Freshman Star Runner

Cross Country is a not a sport for everyone, but merely for someone with a passion for running. Joe Craig, a freshman runner on the cross country team, enjoys the high school level competition, “it pushes my limits and gets me prepared for what my expectations should be for the next meet.” Over the years the cross country has become increasingly more popular throughout schools. It is a great opportunity to get one’s body in shape that helps work with all parts of the body. A key factor that comes with not only cross country but any sport is practice.  

Cross country is a sport in which individuals run on terrain such as grass or dirt. The usual race length has about an average of 3-8 miles long. With this new year starting brings in a lot of new faces that the coach has to get use to and train. One freshman who has stood out to coaches and other runners is Joe Craig. Joe attended Lewis and Clark for middle school and chose Central as the high school that he thought fit him best for both academics and athletics, ” a fair amount of my friends chose Central too and my siblings went here too i thought it was the school for me.” The more practice one puts in pays off when it matters most.  

Throughout the years Central has gone through a few rough seasons but have always came back stronger the next year. The successful years bring in more kids looking to win and succeed as well. Apart of this talent is Joe Craig who’s two sisters also flourished in Central athletics. This year Joe has added a lot of character to the team. He is not just a fast runner but also is always around to lift up other runners and has gained a lot of leadership from looking up to other runners. At practices Joe and the rest of the team puts in a lot of hard work to match other school’s competition while having fun which Joe always manages to bring to the team every day.  

When running in events it is just as important what you do before the race than what you do during the race. The courses in the state of Nebraska are 5ks about 3.1 miles and are ran in a matter of minutes. The terrain is grass which makes it more difficult and during the summer the team has harsh conditioning every day for 3-8 miles in the hot just to be prepared for the upcoming races. Although it may seem like a lot, like Joe, there are several people that can run long distance and enjoy it. It can be a stress reliever to some and just another way to compete in something one does daily. Many can master the sport of running but not many have the mindset for it. 

Overall, cross country may not be the sport for everyone but it gives anybody a chance to be in shape while enjoying running. The people who do have the determination to practice all the time pays off in front of coaches and runners such as Joe Craig. He is what coaches look for in a kid who has potential.