For some, the beginning of the school year is a time to slowly ease back into the flow of things. However, the girls and boys of the City High cross country teams started the year with time trials.

“Everyone looked really good out there,” Mary Bounds ‘20 said. “It was good that we had a large group all finish together at the beginning. This makes for a good team, as long as girls are able to run and stay together during races.”

This year, the girls team ran two miles instead of the usual race-length of 5 kilometers. There was no change to the distance the boys team had to run.

“It’s a great chance to kind of see what [the girls] fitness levels are early in the season, but not put another 5K on their legs,” new coach Monica Mims said. “So they get that in-between feel: a little bit more than some of the workouts, but not quite a race. It’s just a good barometer of summer training and preseason.”

Will Dickson ‘23 ran his first 5K Friday. 

“I got some pointers from the coaches beforehand on how to run up the hills and have the recovery going down the hills,” Dickson said. “And then at the last part, where you see the finish line, you just push it no matter what you feel like.”

The first cross country race this year is September 3 at the Iowa Mennonite School.

“I’m looking forward to kicking a** at meets,” Bounds said.