For those who are in mourning because they are not running do not fear, track pre season is here! Coach Howard and his fellow assistant coaches would like to invite everyone to come out for track this year. It is a great way to stay active and to gain some speed for next year’s cross country season. Pre-season is not intense, at the moment we are meeting on Monday’s and Thursday’s right after school in the weight room. Attending these practices is not a final committment. Just come on out and give it a try! It would be fabulous to see everyone again.

Yesterday the team beat Ballard and Garfield in the City meet, way to go! It was a very good showing for next week. After several great weeks of competition we are down to the most prestigious meet of the season, the Kingco Championship. It will be held on Thursday, October 20th, 2011 at Lincoln Park.

We had a wonderful league meet this past Wednesday where a couple of girls proudly ran their first race and where many personal records were set. This Saturday the team will be competing in its first invitational, the Bellevue High School Invite at Lake Sammamish State Park. There are several races throughout the day and please make sure to be there at least one hour before your race begins. The league meet against Redmond and Bothell this week will take place on Thursday, September 29. (Not on Wednesday!) Enjoy some pictures from the past couple of meets…

Photo Credit: Penny Swanson

Photo Credit: Olivia Mancl

This past Wednesday the team competed at Kelsey Creek Park against a combination of 4A and 3A schools. Among the 4A schools (Roosevelt, Inglemoor, and Newport) our own Rider ladies came in first, way to go! Several girls had spectacular performances. It was the first race for many, and several girls set personal records. Our next meet is this Wednesday, September 21, at Marymoor Park in Redmond. The following Saturday, September 24, is our first invitational.

Congratulations to everyone who ran in the Kingco Preview meet. It was a great way to start off the season!

The next meet is on Wednesday, September 14, 2011 at Kelsey Creek Park in Bellevue, WA. Roosevelt will run against Inglemoor and Newport.

To see the complete schedule for the 2011 XC season go to athletic.net

Roughriders gather moments before the start of the 2010 season.

Official Practices:

• Monday-Thursday, August 22-25, practice at RHS, 4:30-6:00 p.m.
• Monday and Tuesday, August 29 & 30, practice at RHS, 4:30-6:00 p.m.
• Wednesday, August 31. NO PRACTICE. District wide furlough.
• Thursday, September 1, practice at RHS 4:30 p.m. PARENT MEETING, 6:00-6:30. Meet in the Commons.
• Friday, September 2, meet at RHS at 4:30 p.m. Run Greenlake. Clinic and pizza party at Super Jock & Jill, 6:00-7:00 p.m. Great opportunity to buy shoes & gear at a discount!
• Monday, September 5, Labor Day water station & fundraiser. Meet at RHS at 7:00 a.m. Return by noon. Counts as a practice.
• Tuesday, September 6, Roughrider Day. Meet in the locker room at noon for lockers, uniforms & a short run.
• Wednesday, September 7, meet in the locker room after school for practice. Finished by 4:30 p.m.
• Athletes must have 10 practices to compete in the first meet.

XC Retreat:

• Friday-Sunday, August 26-28, team retreat at Hood Canal. Depart at 10:00 a.m. Return by noon on Sunday.
• We are very lucky to host this annual “bonding (not running) intensive” retreat at the Shearer’s cabin.
• Cost is $40.00
• Questions? Please don’t hesitate to contact your captains: Kendall Sahl, Samantha Jewett, and Grace Hodge.

Note from Donna:  The meet this week has been moved to tomorrow, TUESDAY, SEPT. 21ST, Marymoor Park, 4 PM. There was some difficulty scheduling the park from the Woodinville end. Buses should return (traffic dependent!) by 6:30.

Saturday, Sept. 25th, Bellevue Invitational at Lake Sammamish State Park.
This is a terrifically fun event, both to run & to spectate.

The majority of the team will run in the Open race at 9:30 AM.
JV Girls (7 runners) will compete at 10:15. The varsity flights begin at 11:30. See the schedule at www.athletic.net. The girls will be given their race assignment this week.

We carpool to this meet, so if you can drive, please let me know!

The Roosevelt girls have finished three meets in the last two weeks and have looked darn competitive in those meets.  Starting with the KingCo Preview meet, everyone got a good look at the area’s 4A runners.  No score was kept at the meet, but consecutive two-time state champs, Eastlake, their Sammamish neighbors, Skyline, Redmond, Newport, Inglemoor and Woodinville all look tough this year.

This past week, again at Lincoln Park, Roosevelt ran very well in a close meet against Newport and Inglemoor.  Again, no official score was announced, but only 8 points separated the first and third place teams.

Lucy looks for an opportunity to move ahead.

Yesterday, at the South Whidbey Invitational, the girls finished 10th ahead of KingCo rivals Bothell and Ballard, but just behind Woodinville and Newport.  The story here was senior, Lucy Cheadle’s emergence as one of the area’s better harriers. She finished second to Northwest School’s Maddie Meyers, 2009 1A state champ and ahead of 2009 3A state champ, Glacier Peak’s Amy-Eloise Neale. Excellent work, Lucy!