Authored by: Paula Murray & Joy Chan
Event Date/Location: October 12, 2024, Lower Woodland Park, Seattle, WA
Link to photo album
On Saturday, the LSRC Cross-Country (XC) Team got the opportunity again to destroy our legs at Club Northwest’s iconic Emerald City Open. Well, maybe not literally – but as promised, it is a unique course comprised of challenging ups and downs, twists and turns, roots and potholes – everything except for even footing.
It was perfect fall weather with a temperature of 57° (62° in the sun), humidity of 74%, and a southwest wind of 1.5 mph. The field was a nice mix of clubs and colleges. LSRC fielded full 5-person teams for both men and women. The men raced first, giving the women the advantage of knowing what to expect on the start line: a decidedly awkward shout of some kind, followed by a sudden horn blast. With that, the race was underway and LSRC looked strong against the field. With 170 runners, there seemed to be a non-stop stream of people on the first of four laps before runners thinned out in subsequent laps. The LSRC men fought tooth and nail for team positions and placed 11 out of 12 scoring teams with 303 points, beating out one college and five other teams that were unable to field the five people needed to score.
Next, the women were up – after discussing possible strategies, we decided to keep the first lap conservative and pay attention to each other’s position on the course. We took a few photos, a few strides, started our watches, and we were ready. The horn sounded, and we took off – the immediate downhill made for a fast start. The footing was tricky, and the hills were relentless, but our resolve was solid; we battled through three laps and a good time was had by all. The women’s team placed 8 out of 8 scoring teams with 216 points, but we had the distinction of beating out four colleges that were unable to field full teams.
Overall, it was a strong showing by both our teams and everyone put in their best efforts. The experience gained at Emerald City Open will continue to prepare us for the three upcoming USATF races in November and December, which fortunately will be on more forgiving courses. Until then, we’ll rest, run, and repeat.
Full Results: https://www.tfrrs.org/results/xc/24175/Emerald_City_Open
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Women's 6K
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Time
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Points Scored
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Highlights
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Rochelle Cox
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30:08
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40
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Rocked her first XC race!
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Maricruz Del Pozo
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31:05
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42
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Strong charge against strong teams!
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Joy Chan
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32:30
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43
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Solid pacing all laps!
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Beth Mantey
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32:52
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45
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Solid work!
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Paula Murray
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32:55
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46
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Course PR!
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Men's 8K
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Time
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Points Scored
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Highlights
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Jordan Andersen
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30:05
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50
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Strong performance post-Berlin Marathon!
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Zachary Fung
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31:18
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59
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Course PR!
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Steven Hammond
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32:09
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63
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Looked strong all laps!
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Clayton Koppi
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32:14
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64
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Solid work!
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Cameron Wolfe
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32:20
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67
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Solid work!
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John Kim
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34:23
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70
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Rocked his first XC race!
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