A Letter to Non-Cross Country Runners

The fall sports season in my small town is centered around football and volleyball. Cross country is at the very bottom of the sports totem pole. No one cares about our sport. And we know that. We get that.

We don't have home games and our meets are usually right after school. There are not balls being hit around and girls diving to get them, and there's not boys dodging other boys to get to the end zone. Cross country is commonly known as the sport for the kids who didn't make the football or volleyball team.

There are people getting in shape for wrestling or basketball or are just looking for something to be apart of. And we are known as a bunch of goofy, nerdy kids who, in the sports world, are outsiders. Like, who would pay money to go run for two months? And as much as we know we are not much of a priority to anyone, we are still a sport. We are still athletes and members of our school. We may not practice as long as football, or volleyball, or some other sports, but we don't stand the entire practice and observe the first line players practice. We don't do a shuffle to the left and jump. We go out and run. In the freezing rain, or in the sun when it's 100 degrees.

We go out everyone practices, and everyone runs. And we are a family. The guy who runs a fifteen minute 5K is best friends with the guy who runs JV. We're best friends, yet we get annoyed with each other, but that's what happens with a family. A family who cheers for each other at meets because no one shows up even though we go to every volleyball, football, and soccer game. We won't ever have a student section who dresses up in Hawaiian shirts and swim trunks.

We won't ever have people make us clever signs. We won't ever have a formal senior night. But we still run. And even though no one comes to our meets, we go and support everyone else. So please, the next time you get mad at us for not coming to your volleyball game, just remember. We just ran eight miles in 90 degree heat, had to run hills after, and then have to go home (and in our small town that means some kids have to drive twenty minutes to get home), shower and we still have homework. We're physically exhausted. We're also tired of our practices being called easy. Please come join one of our runs, or join in on one of our ab workouts. They're not fun. But the hard, crappy workouts shape us physically and mentally. Now, as I finish up this letter, all I ask for from you, non-cross country athlete, is to respect your local cross country team. Because for a bunch of nerdy, goofy, weird kids, we're actually pretty cool. 


Sincerely,
A cross country runner.