Cross Country

Ian did get to do his first Cross Country last Sunday even though it was cold and wet with periods of hail and wind and bits of rain mixed with sun. There were a ton of racers, I think over 60 in his class alone. They line them all up according to race experience, racers that have come in the top start first, then 30 seconds later the next group (Ian's group) then 1 minute later another group starts. It's very time consuming to get them all ready. The dad's all stand out with their kids and give them pep talks and final advice. The kids wear a little device on their chest protector that records their time and number at the checkpoint and posts it on a board so that you can see how they are doing. Most of the course is in the mountains so you can't see them until they come to the checkpoint. Ian did 3 laps and averaged 22 minutes on the 6 mile course. He placed 29th which was great for his first time. The winner averaged 17 minutes per 6 miles. So now Ian knows what he needs to do to move up. I have to admit I was nervous and relieved that he didn't get hurt. He's already for the next one and we'll be there to cheer him on!