by April Payne
This weekend we officially closed our cross country season with a celebratory get-away. I write this with mixed emotions as I 
have thoroughly enjoyed the time we have spent together.
have thoroughly enjoyed the time we have spent together.We left Friday afternoon and spent the evening in a yurt village on the Chattooga River where we indulged in a “Paleo-style” feast from the grill. We let our table manners go and really went for the “caveman” feel, letting the boys eat steak and salmon with their hands (in reality, we only brought plastic forks and they were breaking them left and right!).
After we packed in the protein for our morning workout, we enjoyed some time around a bonfire with team building, story telling, and looking through photos from all our adventures.
Saturday morning, the cross country team had me up before 6:30 a.m. (my plan was 9:00 a.m.), anxious to hit the trails. Getting to run as a team, and without time restraints, made it possible for us to stop along the way for a crossfit workout and yoga by the water (led by Jin).
An
drew did an incredible job of setting up a scenic route through the woods that would land us in a perfect spot on the lake to hang hammocks and spend a day in and out of the water.
drew did an incredible job of setting up a scenic route through the woods that would land us in a perfect spot on the lake to hang hammocks and spend a day in and out of the water.I’m not sure any of us were ready to return to the school, which says a lot about their behavior and how laid back we allowed the weekend to be.
The way we have grown this season, as individuals and a community (myself included), exceeded any expectations I had. I came as a leader for this cross country team thinking I was simply volunteering to participate on a few weekly runs. My attitude quickly grew into anticipating our practices and time with the team above all my other CCBS responsibilities. By the end of the season I spent much of my time dreaming about how we could take what we’ve accomplished to new levels in the future.
Each of our cross country team members who are graduating soon will undoubtedly be missed, but we all are excited to send them off with the great memories we’ve shared and the important values we’ve instilled.
Cheers to an unforgettable cross country team!