet director has asked athletes who aren't racing NOT to wear their bib number if standing near the finish line; doing so can cause a false reading by the finish line mat. Also, don't crumple or fold your bib number. 
• Remember that we have a meet day warmup and cooldown protocol. With the schedule set in advance, you should be able to time the start of your warmup accurately. Because people are racing at different times throughout the day, you won't be warming up at the same time as all your teammates. Report to the starting line 10 minutes before the start of your race; in past editions of this meet the officials have been known to start races a few minutes earlier than the posted schedule. 
• There are no assigned spots on the starting line at this meet, another reason to head over 10 minutes early to get a spot on the line. The group about to race should split in half and take turns holding the spot while also doing last minute run outs. 

• If you're wearing a stopwatch while racing, putting your arm up to hit the button on the watch while crossing the finish line can cause the RFID chip to be blocked by your arm, and your finish might not be recorded. In other words, don't press the button on your watch when crossing the finish line.
• The meet staff has asked that no one do their warmup or cool down among the buildings of the Wrentham Developmental Center, where patients are housed. Aside from the course itself, you can warmup and cool down on the ball fields across the street.
• Medals will be given to the top 25 finishers in each race.

Course Map:

• The course is fairly flat, with some roll in places. There are no long and/or steep hills. The course is almost entirely on grass. The 5k course is three loops. The 3k course ends after the second loop (yellow on the map above). The 5k course repeats this second loop. Both the 3k and 5k share the same first loop, which is the circumference of the large field where the course is situated. The second loop has two incursions from the edge of the field into the middle. Typically at this meet there are large digital clocks at the mile and two mile marks. 

What to Bring:

• Uniform
• Everyday training shoes
• Racing shoes if you have them; this is a course for spikes, 1/4" or 3/8" elements
• Warmup clothes
• Water bottles - filled

•  Folding chair

• Snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival)

For Parents:

• There's $10 parking fee for each car.

• Dogs aren't allowed except for service animals.
• No grilling, cooking, or fires are allowed at the meet site. 
• Snacks are welcome, but due to allergy concerns the Athletic Director has asked that any snacks be individually wrapped and ideally have the ingredients written on the label. 
• We hope to return to WHS by around 2 PM.

Boys DCL Foley Season Opener Results - 9/18/24

There was a lot of fast racing on the flat 3 kilometer layout at Bedford earlier today with the boys teams from the DCL Foley schools meeting for an unscored scrimmage. Ryan Foley led the way for Wayland in the varsity race, while Will Conley moved up through the field in the late stages to be the first WHS finisher in the JV race.

 Results spreadsheet from today's meet

Boys DCL Foley Division Season Opener - 9/18/24

Meet Site: Bedford High School, Mudge Way.

Bus leaves at 2:45

First race (likely JV) no earlier than 4:15, more likely 4:30ish

Lineups:

JV: W. Conley, Gandhi, Goldstein, Goode, Hopper, Jacob, Kheir, Lehmann, Mahli-Pohl, Markey, Potashinsky, Salahuddin, Sondey, Wheeler, Young, Yu

Varsity: Baker, Cicarelli, Fallace, Foley, Hopps, Narvaez, Spence

Regardless of which race a person is running, the runners with the seven fastest times on the day will receive credit towards a varsity letter as outlined on pages 6 and 7 of this document.

Course Map:

The course is and out and back with a loop in the middle kilometer; the first and third kilometers are the same ground covered in opposite directions. There will be a crossing guard at the crosswalk on Railroad Ave. As with most of the terrain in Bedford, the course is flat.

Meet Information:

• Weather forecast: mostly sunny, temperatures in the low to mid 70s with light west winds 5-10 mph. Bring clothes to wear at the meet besides your uniform. You won't be allowed on the bus if you don't have warmup clothes to wear besides your uniform.
• If you're wearing spiked shoes it would be best to have 1/8th inch elements or blanks, as there are stretches of pavement on the course.

• You'll need to wear your assigned bib number for DCL meets. After your race and before you leave, please return this bib number to the ziploc bag that holds the bib numbers and safety pins.
• There's no team scoring at this meet.

• There will be a course tour sometime soon after we arrive. I may be the person leading this tour.

 What to Bring:

• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• warmup clothes
• plastic bag to store clothes and backpack/duffel bag
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival)

for parents:

• It's a quick stroll from the baseball field where the course starts and finishes to Railroad Ave where the runners pass by near the beginning and end of the race.

Week 5 Training Plan, 9/16-9/22

This week it's the boys turn to run in the DCL Foley Season Opener race, on Wednesday at Bedford. The girls will stay at the school and do the workout the boys did last Wednesday. This weekend is the second Saturday Invitational meet, The Frank Kelley Invitational at the Wrentham Developmental Center. If you haven't filled out the entry status poll for this meet please do so.

Monday 9/16 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup including BURPEES followed by progressive long run. The length of the run has increased a bit over previous weeks, as outlined below. The plan for today is for everyone to head to the Hultman aqueduct, what happens from there will depend on how far you're going.

Level 1: 36 minutes (12 minutes easy - 9 minutes fresh - 9 minutes good - 6 minutes easy)
Level 2: 48 minutes (16 minutes easy - 12 minutes fresh - 12 minutes good - 8 minutes easy)
Level 3: 60 minutes (20 minutes easy - 15 minutes fresh - 15 minutes good - 10 minutes easy)
Level 4: 72 minutes (24 minutes easy - 18 minutes fresh - 18 minutes good - 12 minutes easy)

Tue 9/17 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup followed by a short length run at an easy to moderate effort level. Upon your return to the school we'll be doing high stepping run throughs (high knees) and bounding over cones on the softball field and a few  accelerations incorporating turns. 

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Wednesday 9/18 - Boys DCL Foley Season Opener at Bedford HS. More information on this meet will be forthcoming in a subsequent post. Today is a medium length day in terms of how much running you should be doing overall:

Level 1: 28-32 minutes
Level 2: 36-40 minutes
Level 3: 43-47 minutes
Level 4: 52-56 minutes

Depending on what level you're training at, this may mean either a very short or rather long cooldown jog after your race.

The girls team will be staying at the school and after a team warmup including BURPEES doing the following "tempo run" style workout. In this case, "tempo" pace is considered to be somewhere in the 75-85% effort level if you're running on feel (which you will be). After the team warmup the workout is as follows:

Level 1: 8 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 4 minute break, 8 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 2: 10 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 5 minute break, 10 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 3: 12 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 6 minute break, 12 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 6-8 minutes apiece)
Level 4:  14 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 7 minute break, 14 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 8-10 minutes apiece)

Thursday 9/19 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup followed by a short length run with hill drills. The drills will be done on the Hultman Aqueduct where it intersects Cedar Crest Road.

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Fri 9/20 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup including BURPEES followed by a short length run incorporating 3 short sets of short repeats. These short repeats will likely happen on top of the aqueduct. 

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Sat 9/21 - Frank Kelley Invitational. More information on this meet in a forthcoming post. This should be a medium length day in terms of running volume, with warmup and cooldown counted in. For those not racing today, a medium length workout at mostly an easy effort level, picking up the intensity a bit in the last 10 minutes or so:

Group A: 36-40 minutes
Group B: 44-48 minutes
Group C: 52-56 minutes

Sunday 9/22 - off

Girls DCL Foley Season Opener Results - 9/11/24

 This is the first time this meet has been held, and it seemed to be well-received by everyone involved. A chance to compete in a low key, low pressure environment. I was pleased with how people raced the course which had its ups and downs, and a confusing stretch in the woods. Congratulations to Dana for winning the JV race outright! The next meet for the girls team is on September 21st, which is an optional Saturday race at Wrentham Developmental Center. 

Results sheet from the race

Girls DCL Foley Division Season Opener - 9/11/24

Meet Site: Waltham High School Secondary Campus, 99 Jacks Way. Waltham. Note: Waltham has a new high school building nearby on Lexington Street, the meet isn't held at this new address but rather the site of the recently closed former Waltham HS building on Jack's Way.

Bus leaves at 2:45

Lineups:

JV precedes varsity. By rule the first race can't start until 4:15, it may be a little bit later than than depending on the arrival time of the other schools competing.

JV: A. Conley, Golanova, Kotzampaltiris, Ma, Sun, Wang

 Varsity:  Kiernan, Rent, Rice, Samaratunga, Tam 

Regardless of which race a person is running, the runners with the seven fastest times on the day will receive credit towards a varsity letter as outlined on pages 6 and 7 of this document.

Course Map:

The course begins on Harding Field, the turf field just down the hill from the former high school building. Upon exiting the field, runners climb the hill on Jacks Way before entering the woods on the left. The course then follows a loop in the woods (pay attention on the tour to which trail is the course and which trails are not). This loop in the woods is run in a clockwise direction, and run once for the 3k course. The map above, which says the course is 4950 meters, is for the longer version of the course which includes three loops in the woods. For this meet, the course will cover one loop in the woods. The course then returns to Jacks Way and then Harding Field where the race finishes, all in the reverse direction of the early stages of the race.

Meet Information:

• Weather forecast: Mostly sunny, temperatures in the mid to high 70s with W winds 5-10 mph. Bring clothes to wear at the meet besides your uniform. You won't be allowed on the bus if you don't have warmup clothes to wear besides your uniform.
• The Waltham coach reports that the course is not suitable for spike elements in your racing shoes. If you have spiked racing shoes the spike elements should be replaced with blanks or 1/8" pyramids. 
• You'll need to wear your assigned bib number which is the same number you wore in last week's meet. After your race and before you leave, please return this bib number to the ziploc bag that holds the bib numbers and safety pins. The ziploc bag is in turn kept inside the large red duffel bag.
• There's no team scoring at this meet.

• There will be a course tour sometime soon after we arrive. Pay attention to the loop in the woods as there are various side trails that are not used in the race course.

 What to Bring:

• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• warmup clothes
• plastic bag to store clothes and backpack/duffel bag
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival)

for parents:

• Harding Field where the course starts and finishes is down the hill from the parking lot next to the former school building on Jack's Way.

Week 4 Training Plan, 9/9-9/15

This week the DCL meet schedule begins for the girls team while the boys team will be training through. The long run will be done on Monday and the other major workout of the week will be Saturday for those that are able to make it. The Saturday practice will meet at the Lincoln Station parking lot. Those that can't make it to the Saturday practice will be doing the same workout on Friday.

On Tuesday we'll be discussing racing strategy with new athletes; returning athletes can attend if they would like to.

Mon 9/9 - Practice 3:30. Warmup including BURPEES followed by cyclic long length run. This is the same idea as a cyclic long run only shorter in duration. The total time of your run will be broken down into 12 equal segments. The first segment is run at an easy (40% or so) effort. The next is run at a "fresh" (60-65% or so) effort, and the one after that at a "good" (80-85%) effort. Then the easy-fresh-good cycle is repeated three more times.

Level 1: 36 minutes (3 minute segments)
Level 2: 48 minutes (4 minute segments)
Level 3: 60 minutes (5 minute segments)
Level 4: 72 minutes (6 minute segments)

Tue 9/10 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup followed by a short length run at an easy to moderate effort level. Upon your return to the school we'll be doing high stepping run throughs (high knees) and bounding over cones on the softball field and a few "fly zone" accelerations incorporating turns.

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Wed 9/11 - Girls DCL Foley Season Opener at Waltham HS. More information on this meet will be forthcoming in a subsequent post. Today is a medium length day in terms of how much running you should be doing overall:

Level 1: 28-32 minutes
Level 2: 36-40 minutes
Level 3: 43-47 minutes
Level 4: 52-56 minutes

Depending on what level you're training at, this may mean either a very short or rather long cooldown jog after your race.

The boys team will be staying at the school and doing the following "tempo run" style workout. In this case, "tempo" pace is considered to be somewhere in the 75-85% effort level if you're running on feel (which you will be). After the team warmup the workout is as follows:

Level 1: 8 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 4 minute break, 8 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 2: 10 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 5 minute break, 10 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 3: 12 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 6 minute break, 12 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 6-8 minutes apiece)
Level 4:  14 minutes @ 70-75% effort, 7 minute break, 14 minutes @ 80-85% effort (warmup and cooldown of 8-10 minutes apiece)

Thu 9/12 - Practice at 3:30. Warmup including BURPEES, followed by a short length run at an easy to moderate intensity. In addition we'll be doing hill drills on the Hultman Aqueduct between Cedar Crest and Pine Ridge road.

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Fri 9/13 - Practice at 3:30. Team warmup followed by timed progression repeats of 3 minutes in length, followed by a separate set of 200 meter repeats with a 200 meter jog recovery. Each 3 minute repeat should follow this pattern: first minute fresh, next minute good, last minute hard. The recovery after each repeat is 2.5 minutes of very easy jogging/fast walking. After finishing the last 3 minute repeat, take about 5 minutes break for water and then a series of 200 meter repeats at an intense (faster than race pace) effort. Number of reps as follows: 

Level 1: 3x3 minutes, 3x200 (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 2: 4x3 minutes, 4x200 (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 3: 5x3 minutes, 5x200 (warmup and cooldown of 6-8 minutes apiece)
Level 4: 6x3 minutes, 5x200 (warmup and cooldown of 8-10 minutes apiece)

OR

Warmup followed by a short run at an easy to moderate pace for those doing the workout at Lincoln Station tomorrow.

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Sat 9/14 - Optional practice 9:00 AM at Lincoln Station- Timed progression repeats of 3 minutes in length, followed by a separate set of 200 meter repeats with a 200 meter jog recovery. Each 3 minute repeat should follow this pattern: first minute fresh, next minute good, last minute hard. The recovery after each repeat is 2.5 minutes of very easy jogging/fast walking. After finishing the last 3 minute repeat, take about 5 minutes break for water and then a series of 200 meter repeats at an intense (faster than race pace) effort. Number of reps as follows:

Level 1: 3x3 minutes, 3x200 (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 2: 4x3 minutes, 4x200 (warmup and cooldown of 5-6 minutes apiece)
Level 3: 5x3 minutes, 5x200 (warmup and cooldown of 6-8 minutes apiece)
Level 4: 6x3 minutes, 5x200 (warmup and cooldown of 8-10 minutes apiece)

OR

Warmup followed by a short run at an easy to moderate pace for those who did the timed repeat workout yesterday.

Level 1: 22-26 minutes
Level 2: 26-30 minutes
Level 3: 32-36 minutes
Level 4: 42-46 minutes

Sun 9/15 - Off.

Vineyard Invitational Results, 9/7/24

The 2024 WHS cross country season kicked off in Martha's Vineyard for the first time ever, under cloudy skies with warm temperatures and some humidity as well. The course was quite flat, but with some stretches of loose sand that made for challenging footing. There was a lot of racing savvy on display, from both experienced team members and new athletes as well. This year's edition of the Vineyard Invitational had the most overall competitors since the meet's inception. Wayland was well represented on the whole, with the following athletes competing:

9th grade girls 3k (50 finishers): Mia Rent 2nd, Karis Tam 11th. Both won medals for finishing in the top 15.

9th grade boys 3k (75 finishers): Cyriaque Schaff 1st, Ryan Foley 3rd, Brandon Hopps 7th, Grady Spence 8th, Archie Baker 17th, Daniel Sondey 25th. This was a dominant display, with all six Wayland runners in the top third of the field, the first four winning medals, and Schaff winning by a large margin after waiting patiently in the top 10 during the early part of the race. 

JV girls 5k (101 finishers): Caroline Kiernan 14th, Cordia Wang 75th, Denedra Ma 80th, Amy Kotzampaltiris 88th. All four runners moved up well through the field in the second half, and Kiernan won a medal in her first high school race.

JV boys 5k (127 finishers): Will Conley 37th, Jamie Markey 39th. This pair worked together and passed numerous runners in the latter stages of the race.

Varsity boys 5k (124 finishers): Will Jackson 5th, Luke Chisum 11th, Owen Williams 12th, Matthew Tan 71st, Reese Migdal 80th, Morgan Fallace 90th, Leo Cicarelli 91st. The three seniors who led the way for Wayland each won a medal for a top 15 fijnish, while the rest of the group helped to ensure a 5th place finish out of 16 teams competing. 

All this and there was time to visit the beach as well before boarding the ferry to return to the mainland. 

Full results with times

Vineyard Invitational, 9/7/24

Meet Site: 

Martha's Vineyard Regional High School.

Transportation Schedule

pre-meet:

6 AM bus departs WHS to Steamship Authority Terminal in Woods Hole; this will be a quiet bus ride, no music or loud conversations please. If you want to take a nap this is the time for it.

8:15 AM Ferry to Vineyard Haven

9:00 AM Buses transport athletes and coaches to MVRHS

post-meet:

5:00 PM depart Vineyard Haven Ferry Terminal

5:45 PM arrive at Woods Hole

7:30-8 PM return to WHS

Race Schedule and Entries

11:00 AM 9th grade co-ed 3k: Baker, Foley, Hopps, Rent, Schaff, Sondey, Spence, Tam

11:30 AM JV girls 5k: Kiernan, Kotzampaltiris, Ma, Wang

12:15 PM JV boys 5k: W. Conley, Markey, Wheeler

1:15 PM Varsity boys 5k: Chisum, Ciccarelli, Fallace, Jackson, Migdal, Tan, Williams

 
Meet Information:

 

overview of the meet

• Weather forecast: Mostly cloudy, temperature arond 70 degrees with winds from the south around 10 mph. The predicted rain will likely not arrive until after the meet is over.
• Report to the starting line 10 minutes before the start of your race, you can complete your warmup at the starting line.
• Awards will be given to the top 15 boys and top 15 girls in the 9th grade race, top 25 finishers in the JV races, and top 15 in the varsity race

Course Map:

As of this writing, a course map isn't available. From a conversation with the MVRHS coach, the course begins and ends on the high school ball fields before entering the state forest to the south. The course in the forest uses access roads which to my understanding are unpaved. The 3k course is a single loop while the 5k has multiple loops. We'll arrive in time to see the course, which can be part of your warmup. 

Packing List:

Clothes:

• Uniform
• Everyday running shoes
• Racing shoes if you have them. We'll have spike elements of different lengths available depending on the footing.
• Warmup clothes including a short sleeved shirt, long sleeved shirt, and warmup pants

Non-food items:

• Water bottles (plural) - filled, ideally at least half a gallon of water

• Folding chair - important to have something to sit on other than the ground

• Sunscreen

• Insect repellent

• Pillow

Food:

• Breakfast or breakfast type snacks to have while waiting for the ferry to the island or on the ferry

• Lunch to eat at the meet 

• Dinner or a large snack which can be eaten on the ferry back to Woods Hole or before getting back on the bus. Due to allergy concerns, there is to be no eating while on the bus.

• Chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Festival

For Parents:

• Parents are welcome to come along, on the same ferry even, but must pay their own way. My understanding is that the transportation from the ferry terminal to the high school is for coaches and athletes only which is something to keep in mind.

• Snacks are welcome, but due to allergy concerns the Athletic Director has asked that any snacks be individually wrapped and ideally have the ingredients written on the label.