Well, another weekend, another cross country race! This weekend, our school was the host. That meant that all parents were encouraged to volunteer. There is actually a lot of work and coordination that goes into the organization of a cross country race…from marking the course before the race, to manning the parking lot and collecting parking fees, to coordinating the porta-potties, to arranging for timing, to removing the timing chips at the end of the race. And I could go on.
Since both my husband and I run, we were selected to be sweepers.
Sweepers
What an AWESOME job!! It was our responsibility to pick up the last runner in each race and escort (or trail) and encourage them to the finish. There were a total of 8 races, so the sweeper crew took turns. I wound up sweeping 4 times (jumping in after the first mile in most of the races).
This job is awesome for several reasons:
A) You get to meet some really great kids. I got to meet 4 kids this time. I chatted with each one, got to know their names, and a bit about them. All were new (VERY NEW) to running. None had ever run 3.1 miles before. And each one was DETERMINED to finish the race even though they were going to be last by a substantial margin. Very Admirable.
Cross Country Race Sweeper
B) As a parent spectating at a cross country race, you normally only get to see portions of the course. As a sweeper, you get to see and know the whole course!
C) Spectator support. Everyone was so supportive of the last runners. Over and over parents and kids yelled out encouragement and compliments as we passed. Some even yelled out encouragement to me, which was pretty super!
Overall, we spent more than 6 hours at the races, and I can’t think of a better way to have spent our day! And the funny thing was, our girl didn’t even run this race (due to some calf pain).
Trying a link up again. Thank you ladies! Erika @ MCM Mama Runs hosts Tuesdays on the Run with April @ Run the great wide somewhere and Patty @ My no-guilt life! Please check out their blogs and link ups!
Travel, Running and a Little Bit of Style 