Missoula, MT - BIG SKY COUNTRY

Outstanding performances were the norm at the Mountain West Classic in Missoula Montana. From the sidelines it was awesome to see all of you "fighting your individual battles" and pushing to that next level.

Congrats to C. Moore and M. Stein for winning the weekly team motivation award. We need to keep pushing and never settle for where we are at...we can always do better, but I am proud of each of you and the effort you are giving...KEEP WORKING HARD and SET THE BAR HIGH!!!

To the parents: THANK YOU for the amazing spread of food that we had for the trip. It was nice to eat something healthy instead of fast food, your support is greatly appreciated!!!

Complete results can be found at the following website: www.mwtc.com/classic/

Here are a few pics from the meet and our stop in Barrett for a little something to eat:

Lunch time at Barrett.


Eating on the river side.

SSHS Lady Cards

SSHS Cardinal Harriers

A little rock climbing after lunch...making the coaches nervous!!!

J.V. Girls Race:

Start of the J.V. Girls Race: 337 Participants.

M. Stein crests the only "hill" to lead the Lady Cards.

T. Gritton (l) and C. Nelson (r) enjoy the runner friendly course.

J.V. Boys Race:

Start of the J.V. Boys Race: 434 Participants!!!

D. Camptell, W. Clark, and L. Franson negotiate the largest field of the day in the J.V. Boys Race.

J. James starts the downhill.

Varsity Boys Race:

Start of the Varsity Boys Race: 363 Participants.

K. Meyers continues to improve each week.

C. Moore getting ready for the last mile.

Varsity Girls:

Start of the Varsity Girls Race: 320 Participants.

C. Smith and B. Siepert running through the crowd.

D. Froehlich tries not to agitate the spectators in the MWC.

Breakfast with the Bowman's

On Saturday the Bowman's hosted a Breakfast Club Run. 20 plus runners participated in an awesome run in the mountains of 90%. After our run an incredible breakfast would follow...a great big THANKS Mrs. Bowman.

With no meets scheduled for the week we kicked up the miles and intensity, great job, we made it through the week. Your commitment to do the "little" things will pay off big down the road.

On deck is the Mountain West Classic...this will be a great test for you guys/gals as there will be a lot of quality teams at this meet. Dare to DREAM and EXPECT BIG THINGS...we don't have anything to lose...RUN YOUR GUTS OUT!!!

A few pics from the Breakfast Club Run...

And they're off...a little asphalt before we hit the trails of 90%.

Good Group...for a morning run...20 plus!

Can I have a little lactic acid with my eggs...one of the many climbs on the morning run.

A.P. and J.D. run past an old homestead.

Great morning for a run.

Is the water really THAT bad?

Leaves are changing...getting closer to STATE!!!

CARDS RUN WELL AT TIGER/GRIZZ

This was a busy week for the Cardinal Cross Country Teams. The J.V. Teams ran in Star Valley and then again for the Tiger/Grizz. The Middle School teams also looked dominant at the Star Valley meet. Not only did they have to battle the 142 other runners, they were battling upset wasps as well. K. Yamauchi won on the girls side despite being stung within the first 500 meters of the race...she later went to the hospital as she reacted to the sting...a few other Soda runners had to dodge the angry wasps as well.

STAR VALLEY:
J. Berg led the Lady Cardinals with A. Camptell following not too far behind. In the boys race, S. Torgesen led the charge, but less than a second away was teammate D. Camptell. These runners will be battling for a top spot and a chance to qualify for the 2009 State Meet.

In the Middle School Races, the Soda runners continued to dominate and serve warning that Soda Cross Country will be strong for many years to come. Meet results were not available after the race, but will hopefully come early in the week...updates to follow along with some pics...GREAT JOB TMS and SSHS RUNNERS your HARD WORK is paying off!!!

Future candidates for Governor of California???

Over the river and through the woods...ok, not really a river, but I couldn't resist.

L. Worthington cools off at the creek crossing, did G. Cunningham help her???

K. Brown makes it through the 1st creek crossing, H.S. runners cheer him on.

C. Nelson and T. Gritton negotiate the Cedar Creek.

J. Berg and A. Camptell...on the back 9.

J. James making a splash.

S. Stoor walks on water across Cedar Creek.

TIGER/GRIZZ @ IDAHO FALLS:

Tough competition would be easy to find at the 2009 Tiger/Grizz Invite, but the Cardinals would not back down. In the J.V. Girls race, V. Vranes would lead a very dominant effort by earning an individual title and leading a team title as well. (Ness looks like you are on the mend, now just get through the next two weeks and WATCH OUT!!!) 5 runners would finish in the top 10 to secure the team victory. Following Vranes, J. Berg 4th, M. Stein 5th, A. Camptell 6th, and S. Lloyd 7th. Great Job Ladies...it was nice to see all that red at the front of the pack, the battles for those top spots are going to be tight!!!

The J.V. boys did not have a full team, but the battle for the top spot was as tough as ever. S. Torgesen (27th) got the nod over D. Camptell (30th) with L. Franson and J. James running tough as well.

She's back...V. Vranes leads the J.V. Girls race to an easy win and looks to reclaim a spot on the varsity.

M. Stein gets encouragement from "Coach Dad" on one of the rollers @ Freeman Park.

S. Lloyd pushes to help in the J.V. Girls Team Victory.

S. Torgesen leads the J.V. Boys Team in the Tiger/Grizz.

Varsity:
B. Siepert (5th) had another great race to lead the Lady Cardinals to victory in the "small" school division. In combined scoring, the girls finished 5th behind Mountain View, Bozeman, Bishop Kelly, and Hillcrest. Great Job Ladies...
The rest of you "shuffled" again...making it hard for anyone to relax and think that their spot is a lock...that will make us better in the long run and once one of you came in the others were not too far behind. I love the pack mentality. Q. Clark 15th, D. Froehlich 16th, C. Smith 18th, C. Olson 19th, and D. Deno 20th. C. Williams not too far back in 23rd.

Fellas...we are starting to move in the right direction. Welcome back K. Meyers!!! I'm so stoked that you are feeling better...your 9th place finish is evidence that you are coming back. M. Bowman 17th, another solid performance. C. Moore and A. Petersen 30th and 31st...not too bad, but I think there is more there, you have done the work, now expect the results!!! C. Young 35th. See comments for Moore and Petersen...you guys HAVE TO BELIEVE! J. Bailey and C. Steele, I'm happy with your progression, put the Bulls eye on the guys ahead of you and run them down.

B. Siepert leads the Lady Cardinal Varsity Team for the 3rd consecutive race.

C. Olson and C. Williams work together in the Varsity Girls race.

"Quick around the corner" Q. Clark gets ready for the downhill after one of the many turns on the challenging Tiger/Grizz course.

C. Moore rolling downhill.

C. Steele continues to improve each week.

Another GREAT JOB and GREAT EFFORT you guys/gals make me proud to be a CARDINAL!!!

Reflections of the 2009 Cardinal Classic

At the conclusion of the 2009 Cardinal Classic, my beliefs were further strengthened...Cross Country is truly an amazing sport!! One might say "it's just running, how hard can it be?" and on the surface, they are right, but if you look deeper, you can see individual battles that every runner is going through as they work toward their individual and team goals. You see them fighting that little voice that is telling them to "quit" or "take a break" and you also see the satisfaction when they beat that voice and do things they never thought possible. These battles happen with everyone and not just the top runners. These battles teach life lessons that can be applied long after a Cardinal Harrier laces up their shoes to run that last race.

On Saturday, I saw many of our runners prepare for and fight those very battles. I heard of one young lady with tears of happiness because she ran the entire race without walking. I also watched one young man battle not only the voice inside his head, but battle an injured body that was not quite up to the challenge of racing at the top level he is accustomed to; I know he will be alright and today was just a stepping stone to bigger and better days.

To me, this is what Cross Country is all about and I'm continually impressed by the efforts of our runners here in Soda Springs. I am also grateful to have the opportunity to work with such great young people...Keep up the HARD work, your efforts are appreciated!!!

Thanks...Coach H

RACE RECAPS:
Middle School:
The Middle School runners definitely didn't give the new uniforms a bad start. A perfect score for the girls and a second place for the boys was a great way to start the 2009 season. K. Yamauchi 2nd, D. Siepert 3rd, J. Nielsen 5th, G. Plakke 6th, H. Call 7th, H. Farnes 8th, and S. Clark 10th made it 7 in the top 10...trying to live up the the High School girls at the 2007 State Meet. J. Bowman 8th, J. Balls 12th, J. James 13th, and L. Young 15th gave the boys 4 in the top 15. GREAT JOB MIDDLE SCHOOL RUNNERS...YOU ARE THE FUTURE OF CARDINAL CROSS COUNTRY!!!

Strength in Numbers. The middle school currently has 41 athletes participating in cross country! WOW!!!


Middle School girls sporting their new uniforms. Nice Pack!!!


Middle School runners at the lower pond.

J. Bowman leading the TMS boys!

A trio of TMS runners.

Another great pack!


A very determined J. James pushed to the finish.

High School Races:
J.V. Girls:
C. Olson...you are a stud or studette...but what ever you are, you ran awesome today...way to rise to the challenge 4th place overall you will be pushing for a varsity spot if you keep this up. M. Stein, A. Camptell, J. Berg (1st XC race) and S. Lloyd...WOW...you ladies ran awesome and helped lead the J.V. girls to a second place finish...great job. 5 in the top 21!!!


A little prerace instruction from Coach Siepert.


C. Olson leading the way for the Lady Cards...4th place in J.V. Girls Race.


A time to reflect...J. Berg and A. Camptell chase their reflections in the lower pond.

J.V. Boys:
D. Camptell great job leading the J.V. Boys today...S. Torgesen, you are starting to figure things out...keep it up, we are a little green, but if you guys keep working hard you will see the results as the season progresses.


D. Camptell leads a group up Heartbreak Hill!!!


L. Franson in another lower pond picture...great photo op.


Is that Buddha? No just J. James relaxing after a great run!

Varsity Girls:
You guys continue to impress me...we finally earned a little "bling" from our own meet...2nd place! Great job, Bay...way to work the second half, you moved up a ton. C. Williams...way to dig down the entire race, you were the tie breaker today and you won the tie by 3 spots and 11 seconds, a lesson to us all...EVERY RUNNER COUNTS and EVERY SECOND COUNTS!!!


Start of the Varsity Girls race...Soda 2nd place behind a very tough Bingham, UT team.

Varsity Boys:
We still have some "kinks" to work out, but keep working hard and I'm confident that you guys will have success. M. Bowman...another great race...those summer miles are paying off. K. Meyers hang in there...we'll be alright. You guys met the goal that we talked about on Wednesday...now we need to improve on it...KEEP UP THE HARD WORK!!!


K. Meyers races in his first XC race of the season.

Coaches L. Siepert (left) and S. Clark (right) get a few miles in cheering for the teams. Thanks to all the parents and community members that helped pull this meet off, another great meet!!!