Loops on Loops

       Before practice today, it seemed evident to everyone that something was different in the locker room. It was not nearly as crowded as usual. The milk machine had been moved! It was relocated to the wrestling room, which frees up a good deal of space in the cross country locker room.

       As we departed De Smet for a middle/long distance run, the sky was looking a bit ominous. Our destination was Malcolm Terrace Park, one of the favorites to run at, so we would be relatively close to De Smet if the weather didn't cooperate. Before we left, we noticed that on the turf, a soccer match was about to start between the CBC and Chaminade JV soccer teams for a tournament. On our way to the park, the sky didn't lighten up at all. All the groups ran up to five of the 1-mile trail loops before heading back. On the fifth and final loop, thunder could be heard. Shortly after we left the park, the cold and blistering wind came crashing down on us. Coach Tom and I, Group Sullivan (consisting of Collin, Michael Callahan, Glen McGann, and Nick Dolan), and also Patrick Callahan who was running alongside Coach Boehm all experienced the weather's wrath. It was so intense, Michael almost had his USA hat blown away. Good thing that didn't happen.

       Upon our arrival back to De Smet, we saw a deserted stadium. Unfortunately, lightening did appear which postponed the game, and cut the run 10 minutes short for those who were still running. We made our way to the wrestling room for stretching, and the halls were flooded with CBC and Chaminde soccer players. It was an odd sight.

       While stretching, Coach Traughber took a look at his GPS watch that Group Sullivan uses to pace their runs. His reaction was priceless as he was reading off their mile splits. The watch said that they increased their mile pace by over 30 seconds throughout the run. Collin insists that the watch was mistaken, but it seemed like a fishy situation all around. Nobody is perfect, but what about watches? Surely they have flaws once in a while too.

Joke of the Day

"It's like gambling!" - Said by Glen McGann talking about how buying a milk from the milk machine is like gambling. You never know when it will fall or not, and this was proven after Andrew Hubbard's chocolate milk happened to get stuck. Thankfully Coach Traughber came in and saved the day. He deserves a chocolate milk and a round of applause for that.

                                                   Thank you for reading, goodnight.

Fleet Feet Kickoff 2012

       On Wednesday, DeSmet made a good showing at the Nike Fleet Feet Cross Country Kickoff at Parkway Central with the JV and Varsity teams both winning the team titles. The JV team lead by Patrick Callahan (race winner and JV course record holder now) didn't have much of a problem fending off 2nd place by 15 points. The Varsity had a bit more trouble, though. Fox High School and DeSmet tied, both with 50 points, so it went to the tie breaker: the sixth man. Who would be up for the task? Blake Waters AND Matt Barkofske were up to the challenge. Both juniors beat the opponent's sixth runner, securing the victory. Collin Sullivan and I both cracked the top ten finishers, and M Callahan, Glen McGann, and sophomore Nick Dolan (in his first varsity XC race) rounded up the top 5 on the team. We made that one interesting and luckily came out on top, but we can't be satisfied.

Nike Cross Country Kickoff

       This morning, the varsity team had practice at 6:30 a.m. before school. The plan was to get the workout in before school, so we would not have weather complications afterwards from Hurricane Isaac. We all arrived at Conway Park knowing the workout: 3 mile tempo, 2 minute rest, 2 mile tempo. Usually, we would have 3 minutes rest after the 3 mile tempo, and we were all wondering why it was shorter rest, but when Michael Callahan asked Coach Traughber, he responded with, "Because we want to get better." That is a what we need to do. Wednesday was a solid start to the season, but if we want to achieve the goals we set for ourselves, we need to get better!

       After the early out at school today, the coaches gathered the team in the wrestling room to go over the plan for Labor Day Weekend. There will be no formal practices for the next three days, but you are encouraged to run with your friends! Everyone was emailed a spreadsheet with each individual's schedule for this weekend. Remember to plan around Isaac's rain. 

       After the meeting was finished, everyone who ran this morning hit the weights, and the other runners got ready for tempos on the track!

       Thank you to sophomore Jake Fouts for enlightening me on the track workout. Everyone either ran a 2 by 2, 3 by 1, or 2 by 1 tempo on the damp track as it was raining on and off all day. They endured the chance of a storm breaking out at any second to get the workout in. Way to go, guys!

                               Thank you for reading, have a great Labor Day!

Tomorrow is the Day

       The big day is almost upon us, my friends. We are less than 24 hours from finishing our first cross country race of the 2012 season. The location of this event, you ask? Parkway Central High School. The time? 5:00 p.m. The plan? Dominate. The Nike Cross Country Kickoff, which we will be running tomorrow, is a 2-mile race instead of the typical 5k for the first meet of the season, and the more support we have, the better!

       Today, the team circled up on the track (a very large circle) while Coach Traughber and the rest of the coaching staff laid out what the plan looked like for tomorrow, and unfortunately, informed us that we would not be practicing on the course at Central today. After they finished, everyone ran through the race day procedure with his training group on the track (warm up, stretches, etc.) minus the race part. The soccer team had a lot of pressure with the whole cross country team running circles around their practice the whole time, but they provided nice entertainment for us during our laps.

       During the cool down, different groups were running in opposite directions around the track, so we exchanged high fives as we passed. The enthusiasm in the high fives looks like our team spirit will be through the roof this year, but I have learned from some alums that this is a "no fun team," so we can't have too much fun along with the team spirit (not really). Then after our stretching in the cross country corner, we were devastated by the news that the milk machine was empty. Luckily, coach was prepared and had some throwback chocolate milk cartons for 25 cents, just like the old days.
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       Again, we have a meet at Parkway Central tomorrow, August 29th. JV and Freshmen run together at 5:00 p.m., and Varsity runs after them at 6:00 p.m.
       Runners, remember to bring spikes, uniform, warm ups, and snacks, just like coach said, and let's have a good start to the season!
     Here is a quote you have probably heard sometime throughout your DeSmet cross country experience so far. Hopefully it helps everyone run a bit faster tomorrow, good luck!

"To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." - Steve Prefontaine

On a side note, you can like the Milk Table Facebook page if you have not already to get updates whenever the blog is updated.

                      My work is finished for today, thank you and farewell.

First Day of Classes

      Today kicked off the first day of school.  The school bell rang at 12:18 today because we had a half day, so practice started around 12:35 instead of the usual 3:10.  We had a handful of new runners because of the start of school which was great.  The coaches gathered the team on the bleachers under the extra bright sun, and went over some basic ground rules.  Then came the passing out of the uniforms.  Everyone went into the cafeteria where the coaches passed out the brand-new, sharp-looking freshman and JV Nike uniforms.  They will be the best looking runners out there.  Unfortunately, the new varsity uniforms were not in yet and won't be until after the first race, so last year's uniforms will have to suffice until they arrive.

       After the uniforms were dispersed, the team embarked on an easy run, still recovering from Saturday's hills.  The different runs varied from 4 to 7 miles.  Two easy days in a row, today and tomorrow, will hopefully have everyone ready for the 2 mile time trial on Wednesday.

      The big news of the day was the arrival of a chocolate milk machine in the locker room, which happens to be right next to the cross country lockers.  It seems like the rightful place for a milk machine.  This new idea could come off as bad because the machine sells pint-size bottles for a dollar, instead of the usual carton for 25 cents, but it will become more convenient for everyone as we get used to it.

CHOCOLATE MILK MACHINE

REMINDER:  Any DeSmet runner who reads this on Monday, August 20th, needs to have their uniform for picture day tomorrow.  This will hopefully not be a problem because Coach Traughber told everyone to leave his uniform at school.  Also, if you have not claimed a cross country locker yet, do so as soon as possible.

Thank you for reading, I wish you a happy week.

We Meet the Hills

       The team met at 8 a.m. at Big River Running Saturday morning.  Unlike this practice last year, the weather was beautiful.  There was no lightening that forced us to run our strides under the stores' overhang this time.  Off we went to Queeny Park.  Inside the park, we did our stretches in a grass field next to the Washington University cross country team.  When we were done, Coach Traughber and Coach Williams brought the team to the base of the steepest, tallest, meanest hill in the park.  Anyone who has ran at Queeny Park knows of this monster.  The groans could be heard from miles away as coach explained the workout.  "200 meter hills at 5k pace."  We were split up into groups and everyone had either 4, 6, or 8 hills.  After the workout was finished and the pain subsided, the team ran back to Big River for team day.

       On team day at Big River, everyone on the team can buy shoes, apparel, or anything in the store and receive a 20% discount.  There was much commotion about the release of the new Nike Flyknit technology shoes, but no one besides Coach Tom has them.  Maybe he will share.  Thank you to the Big River workers, they were as helpful as always with suggesting the right shoes for everyone who needed them.  We should be geared up for another successful fall!

       Today was the last practice before school starts for everyone except the freshmen, who had Freshmen Orientation on Friday.  Good luck to everyone with school. 

Joke of the Day is back!! (for one day at least)

       "I might need to ban shirts from practice" - Coach Traughber after some runners had to run back to get their shirts from the park bench.  He could probably start a collection with all the shirts that are forgotten at parks we run at.

Thanks for reading, have a nice day.

Taking a Dip

       This morning brought more favorable weather on the track.  Everyone was asked to show up to practice determined to dominate tempos after an overall unsatisfactory workout last week.  During the warm up skips and stretches, all of the runners carried on the usual jokes and chatter, but when it came time to tempo, we were ready.  Last week's workout didn't phase anyone this time.  To Coach Traughber's delight, the groups rolled in, one after another, nailing each of their paces.  Also, we were even lucky enough to receive cross country race simulation! The varsity soccer squad (congrats to Justin Abernathy, Kevin's younger brother, for making the team) ran their 2-mile race while we were tempoing, so we were weaving and wiggling our way through their pack like a real race.  Hopefully this workout is foreshadowing what is to come later in the season: Domination.  But this will be no easy task, especially because we are going into the season as the complete underdog.  We need to keep up the fantastic workouts like these, great work runners!

       Shout out to Alex Potter for making an appearance today at practice!  It was great to see him again and talk with him before he heads back to Columbia for his second year at Mizzou.  We wish him luck as he will join the Mizzou Running Club. #freepotter

       After practice, most of the team took a trip over to Coach Boland's house for the beginning of the season pool party.  Coach Boland, accompanied by Coach Russo, Williams, Traughber, and Mahood, barbecued the most hot dogs I had ever seen, and good thing because a high school runner sure gets hungry after tempos.  The pool water was a bit chilly because it had not warmed up yet, but since when does temperature affect a DeSmet cross country runner?  Despite the cold water, we all had a great time playing in the pool.  The Boland family deserves a big thank you for their hospitality, so thank you!

Thank you for reading. Cheers, my friends.

Back on Track

        Our first official week of practice is complete, and we seem to be off to a great start. Monday kicked off the season with a mile time trial to make sure everyone is placed in the right training group. Coach Tom lead the team and finished in the 4:35 range. It looks to be a very promising start to the season with six runners under 5 minutes, and many more right above! After the cool down, Coach Traughber gave his welcome speech to the team and announced the two new additions to the coaching staff: Coach Stephen Schumacher and Coach Adam Boehm, both who are SLUH grads.  They will each be leading a separate training group, and we are looking forward to a great season with them.  After the speech, some of the runners hit the weights to top off some fast running with a new weight lifting plan made by Coach Williams.

        On Tuesday, the team had the first "long run" of the season. Two DeSmet alums and school record holders, Connor Callahan (Marquette University) and Kevin Abernathy (Drury University), ran a Double Spoede with the top group and deserve our thanks for visiting. Unfortunately, one of our sophomores who ran on the state team last year, Stephen Plassmeyer, has a foot injury, so he could not train with the team. Let's hope and pray that he returns as soon as possible!

        Wednesday brought the well known "tempo workout." With this being our third tough day of practice in a row, everyone got the message that we mean business this year. The workouts varied between a few tempo miles to a 2x2x1 mile tempo depending on the groups. Top to bottom, it was not the team's best workout, but we did have multiple standout performances including Glennon McGann, who hit all of his paces. Afterwards, Coach Traughber recognized that we may have been unprepared for the tempo and gave us tips and suggestions on handling multiple hard runs in a row such as stretching, icing, hydration, and nutrition.

        To everyone's relief, Thursday and Friday were declared recovery days.  On Thursday, Connor Callahan made another appearance and ran a Falaise with the top group, but he went for another few miles by himself when we were done because his easy days aren't quite as easy as ours.  After practice, a few runners stuck around to watch the soccer tryouts and listen to Coach Tom and Coach Mahood reminisce about their glory days at DeSmet. We all had a good laugh or two from their stories.

        Friday was going to be the most exciting day of the week. Everyone went to practice expecting a pool party at Coach Boland's house after practice, only to be informed that it was postponed until Tuesday of next week due to cold weather (70 degrees seems cold now). These weather complications did not hinder our run but arguably made for the best running conditions for as long as we can remember. While enjoying this rare weather, everyone ran to Malcolm Terrace Park for some trail loops and then back to DeSmet. Coach Traughber had put together a PowerPoint with tips on how to become the best runner you can be. Senior team captains Collin Sullivan, Michael Callahan, Glen Mcgann, and Jimmy Reid partook in presenting the PowerPoint along with Coach Traughber. They all did a superb job of informing the rest of the team with useful information.

       We all have high hopes for the team this year, and this week got us started on the right foot. I wish everyone in the DeSmet Cross Country program the best of luck this year, and here's to a good year!

EXCITING NEWS! 

        Coach Traughber has a challenge for all runners... anyone who runs under 17:30 during any meet this season will receive a customized DeSmet XC running hat! This should act as a good incentive for all runners, and hopefully the motivation will push all of us. So if you want to get a snazzy-looking hat for free, make running 3.1 miles in less than seventeen and a half minutes your goal.

        I would also like to remind everyone about the Annual Alumni Run tomorrow morning, August 11th. If you are interested in running or even just stopping by to watch, take a look at this link: DeSmet's Fourth Annual Alumni Run. We'd love to have you there!

                                    Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed :)