Thanks for a Wonderful Season

The fall of 2013 brought 83 ninth - twelfth grade boys together to participate on the JMM Boys Cross Country team. These boys ran many miles, completed dozens of workouts, did hundreds of push ups & sit ups, hung out at socials, and went out at every meet to represent Madison Memorial distance running to the best of their ability. Many goals were met and many personal records were set this season. The varsity came up 5 points short of making a return trip to state but had a very successful season and have provided a clear goal for next years returning runners. The JV team reached its goal of winning a Big 8 Conference Championship and reached many new successes this season to accomplish this goal. The bar has been set high for the JV team for many seasons to come. As a team we surpassed our academic goal for the fall and hope to see every athlete continue to grow as a student and positive influence on the Madison community. Next season we look to make a big step forward at the varsity level with the goal of having 7-8 athletes being sub 17:00 runners (with 2-3 of those runners being regular sub 17:00 runners). This is not an easy task and not one that will happen overnight or by one individual. As we look forward to the future we want to give a HUGE thank you to our graduating seniors. This group of seniors have been a big part of developing our program over the last four years and leave the team in the good hands of the freshmen, sophomores, and juniors. We challenge these underclassmen to make a plan and set a goal now for the 2014 season. Through hard work and dedication the 2014 season will be another great experience.

2013 Highlights
Jake R - 16:33 @ Big 8 Championships (Rockport)
James A - 16:46 @ West Invite (Yahara)
Bryce H – 16:46 @ Midwest Invite (Blackhawk GC)
17 Runners under 18:00 @ Big 8 Championships (most of any team)

Frosh/Soph 2^nd Place Team @ Midwest Invite
JV Team Champs @ Stoughton Invite
JV Team Champs @ Madison City Championships
JV1 Team Champs @ Big 8 Championships
JV2 Team Champs @ Big 8 Championships (1, 2, 3 individual finish)
Joe H – JV2 Champ @ Big 8 Championships

2013 Results
Division 1 State Meet - Team/Individual & Interactive
DeForest Sectional
Big 8 Conference Meet (Var, JV1, JV2)

Team GPA - 3.507

For the fourth season in a row our team has exceeded our team goal for GPA (3.4 or higher) and was the 4th highest GPA in team history (top GPA was 2011 - 3.577)....KEEP WORKING HARD IN THE CLASSROOM!!! Our team has SEVEN student athletes with a 4.0 GPA, who were joined by three other teammates for a perfect 4.0 GPA during the 1st quarter. 86.1% of our athletes met our individual goal of exceeding 3.0 for their cumulative GPA. Those athletes needing help in the classroom should ask a teammate, talk to their teachers, and get a tutor. There are many options available at Memorial if you take advantage of them. Keep up the great tradition of Memorial Distance Runners in the classroom.

Off Season Running 

Madison Mileage Club

Sectionals - 4th place

On Saturday our varsity team went out to earn a trip to the WIAA State Meet at the DeForest Sectional. To qualify for state we needed to finish in the top two teams and overcome four schools who had beaten us over the last month. We were hoping that having a slightly healthier team going into Sectionals would accomplish the job but we came up 5 points short of our goal missing out on the second qualifying spot to Middleton and Baraboo (who lost on a tiebreaker). Our varsity has accomplished many great things this season and have a lot to be proud of even though we came up slightly short of our season goals. Taking last year's results from sectionals and looking at whose returners would do well this year ... the JMM team would have been at 7th place but our guys worked their tails off over the off season, in the summer, and throughout this fall to give our team a shot to get to State. As every team must, we had to deal with injuries, illness, etc this season and our depth helped cover these gaps throughout the year but today it came down to the fact that we were not at 100% and that kept us just outside the top two.  As we move forward we need to continue to build our depth and improve our lead pack as it moves towards being a group that can finish in the top ten and pull some low numbers for our team (8 of the 11 teams had better #1 runners today...that means we play catch up, which we did a pretty good job of today...just not good enough).

Today we were led by seniors Bryce H and Jacob R as they finished 14th and 15th respectively. The race of the day came from sophomore Rory S who took advantage of his opportunity to be in this race with an amazing last 1/2 mile to finish 22nd overall. Senior James A in his first varsity race back from mono held on for 31st place in a very tough fought competition. Our scoring five was rounded out by junior Ben B who placed 33rd. As we have said all season we have some depth and today freshman Luke V placed 36th (the second best #6 runner to only West) and senior Connor GT placed 40th (the best #7 runner on the day). This group ran great today and should be proud of how they represented the JMM boys cross country team. Our senior group did a wonderful job of leading us this season and now it is time for the juniors, sophomores, and freshmen to take that next step to make sure next year we are a team that can handle all of the injuries, illnesses, and what ifs of the seasons and come out of this meet with a state berth. It will take more hard work and dedication towards improving but I believe we have the work ethic among our athletes to make this next step. A big THANK YOU to the jv runners, parents, and alumni who came out to support us in DeForest it was great to see a mass of green screaming, yelling, and cheering the boys on all day long!

SECTIONAL RESULTS
DeForest Sectional
All WIAA Sectionals

UPCOMING EVENTS
10/28 (Mon) - Varsity Practice @ 3:45pm - bring uniforms
11/2 (Sat) - State at Wisconsin Rapids Ridges GC - Siena & Meghan will represent JMM Girls CC
11/7 (Thurs) - End of Year Banquet @ Rocky's 5:30pm (rsvp to jmmcc@rocketmail.com)

Athletes who have not paid the captains for team shirts ($20) or coaches gifts ($10) -- contact captains ASAP (James, Marcus, John, or Bryce).

Big 8 Conference Championships - Varsity = 6th, JV1 = CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS, JV2 = CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS

A brisk fall morning greeted the Madison Memorial boys cross country team as we loaded our buses to travel to Janesville for the Big Eight Conference meet. For the JV athletes it was one more opportunity to set a season best or a lifetime PR. For the varsity athletes it was one more chance to gain some important racing lessons prior to the Sectional meet next Saturday. After a grueling season running repeats, putting in the long miles, pumping out abs and pushups, studying in the classroom, and attending potlucks the boys were ready to cap the season on a high note. The team had big expectations going into the meet and it was going to take a team effort to meet those expectations. That is exactly what we got at Rockport Park as across the board JMM runners stepped up to help each other meet their personal and team goals. It was a fun day to be running cross country in the green of Memorial.

The varsity began the meet off in the coolest and slickest conditions of the day. We don't really have a team motto but unofficially this year it has become "the next man in" as we continued to shuffle our varsity lineup to fill holes late in the week. John H became our thirteenth different runner this season to compete in a varsity race. The varsity group got tucked a little further back then they had hoped in the first 1/2 mile but started to move by the mile mark with nice opening mile splits. Jake R led the charge up front for the second week in a row and had nice PR breaking 17:00 for the first time. Our next group of runners were packed together nicely but will need to be a little closer to Jake at Sectionals next week. Connor GT was at the front of this pack as then in the next 12 seconds he was followed by Ben B, Luke V, Rory S, and John H. This group finished between 35th - 43rd if we can move them up about 15 seconds it would be a point total shift of over 30 points (lots of runners in that range). Benton DD rounded out our varsity seven with PR performance today. These runners will be joined by some teammates in the coming days to prepare for Sectionals and see if we can take that next step towards the State Championship. Our 6th place finish was not what we were hoping for today but our performance by the runners in the race was a quality performance.

The second race of the day brought the top 7 JV runners from each team to the starting line for the JV1 race. The team had a goal this season to win the JV Conference Championship and we knew this would be no small feat. During the season we had some very close battles with Madison West and Verona and the boys were ready to take on this stiff competition today. The JV1 kids worked together as a pack early on as all 7 positioned themselves in the top 15 and used each other to help run a good pace. West's top 2 runners seized control of the race near the midway mark but our pack held solid in the top ten positioned right with West's #3 and Verona's #1 & 2. Our pack mentality helped our group gain some positive momentum after the steep hill climb and our group looked to take control during the last mile. They were led to the finish by a strong race from Zach H as he got a top 5 finish and a PR. We talked about having a tight pack in this race and all 7 runners came within :27 seconds of each other. Zach was followed closely by Sam B and Ty B in the top 10. Then came James A, Mason R, and Jonas B earning conference awards with their top 15 finishes. Senior Marcus F just missed out on staying in the top 15 but his strong finish kept him ahead of West's fifth runner which proved to be important as we only beat West by 2 points. Every runner was critical in this championship and all seven of these boys represented their teammates proudly during this race. This marked the first team conference championship under Coach Casey and hopefully the start of a new tradition of success in the JV races.

JV1 Big Eight Conference CHAMPIONS

The JV2 race was the last race of the day and these boys had a hard act to follow as they came on the heels of the JV1 victory. This group did not want to be out done as they worked just as hard all year long and were the reason why so many of our varsity and JV1 runners had success this season. This group moved to the front of the race early on and made the JMM presence felt in top 15 of the race. As the race went on this group only got stronger. Our JV2 guys ran spirited efforts not only chasing down huge PRs but also leading our team to its second Conference Championship of the day. The group scored 24 points and had their top seven runners earn awards with their top 15 finishes. They were led by junior Joe H who took the lead midway through the race and never looked back as he set a huge PR and earned the JV2 individual championship. Had he looked backed he would have seen teammates Gabe B and Trevor R leading the JMM 1, 2, 3 sweep in the race. Casey GT closed hard and Will B held on strong to both earn top 10 finishes and Calder B and Austin W closed out our scoring seven with their top 15 finishes.

JV2 Big Eight Conference CHAMPIONS

As a team you always try to end the season on a high note. Today the weather conditions, competition, course, taper, and everything aligned just right to allow us to do just that. We had 51 PRs on the day, 2 team conference championships, and 1 individual conference championship. A day like today is what all that hard work during the summer, after school, in the classroom, and at practice is all about. Our PRs today went to Eligh A (1:06), Will B (:53), Marcus F (:41), Connor GT (:29), John H (:08), Mason R (:15), Jacob R (:44), Giovanni S (:28), Sam S (:09), Ben B (:12), Calder B (:22), Jake H (:01), Joe H (:57), Caleb H (:37), Justin H (:29), Nathan L (:33), Josh L (:48), Liam M (:05), Brendan P (1:11), Razi S (:29), Alex VB (:47), Gabe B (:29), Ale C (1:15), Zach H (:39), Chris M (:51), Trevor R (:35), Rory S (:34), Ben T (:54), Trevor W (:23), Austin W (:22), Michael Y (1:47), Sam Z (:33), Matt B (:31), Jonas B (:34), Davis B (:54), Ty B (:22), Henry C (1:41), Dom G (:54), Jared G (:03), Casey GT (:51), Jansen H (:14), Ben K (:10), Nathan K (1:11), Chris M (1:34), Zaid N (1:25), Luke V (:34), Alec W (:30), Nathan W (:45), Chris X (1:44), and Jack Z (:46). Our varsity prepares for next week, our seniors prepare for our future, and hopefully our underclassmen prepare for even bigger things next season.

BIG 8 CONFERENCE RESULTS

Varsity

JV 1

JV 2

Rock/Paper/Scissors - Brendon P defeated Will B in an epic fifth game sudden death match

NEXT COMPETITION
Sectional @ DeForest High School
Saturday October 26th
Bus Time - 9:00am
11:00am - Girls Varsity
11:45am - Boys Varsity (2012 Results)
Top 2 teams and 5 individuals advance to State *** Everyone should come cheer them on!!! ***

UPCOMING EVENTS
Monday October 21st - Mandatory Team Meeting for ALL athletes - 3:45 - 4:15pm
Athletes will receive important end of the season information -- must attend!
Any uniforms not turned in by Monday will result in an academic hold on your student record ($35 - for lost/damage uniform top, $35 - for lost/damage uniform bottom)
Bring captain's money --> $20 for shirt, t-day baskets, & coaches gifts OR $10 if you didn't buy the captain's shirt

City Championships - Varsity = 3rd, JV = 1st

BIG THANKS to all the parents and volunteers for helping us pull off a great meet...it has been 13 years since a meet has been hosted at Elver and although there were some hiccups along the way...all & all it was a great event. It was fun to see our team competing at a new venue. Many positive things happened for our team on a difficult course that only gave up 3 PRs. We now turn our focus to Conference and ending with a strong performance against the Big Eight Conference. We are right where we want to be at this time of season and need to finish strong.

The meet started with the varsity race that was very strategic for the first half of the race. Bryce did a nice job of getting in the front pack and will look to hold on better with this group in the coming weeks. Jacob R had a great race stepping up to be our #1 runner for the first time this season by closing the gap to Bryce throughout the race to finish just ahead of Bryce as they went 12th & 13th place. Brad G earned a top 20 finish with a solid performance at #3 for our team. Rory S and Luke V continue to step up to fill holes of our missing varsity athletes. They are gaining important varsity experience and are working on solidifying there spots on the varsity for the stretch run this season. Seniors Connor GT and Sam B had nice varsity races and continue to be contributors for our team each week. Our team took 3rd place today to very talented LaFollette and West teams. We were able to hold off a tough challenge by a strong Edgewood team (#6 in D2). Now we look to get all of our pieces of the puzzle to perform at their best on the same day. The next two weeks will be very important for this group of athletes.

Our JV ran great at Elver and came away with our second straight 1st place as a team. It will be important to keep this momentum going into Conference. This week we beat West by 6 points and last week we beat Verona by 3 points. While it is nice to win, this close of a margin will mean we will still need to have a good race on Saturday to meet our team goal and win a JV1 conference title. Seniors John H and Marcus F led the charge for our JV squad today with their 5th & 6th place finishes. Ty B and Mason R added top ten finishes and Zach H rounded out our scoring five in the JV races. Our JV spread from #1 - #5 was 16 seconds and we will need to have a similar pack at Conference to be able to continue this win streak. Jonas B and Trevor R rounded out our top 7 on the day. If you were to look at JV2 scorers Memorial would have 6 of the top 10 but only 7 of the top 14 with the other 7 runners being West runners. This shows us that our depth will give us a chance to win a JV2 conference title on Saturday too. Our PRs on the day came from Henry C, Chris M, and Chris X these guys showed determination to PR on a difficult course. I encourage this group of runners to focus for a strong finish to the season at the Conference meet and shoot for one more PR on the season.

CITY RESULTS
Boys JV & Varsity (Team Scores & Overall)

NEXT COMPETITION
Conference @ Rockport Park (Janesville)
Saturday October 19th
Bus Time - 7:00am
9:30am - First Race
10:00am - Boys Varsity (top 7) (2012 Results)
11:00am - Boys JV1 (8 - 14 runners) (2012 Results)
12:10pm - Boys JV2 (remainder of team (2012 Results)
1:00pm - Awards Ceremony (Var - top 15, JV1 - top 15, JV2 - top 15)
***Due to Homecoming Dance...we will NOT stop to eat***

All JV runners will turn in their uniforms Saturday at the meet (bring a change of clothes) - If you are not attending the Conference Meet please turn in before Friday - Any uniforms not turned in will result in an academic hold on your student record ($35 - for lost/damage uniform top, $35 - for lost/damage uniform bottom)

Monday October 21st - Mandatory Team Meeting for ALL athletes - 3:45 - 4:15pm
Athletes will receive important end of the season information -- must attend!

IMPORTANT CONFERENCE PARKING INFORMATION
1) The ONLY parking at Rockport Park will be handicap and bus parking!!!
2) Varsity parents will receive a parking pass to park at the Moose Lodge (2701 Rockport Road)...must have your pass to enter this parking lot!!!
3) General parking will be at Janesville Parker HS!!! Shuttle buses will be running between Parker HS and Rockport Park (~10 mins) every 20 minutes...Arrive early so you have enough time to get to Rockport Park with plenty of time to get on the course to cheer.

UPCOMING EVENTS
October 16th (Wed) - Light of Life Walk - 6:00 - 6:45pm (bring $5 donation for Cancer Research)
***This is a required team event --> family members are welcome to join in this homecoming week event
***Athletes will be provided with information on schedule of events for practice, meal, and Light of Life Walk

Stoughton Invite - Varsity = 5th Place JV = 1st Place

The threat of inclement weather and the concern of deterioration of a wet course caused the officials at the Stoughton Invitational to flip the varsity and jv race times. Our team took this change of events in stride as we prepared to take on stiff competition in SPASH (ranked #2 in the state), LaFollette (#5), and Verona (#11) along with some tough sectional foes of Waunakee, Middleton, Baraboo, Sun Prairie, and Madison East. This meet was a great tune up for our championship race season. Our athletes competed great in the tough weather conditions and showed they are ready for the stretch run this season. Many new faces continue to step up and help carry our varsity squad as we work through injury and sickness and even more guys have performed at a high level to insure that our jv team continues to succeed. Now is the time of year where we need to get healthy (or stay healthy), heal our bodies (or continue to take care of our bodies), insure that we are getting plenty of sleep, and stay up with our school work so we finish the season on top.

The varsity started out the meet competing without some key components. We were out a little slow in the first mile but moved up very well in the second half of the race. The charge through the field was led by Bryce H with a 14th place finish. Jake R also earned a medal with his 23rd place finish. Ben B bounced back this week with a strong 28th place finish. Connor GT was consistent for us through the middle of the run and place 39th. Luke V in his first varsity race stepped up with a great last 1/2 mile to finish 45th. Benton DD rounded out our varsity squad by placing 58th. Our varsity placed a very solid 5th place behind SPASH, Verona, LaFollette, and Waunakee. We have some work to do to get back in front of Waunakee before we see them next at the Sectional meet. Our team is capable of improving upon our performance from today but we need to do many things correct in the coming days and weeks to make that happen. We have big goals to reach and it will take a team effort to accomplish these goals.

Our JV team raced great in the final race of the meet as they brought home our 2nd trophy of the season and our first JV win since 2011. The group was led by Rory S (3rd) and Sam B (4th) who earned top 5 finishes to help our team to 39 points. Every point counted as we only beat Verona by 3 points so big finishes by this whole group paid off today. We saw Jonas B (7th) and Zach H (10th) earn top ten finishes and Mason R (15th) also earned a medal on the day. Ty B and Joe H ran great races to round out our JV 1. Had there been a JV 2 race at today's meet we would have had 7 of the top 11 finishers. This depth will be important as we prepare for our conference meet which will have a JV1 and JV2 conference championship on the line. Thirteen of our JV guys added lifetime PRs on Saturday they were led by Braxton S (:34), Phil S (:43), Michael Y (:25), Jonas B (:12), Ben K (:15), Rory M (1:09), Nathan We (:16), and Chris X (1:25). It was fun to see the jv athletes be awarded with a team plaque for all their hard work this season. There were a lot of young faces in that team picture and I hope they get more opportunities to bring home hardware from these invitationals.

STOUGHTON INVITE RESULTS
Varsity Results
JV Results

NEXT COMPETITION
City Championships @ Elver Park
Friday October 11th (WE HOST)
Early Release - 2:15pm Bus Time - 2:30pm ***No return bus***
4:00pm - First Race
4:30pm - Boys Varsity (2012 Results)
5:30pm - Boys JV
6:00pm - Awards
6:30pm - Assist in clean up

CITY MEET EXTRA INFORMATION
Volunteer Sign Up (Click & Fill Out ASAP)

All City Pizza Party & Recognition
The All-City Pizza Party after the City Meet will be held at the Pizza Oven on Monona Drive (athletes must provide their own transportation). Cost is $6.00 for all the pizza, breadsticks, and beverages the kids want...you will pay at the door. The All-City Team (top ten finishers) and Team Spirit Award winners will be recognized at this Pizza Party.

UPCOMING EVENTS
October 12th (Sat) - Team Practice at Memorial - 8:00am
October 16th (Wed) - Light of Life Walk - 6:00 - 6:45pm (bring $5 donation for Cancer Research)
***This is a required team event --> family members are welcome to join in this homecoming week event

Big Eight Split Meet - 4th Place

The Madison Memorial boys cross country squad returned to Yahara CC Course for competition in the Big Eight Split Meet. This meet is used by our team as a workout for some athletes and an opportunity for other JV athletes to step up and be our top runners. It is a difficult meet coming off a Saturday race but our team handled the challenge very well. Even though we only had a handful of PRs this meet served its purpose of getting in a tough effort and preparing us for upcoming meets. As we get ready for our stretch run (JV has 3 meets remaining) it is important we take every opportunity to improve.

John H and Marcus F led our team tonight. The seniors were followed by freshman Jonas B and sophomore Trevor R. Casey GT, Gabe B, and Will B finished close together to round out our top 7 runners. Our PRs on the night came from Josh L (:12), Razi S (:37), Kevin T (:13), Zaid N (:20), Jacob T (:21), and Nathan We (:36). Great races tonight and great working together.

SPLIT MEET RESULTS
JMM Times & Team Scores

NEXT COMPETITION
Stoughton Invitational - Stoughton HS
Saturday October 5th
Bus Time - 7:30am
9:00 - First Race
9:35 - Boys JV (2012 Results)
10:45 - Boys Varsity (2012 Results)
11:20 - Open 5k Race
12:00 - Awards (Varsity - ind 1-25 & team 1-2 JV - ind 1-15 & team-1)
** We will NOT stop to eat on the way home...bring money for concessions or plan to eat in Madison after returning home**

UPCOMING EVENTS
October 11th - HOST City Meet
October 16th - Light of Life Walk  5:30 - 6:15pm ($5 donation - bring to Casey ASAP) - This is a required team event...family members are welcome to join in this homecoming week event and fundraiser for Cancer Research

Midwest Invite - Frosh/Soph = 2nd, Varsity = 8th, JV = 6th, Middle School = 9th

Great racing today against a lot of tough competition!! Top teams from Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Texas attend the Midwest Invitational and the Madison Memorial Spartans rose to the challenge and performed at a high level on Saturday. Some ranked teams competing at the meet included Madison LaFollette (D1 - #4), Neenah (D1- #10), Verona (D1 - #12), Arrowhead (D1 - #13), LaCrosse Logan (D1 - #14), Wisconsin Lutheran (D2 - #2), Monroe (D2 - #3), Mount Horeb (D2 - #8), Platteville (D2 - # 13), Catholic Memorial (D2 - #16), Darlington (D3 - #2), and Albany (D3 - #10). Our teams came away with hardware from all three races with 5 individuals earning medals and the frosh/soph team winning a trophy. The weather was a bit warm for the end of September but our team managed to still run 26 PRs on the day. This meet sets up our team for a big push in the last month of the season. Stay on top of your homework as progress reports come out soon, take care of your body, and stay healthy for a big finish to the season.

The frosh/soph group of Benton DD, Luke V, Ty B, Gabe B, Jonas B, Trevor R, and Jack Z started the meet off for the team on Saturday. This talented group of young runners attacked the race and ran themselves into a 2nd place finish earning a team trophy. This is our best finish in the frosh/soph race in history in was a great way to start the meet. Benton led the way with 10th place finish while Luke V & Ty B earned medals too with their 14th & 15th finishes. Jonas B had a :22 PR as our 4th runner and Gabe B closed our scoring group with an 18:20 time. If you include Rory S and Zach H who ran in the varsity race it is pretty amazing to think Trevor R was our 8th frosh/soph on the day with his 18:23. This group of runners along with other freshman at 19:00 mark such as Jack Z, Casey GT, and Dominic G can have a big future ahead of them collecting hardware at big and small meets alike. I encourage the 2013 group of freshmen and sophomores to challenge themselves to continue to improve to bigger and better things each season. It will be fun to watch all of them over the next couple seasons.

The varsity group was the second race of the day and we were short handed but were ready to put the "next man in." This group really showed the desire of our team this season. Our 8th place finish at today's meet was our best finish since we took 6th in 2009 and only our 3rd time finishing in the top ten. We beat some ranked teams, some tough teams from our conference, and many quality teams from our sectional. This group continues to PR as Bryce (:07), Brad (:12), and Jake (:09) led the way as our top three runners. Ben B ran an important part in the middle of the race to lead our second group closer to Bryce and will put the last 800 meters on in his next race. Connor GT took advantage of his first varsity race this season to round out our scoring with his season best time. Rory S and Zach H also had great first varsity races of their career and learned important races that they will use not only this season but over the next 2+ years. Our gap of :57 from #1 - #5 needs to come down but our gap between #1 - #2 closing down was a big step for our varsity team. We are looking to get at least 5 if not 7 guys under 17:30 the remainder of our varsity season. Keep working hard and leading this team with strong performances.

The JV group rounded the high school racing portion of the invitational. Our JV group was missing many of our top scorers as they competed in the frosh/soph race and so our team was looking for new faces to step up and fill the void. We had multiple guys run big PRs and step into a JV1 role in today's meet. John H led the squad with his 13th place finish. Austin W (:41) and Trevor W (:32) had big PRs to step up as our 2nd & 3rd finishers (they are sophs also :) Marcus F and Casey GT rounded out our scoring 5 on the day. This lively competition for JV1 spots is going to really help solidify our JV1 and our JV2 squads. We have some big meets coming up and I am excited to see this group of athletes compete at every race we attend. Some other PRs on the day went to Sylvan G (:33), Jack G (:41), Caleb H (:13) joining sub 20 club, Josh L (:14), Nathan W (:38), Phil S (:44), Sam Z (:49), Davis B (:10), Dominic G (:20), Ray G (1:24), Ben K (:19), Zaid N (:30), and Chris X (:52). This group of athletes is down to three weeks of racing left and we hope to see more big PRs in the remaining 4 meets.

MIDWEST INVITE RESULTS
Frosh/Soph
Varsity
JV
Middle School

NEXT COMPETITION
Big 8 Split Meet
Tuesday October 1st
@ Yahara (the Dump)
***Some varsity & JV1 athletes will NOT be competing at this meet....
everyone will be informed Monday at practice if they are or aren't competing...
please communicate with your sons***
Early Release - 2:45pm
Bus Time - 3:00pm
4:45pm - Girls Race
5:30pm - Boys Race (Only one race...with ALL competing athletes)

Smiley Invite - Varsity = 4th JV = 2nd

Some kids slept, others enjoyed an amazing sunrise, but all took the 3 hour bus trip in stride as the JMM Boys Cross Country traveled to Wausau, WI to compete in the Smiley Invitational. The Smiley Invitational is hosted at the American Legion GC (former host of the WIAA State Meet) and is one of the largest and longest running meets in the state of Wisconsin. We get to see some new competition and this year that competition was represented by Stevens Point (#3 in the state), Kimberly (#4), and Eau Claire Memorial (#14 and rising). Our team was really excited to see some new teams and showed the north-central part of the state what Madison Memorial cross country is all about. In the process we enjoyed a beautiful fall day, saw the changing of leave colors, enjoyed our first team Culvers experience, and learned a lot about our teammates during our long bus trips...all in all a great day of cross country.

The varsity team began the competition on the day. We did a much better job this year then in the past of getting ourselves in the race early on and competing right from the gun. As a team we competed great even though we did not all have our best individual performances. As we continue through the season we will look towards having all our members compete at their best on the same day but right now it is good to know that we can help cover each other on days when some teammates are a little off. We continue to look to learn from our racing strategies, improve our times, and close the gap between our 1st - 5th runners. A strength of our team is our ability to find our teammates during the race and help each other out...especially at our 6th & 7th runners as they can beat many teams #4 or 5 runners. Bryce H PR'ed today and led our team throughout the race with his strong 15th place finish. Ben B and James A helped each other to the finish placing 26th & 30th. Brad G (33) and Jacob R (44) closed well at the end of the race and look to continue to close the gap between Bryce and themselves. Sam B, Benton DD, and Ty B (in his first varsity race) rounded out our varsity races they were the 3rd best #6 runner, 2nd best #7 runner, and 3rd best #8 runner out of 26 division 1 teams. The pieces are in place for the remainder of the season and we need to focus on the details to be at our best.

As a coach to me it is no coincidence that the traditional powerhouse teams in the state of Wisconsin such as Stevens Point, Madison West, Neenah, Arrowhead, and Marquette also have great JV programs year in and year out. We have discussed how the depth of our team will make our overall team better and we are beginning to see that success this season. We continue to have both young and veteran talent on the jv team that push the varsity athletes at practice everyday and continue to compete for spots in meets. This had led to us having both a strong varsity and jv program and will continue to build this success in future seasons. Today we gave Stevens Point a run for their money in the jv team competition and let it slip away in the final stretch. I was very impressed how our jv athletes competed and made a really strong move in the second half of the race to give us an opportunity to win the meet. The 3 point margin is the closest we have come to beating this team and we have two weeks to put in the work so that we can compete with them at the Stoughton Invitational. In the mean time we will take on the best shots of Neenah, Arrowhead, & Marquette at the Midwest Invitational. All of this in preperation for getting back to the City & Conference meets to take on Madison West. Our JV team was led by our individual JV Champion Rory S. This gives JMM back to back JV champions at this meet a great tradition starting...who will carry it on next year? Zach H ran a 14 second PR and placed 4th all with only one shoe on as he lost his shoe in the first 1/2 mile of the race. Luke V (:14) and Gabe B (:11) PR'ed and Connor GT ran a great race up front to round out our scoring 5. Joe H and Trevor R kept passing people throughout the race and worked their way into our JV top seven. The supporting cast of JV2 runners were really strong as ten of them ran faster then our 7th best JV guy from last season. We had 16 new PRs run on this difficult course and they were led by Nathan W (:55), Joe H (:35), Ben K (:22), Jacob T (:18), Micahel Y (:18), & Jonas B (:17). IF this group stays healthy and eligible we are looking for big things in the final month of the season.

Important week of the whole season with some of our best workouts and one of our favorite meets at the end of the week. Get ahead on your homework, stay up with your sleep, take care of your legs, and stay healthy. Every Runner, Every Run, Every Day.

SMILEY INVITE RESULTS
Division 1 Overall Varsity (Large School)
Division 1 JV

NEXT COMPETITION
Saturday Sept 28th
Midwest Invitational
@ Blackhawk GC - Janesville
BUS TIME - 6:30am
9:15am - First Race
9:50am - Boys Frosh/Soph (Ty B, Benton DD, Gabe B, Luke V, Trevor R, Jonas B, & Jack Z) (2012 Results)
11:00am - Boys Varsity (Bryce H, Ben B, Brad G, Jacob R, Rory S, Zach H, & Connor GT) (2012 Results)
12:10pm - Boys JV (remainder of the team) (2012 Results)
12:40pm - Middle School Race *** 4th - 8th Graders (see below for more info)*** (2012 Results)
12:55pm - Awards Ceremony (F/S - team = 2 ind = 20, Var - team = 3 ind = 30, JV - ind = 20)
BRING MONEY TO STOP & EAT AT CULVERS

*** 4th - 8th Graders who are sibling of Memorial athletes or attend Memorial feeder schools can compete in a mile cross country race at 12:40pm representing JMM...to be entered in the race, parents must contact Coach Casey (crhopp@hotmail.com) by Wed 9/25 with athletes Name, Gender, Grade in School...(NO cost this year) ...it is the responsibility of each family to provide transportation for their Middle School athlete(s) to and from the meet and to provide their own race day attire***

Big Eight Grade Level Challenge - 3rd Place

The Madison Memorial Boys Cross Country team took on the Big Eight Conference Tuesday night at the Yahara Cross Country Course competing in the annual Grade Level Challenge. This meet is slightly different then most meets we attend as the athletes competed and were scored against kids from their own grade regardless of JV or Varsity. This allows some new kids to run in the front of the race for the first time and others to be counted on for scoring for the team. The team score is based off of the top seven finishers from their grade level finish. To do well in a meet like this you need quality runners in all four races. Tonight the JMM squad rose to that challenge and performed great across all four grade levels. We placed 3rd with 46 points a ways behind LaFollette (26) and West (28) but outdistancing Sun Prairie (75). We scored athletes from the Freshman, Sophomore, and Senior races and all our scorers were 9th place or better. This meet gives us a good insight to where we stand against other Big 8 schools and how we will have a chance to compete with them at the end of the year. Our hope is that the JMM athletes will put in more work, stay healthier, and be eligible to make bigger gains in the next month before we meet back up at the Big Eight Conference Championships.

Before the meet we talked about how it would be hard to PR at tonight's meet because we had just ran on this same course Thursday night and might not see much improvement in five days. Last year when we had these same circumstances we had 15 PRs in the Grade Level meet...this year we had 32 PRs!!! The frosh/soph started us off on the night with a great race setting 22 of those PRs. Many athletes who had just PRed on Tuesday did it again tonight PRing by anywhere from 1 second to over 1 minute and 30 seconds. The sophomores were led by Benton DD as he placed 4th and Rory S who scored for the team with his 9th place finish. The group also had PRs from Gabe B (:13), Trevor R (:10), and Austin W (:02). The freshman were led by Ty B (who joined the sub 18:00 club with a :16 PR) with his 7th place finish. This group had PR's by Matt B (:02), Jonas B (:06) joining the sub 19:00 club, Davis B (1:05), Henry C (:27), Dominic G (:02), Casey GT (:20) joining the sub 19:00 club, Jansen H (:10), Ben K (:44), Nathan K (:19), Chris M (:32), Rory M (:13), Zaid N (:12), Jacob T (:33), Alec W (1:39), Nathan W (:27), and Jack Z (:09). This young group of athletes is exciting to watch race. We look forward to seeing what these kids can not only do the remainder of this season but over the next 2 - 3 years. Keep up the great work and keep pursuing your goals.

The junior/senior race is always very competitive as we seem some of the top runners in the state competing in our conference. Our athletes rose to the challenge and we saw another 10 PRs in this race along with a couple other season bests. The juniors were led by Ben B (:01) who finished 11th in the most difficult race of the meet, as Ben was our second best finisher based off of time but did not score for the team in this meet. The Juniors also saw PRs by Jack G (:09), Justin H (:17), Liam M (:14) joining the sub 19:00 club, and Ben S (:13). In the senior race Bryce H competed very strongly and led the team with his 2nd place finish. He was joined by Jacob R in 7th, Brad G in 8th, and Sam B in 9th as scorers for the team. The seniors had PRs by Will B (:03), Sam R (:05), Sam Sh (1:27), and Sam Sz (:10). These athletes have led us year in and year out and continue to be a strength of our team. We look forward to these athletes making the most of every moment in the coming weeks to get the most of this season.

GRADE LEVEL RESULTS
Team Results

Jr/Sr Race

Seniors Only

Juniors Only

So/Fr Race

Sophomores Only

Freshman Only

UPCOMING EVENTS
FRIDAY - Sept 20th - TEAM PICTURES!!!! (bring both uniform top & bottom)

NEXT COMPETITION
Smiley Invitational 

Saturday September 21st

American Legion GC - Wausau, WI

Bus Time - 5:30am (note...15 minutes earlier!!!...set two alarms)

8:30 am - First Race (Small Schools Divisions)

9:55 am - Girls JV

10:25 am - Girls Varsity

10:55 am - Boys Varsity (2012 overall results & large school results)

11:20 am - Boys JV (2012 results)

11:45 am - Awards (Varsity = 2 teams & 20 individuals, JV = 1 team & 20 individuals)

BRING MONEY - We will stop to eat at Culver's on the way home...we will return to Memorial around 4:30pm

West Invite - Varsity = 4th JV = 3rd

The weather cooperated Thursday night at the West Invitational as the Madison Memorial Spartans looked to improve upon their opening weekend performance in this second meet of the season. Our team competed at a very high level tonight and saw the benefits of this competition with 47 PRs. Our performance of having 10 athletes under 18:00 and 28 athletes under 20:00 shows great depth for this time of season and we look forward to seeing more athletes join their teammates at these milestones. Unfortunately our team also learned a valuable lesson on how every point counts and everyone must compete to the very end. Our JV team tied for second but lost the tie breaker (#6 runner) to Verona ending up third. While our varsity missed out on beating Verona by just 4 points (we beat them by 3 points at the Verona Invite). There are many ways we can make up these points in a race and it is a valuable lesson for us to learn now so we fight for every point the remainder of the season. Overall tonight's performance was a great meet and we look forward to putting in some more positive work at practice in the coming days to build upon this meet.

The JV team started off the meet for the Spartans with a solid performance against West and Verona. This group continues to improve each week and provides energy for our varsity to stay at their best. Today we were led by Mason R, Rory S, and Connor GT who all earned top ten finishes. These guys led the charge on closing the gap to West. On Saturday West had 4 runners before our #1 guy, today they only had 3 runners...on Saturday West's #1 runner was 35 seconds ahead of our #1 guy, today it was only 19 seconds. We learned today that Verona will also be a challenge as they put their 3, 4, & 5 runners right in front of our #4 runner. We will see both of these teams a couple more times before Conference and we are confident we are able to compete with both of these teams. Our scoring runners include Zach H and Ty B at 14th and 15th while Marcus F and Trevor R earned medals by also finishing in the top 20. Some big PRs in today's JV race came from Sylvan G (:58), Giovanni S (1:12), Sam S (:55), Joe H (:46), Justin H (:31), Josh L (:33), Alex V (:44), Nathan Wa (2:11), Grant D (:35), Chris M (:53), Rory S (:52), Austin W (1:27), Sam Z (:31), Jonas B (1:05), Davis B (3:01), Alex B (3:18), Henry C (1:47), Dominic G (:35), Jared G (:54), Casey GT (:37), Jansen H (2:24), Ben K (:50), Nathan K (1:51), Chris M (2:46), Rory M (1:44), Jacob T (1:06), Alec W (1:26), Nathan We (2:00), and Jack Z (:33). The sky is the limit for this group. Keep your goals lofty and work hard to reach them.

The varsity ran a great race today against some stiff competition. West (ranked #1 in division 1) was first and Monroe (ranked #4 in division 2) finished second. We lost a close battle with Verona and feel like our teams are very equal at this time. The work we do in the coming weeks will make a difference on if we stay equal or pull ahead of Verona. The varsity was led by James A and Bryce H who both broke 17:00 for the 1st time this season earning top 10 finishes. Our second group did a nice job of finishing together, we just need to move this group 10 - 15 seconds closer to James and Bryce. Sam B, Jake R, Ben B, and Brad G finished within 5 seconds of each other going 26, 27, 28, and 29th overall. Benton DD rounded out are varsity seven with his time of 17:50. This is the first time at the West Invite we have had our entire varsity under 18 minutes (we also had 3 JV runners under 18:00). These are great times to be running the fourth week of the season! Over the coming days and weeks we will need to close the gap between our #1 and #5 runners from :41 seconds to less than :30 seconds. It would be great to have 7+ athletes under 17:15 by the end of the season. Today's meet (like all of our meets leading up to Conference, Sectionals, and State) is an opportunity for us to move forward as a team. We will be back at this course on Tuesday and hope to have the same success we saw today against all the Big Eight teams during the Grade Level Challenge. Keep up the great work competing, going to class, taking care of your body, and doing all of the little things so we keep this momentum going strong.

WEST INVITE RESULTS
Boys JV

Boys Varsity

UPCOMING EVENTS

Sept 13th (Fri) and Sept 16th (Mon) - Clothing Handout - Put your name in your new gear

Sept 14th (Sat) - Required Practice - Elver Park 8:00am - 10:00am (Note Venue Change)

Sept 20th (Fri) - Team Pictures - 3:45pm (need uniform top and bottom)

NEXT COMPETITION
Big 8 Grade Level Challenge

Tuesday - September 17th

@ Yahara Cross Country Course (the Dump)

Bus Time - 2:30pm Early Release - 2:15pm (Must have completed Tues Report to compete)

4:30pm - First Race

5:10pm - Boys Frosh/Soph Race (2012 Results)

6:30pm - Boys Junior/Senior Race (2012 Results)

7:15pm - Awards Ceremony (2012 Team Results)

Conference Meet - Time Change

Parents & Athletes-

Looking ahead to the Conference Meet on October 19th

THE TIME SCHEDULE HAS CHANGED...it will now be as follows

9:30am - Girls Varsity
10:00am - Boys Varsity
10:30am - Girls JV1
11:00am - Boys JV1
11:30am - Girls JV2
12:10pm - Boys JV2

Please plan accordingly...THANKS

Verona Invite - Varsity = 3rd JV = 2nd

Great start to the 2013 season! The Madison Memorial boys cross country team was greeted Saturday morning by some unexpected heat and humidity as the temperatures shot through the 80's. The Verona Invitational marked our first competition against teams from our conference, sectional, and the state. We see some very talented teams right away and get to learn where our team stands as we head into the rest of the season. Today's meet was a great performance by our team and sets us up to be very competitive against all the teams in our conference and sectional. We also learned that there are many teams who are going to be just as good as us all year long and we need to continue to improve as a team to stay towards the front of the races. Hopefully we learned a lot from today's meet that we can take into future competitions. Not everyone was happy with their races and that is ok if we make the appropriate changes for the future. We had 18 new PRs on a tough course in hot conditions. I look forward to more PRs as we get some better weather next week.

Our varsity team started the meet off with a very strong 3rd place finish overall in the team competition. We were beat by Madison West (last year's state champions) and Madison LaFollette (last year's state runner ups) but were able to beat four teams who competed at state last season. (Baraboo, Janesville Craig, Aquinas D2, and Mauston D2). We also won close battles with Verona and Middleton who will be strong competition all season. Our varsity was led by Bryce H and James A as both earned top 20 finishes. Brad G and Jacob R had very nice second halves of the race and continued to close the gap up to the top guys as Sam B rounded out our scoring five runners with his top 40 finish. It was nice to see all of our scoring athletes earn medals on the day. Ben B and Benton DD both earned valuable racing experience in their first varsity races this season. Our team score of 127 points and our 3rd place finish are the best we have ever done at the Verona meet. Our athletes in this race really competed hard throughout the entire race and although not everyone was happy with their individual results they all contributed to an amazing team result. We will see both West and LaFollette plenty of times this year and we will look to close the gap on them and widen the gap on the likes of Verona, Baraboo, and Middleton.

The jv team kept the momentum going for the Spartans with a solid 2nd place finish. The jv was led by a mix of youth and experience. Seniors Connor GT and Mason R joined with freshmen Luke V and Ty B and sophomores Rory S, Trevor R, and Gabe B to make up the scoring seven on this day. It took a 19:21 to make our scoring jv team this season which is over 30 seconds better than any season before at this meet. Our depth is a huge strength for us and I look forward to seeing more athletes joining this strong jv group. Madison West ran a solid race against us today and I hope we are able to continue to cut into that group even by Thursday when we race against them again. We will improve over the coming days, weeks, and months if we continue to work hard at practice, keep our goals in our mind, take care of business in the classroom, and rest & stay healthy. Big things are still in our future this season.

VERONA RESULTS
Boys Varsity
Boys JV

Photos Added to the 2013 CC Photo Album (click on link in right margin)

UPCOMING EVENTS
September 8th - Ironman Volunteering 12 - 4pm or 4 - 8pm (Lot 60 on UW Campus)
September 14th - Team Practice - 8:00am @ Elver Park (NOTE CHANGE OF VENUE)
September 20th - Team Pictures

NEXT COMPETITION
West Invite - Thurs Sept 12th
@ Yahara Cross Country Course (The Dump)
Early Release - 1:45pm Bus - 2:00pm
4:00pm - Meet Begins
4:30pm - Boys JV (2012 Results)
5:30pm - Boys Varsity (2012 Results)
6:00pm - Awards (Varsity = 2 teams and 1 - 25 individually, JV = 1 - 20 individually)

Thundercats Win Intrasquad

Saturday brought a close to the first two weeks of practice with our first 5k race of the 2013 season. The team is 80+ athletes strong again this season and we have battled heat & humidity over the last week to improve our overall fitness. The coaches have been very impressed with this team's work ethic and were excited to see how this would convert to racing. Today we found out that we will have a team that can be very competitive this season from top to bottom. It was exciting to see everyone really race at Intrasquad and it will be fun to see the improvement we can make as a team due to the competitive nature of this year's squad. To have a successful season we will need to stay healthy, continue to train hard, work hard in the classroom, and look for every opportunity to improve ourselves and our teammates.

We had a record number of athletes (68) and total competitors (72) finish the race this year. The team battle was very close with the Thundercats team pulling out the victory with a score of 779. They outdistanced the Warhawks (789) and the CORE (803). The battle for varsity was the most competitive we have seen in recent team history. After the first mile there were still 12 athletes in contention for the 7 varsity spots. This led to the fastest time to make our varsity, needing to run a 17:45 to be in the top 7 (to give perspective...the 8th place finish this year would have been 3rd on our varsity last season). Our top 7 from Intrasquad will compete in varsity at the Verona Invitational and include 5 seniors, 1 junior, and 1 sophomore. They include race winner James A (17:08), Bryce H, Brad G, Sam B, Benton DD, Ben B, and Jake R. Our gap between our #1 and #5 runners was an impressive :32. We hope to carry this momentum into next weeks competition.

As we prepare for the start of the school year we will look to balance our school work, training, and sleep schedules. We need to take the time to stretch, ice, eat healthy, and do all the little things. The success of the end of the season will be determined by what we do in the coming days and weeks at practice. Continue to come to practice to perform your best and we will see improvement across all levels.

INTRASQUAD RESULTS
2013 Results & Intrasquad Stat Sheet

UPCOMING EVENTS
Mon Sept 2nd - Captain's Practice @ UW Arboretum - 8:00am
Sun Sept 8th - Ironman Volunteering @ UW Lot 60 - 12:00pm - 4:00pm OR 4:00pm - 8:00pm (optional)

NEXT MEET
Verona Invite - Sat Sept 7th
@ Verona High School
NO BUS - Arrive 7:30am
Meet Begins - 9:00am
Boys Varsity - 9:40am (2012 Results)
Boys JV - 11:00am (2012 Results)
Open 5k - 11:40am
Awards Ceremony - 12:30pm - Varsity =  Top 2 teams and top 40 individuals JV = Top 30 individuals

End of Week 1 News & Notes

It is going to be HOT & HUMID this week...make sure to hydrate all day long so you are ready for afternoon practices...drinking water, juices, and sports drinks are your best options (stay away from caffeine and energy drinks)...bring a water bottle to practice to rehydrate immediately after runs

WEEK TWO PRACTICE SCHEDULE

August 26th (Mon)       8:00 am – JMM (optional)                4:00pm – Pope Farm Park

August 27th (Tues)      8:00 am – JMM (optional)                 4:00pm - JMM

August 28th (Wed)       8:00 am – JMM (optional)                4:00pm - JMM

August 29th (Thurs)    8:00 am – JMM (optional)                 4:00pm - JMM

August 30th (Fri)         8:00 am – JMM (optional)                 4:00pm - JMM   

August 31st (Sat)         8:00am - Intrasquad (click link for more info)   Athletes arrive at 6:45am

                 ***Family Informational Meeting *** (immediately after race)

 WEEK THREE PRACTICE SCHEDULE

September 2nd (Mon)  8:00 am - Captain’s Practice  – UW Arboretum 
September 3rd (Tues)  SCHOOL BEGINS - practice after school 3:45pm – 6:00

Athlete Questionnaire (all athletes need to click & fill out)

REMINDER - Everyone will need a watch this season!!!! Any watch will do but here is coach's recommendation - Timex Ironman

Official Practice Begins Monday August 19th

Athlete Questionnaire (all athletes need to click & fill out)

REMINDER - Everyone will need a watch this season!!!! Any watch will do but here is coach's recommendation - Timex Ironman

WEEK ONE PRACTICE SCHEDULE

August 19th (Mon)       8:00 am – JMM                               4:00pm – Elver (optional)

August 20th (Tues)       8:00 am – JMM                               4:00pm – Elver (optional)

August 21st (Wed)        8:00 am – JMM                               4:00pm – BLITZ @ JMM

August 22nd (Thur)      8:00 am – JMM                               4:00pm – Elver (optional)

August 23rd (Fri)          8:00 am – (Zimmer CC Course)        4:00pm – Elver (optional)

 August 24th (Sat)         8:00am – Hill Farms Pool (we will run…then swim)

WEEK TWO PRACTICE SCHEDULE

August 26th (Mon)       8:00 am – JMM (optional)                4:00pm – Pope Farm Park

August 27th (Tues)      8:00 am – JMM (optional)                 4:00pm - JMM

August 28th (Wed)       8:00 am – JMM (optional)                4:00pm - JMM

August 29th (Thurs)    8:00 am – JMM (optional)                 4:00pm - JMM

August 30th (Fri)         8:00 am – JMM (optional)                 4:00pm - JMM   

August 31st (Sat)         8:00am - Intrasquad            Athletes arrive at 6:45am

                 ***Family Informational Meeting *** (immediately after race)

 WEEK THREE PRACTICE SCHEDULE

September 2nd (Mon)          Captain’s Practice  – UW Arboretum 
September 3rd (Tues)          SCHOOL BEGINS - practice after school 3:45pm – 6:00

Order JMM Cross Country Clothing
Clothing Options - Ordering Website (MMCC13)
Orders Must be Made by Mon August 26th

Upcoming Events

Athlete Questionnaire (all athletes need to click & fill out)

Did you miss the Spartan Sports Kickoff on Aug 1st?

IT IS MANDATORY for parent and athlete!!!
You won't be able to join the team if you have not done this before August 19th

Contact our Athletic Director Mr. Schlitz at jschlitz@madison.k12.wi.us for make up opportunities
Need to turn in some cards you didn't have at the Spartan Sports Kickoff?? Stop in the athletic office at JMM between 8am - 12pm Mon - Thurs

Tuesday August 13th @ 6:00pm (optional)

Fleet Feet 2 mile CC Kickoff - Elver Park
Registration Form (needs parent signature if not yet 18)

Athletes, Parents, &/or Siblings are encouraged to participate!!
Parents interested in volunteering instead of running can contact Matt Anderson (matt@fleetfeetmadison.com)

Saturday August 17th (optional)

Madison Mini-Marathon Volunteering

Sunday August 18th @ 5:00pm (optional)

Captains Potluck - Walnut Grove Park

What: Meet & Greet teammates & families
Learn about training shoe options (Fleet Feet)
Opportunity to ask questions or turn in paperwork
Who:  All boys cross country members and family
What to bring: Bring Your Own Beverages
Bring Your Own Plates, Cups, & Silverware
Bring an item to share for all:
Food to bring by last name:
A - H – Desserts
I - L – Salads (Fruit, Veggie, etc)
M - Z – Main Dish

Monday August 19th @ 8:00am

1st Day of Practice - Lower Team Room

Must have all your paperwork completed and turned in to athletic office to participate

We will run for 30+ minutes on 1st day of practice...have your running shoes and watch
REMINDER - Everyone will need a watch this season!!!! Any watch will do but here is coach's recommendation - Timex Ironman

Order JMM Cross Country Clothing
Clothing Options - Ordering Website (MMCC13)
Orders Must be Made by Mon August 26th

Random Cross Country Handouts

Running Route Maps

Measured&Marked Loop/Route Maps

Nutrition/Health Handout

Meet Preparation Instructions

5k Pacing Chart

2013 Cross Country Season...Just Around the Corner

The start of July means fall sports season is just around the corner. This letter is meant to inform you about the Madison Memorial Boys Cross Country team. To be a part of the Madison Memorial boys cross country team you must be dedicated to working hard in the classroom and at practice. The time and commitment it takes to be a successful student-athlete is what will shape your high school experience. Our program has developed state champions and valedictorians but every boy who joins the team has the opportunity to pursue their own personal goals. To be successful in cross country you need to find a reason why you want to attend practice six days a week and workout for two hours each evening to improve your 5k racing ability. We hope you find that reason to be a part of our team this fall. We also hope this letter motivates you to kick off your training (or keep it going :)), as it is time to start preparing for the 2013 season. The work you put in over the next two months will help build your confidence for the fall and allow you to perform at your best during the cross country season. Getting out and running consistently is vital for being prepared for practice on day one!

Madison Memorial Boys Cross Country is a 9th – 12th grade program that supports all abilities of runners in Varsity, Junior Varsity, and Freshmen levels of competition. This season, the boys cross country team will again be coached by Casey Hopp (11th year), Mark Eames (8th year), and Matt Groose (2nd year). Additionally, senior captains Marcus Fennessy, Bryce Hefty, John Hornacek, and James Arbaje will help lead the team throughout the season.

As you begin to think about the 2013 season, the best way to prepare for the season is to be running this summer. Runs can consist of long runs, hills, hard runs and easy runs. If you want someone to work out with, there is a group of runners who meet for runs at 8:00 a.m. at Madison Memorial HS in the field house parking lot or 4:30 p.m. at Elver Park near the main shelter. The more running you do now; the easier the start of the season will be for you and your body. Starting the first day of practice all runners should be prepared to run for thirty minutes continuously.

Official practice begins Monday, August 19th at 8:00 a.m. We will meet in the lower team room in the Memorial athletics area. Please make sure you have all of your paperwork taken care of BEFORE the first day of practice (to practice DAY ONE you must have clearance from the athletic office --> this can be accomplished at the Spartan Sports Kickoff on August 1^st). Also, we will run on the first day of practice, so bring appropriate workout clothes (shirts, shorts, and socks), a watch, and running shoes with you to practice. If you do not have running shoes yet, I highly recommend Fleet Feet on Old Sauk Rd to help you get setup with your first pair of shoes.

I’m really looking forward to seeing if we can meet our potential this season as a team. We return a very experienced senior class and an impressive group of young runners. The team’s success this season will be contingent upon getting contributions from every member of the team; every teammate must do their part. Other teams from the conference are training; make some time in your schedule, take a teammate with you, and get out running. We look forward to a great year of practices, meets, socials, and all the wonderful experiences of Spartan Cross Country!! YOU will determine whether this season is a good or GREAT season…we hope to see you running soon!!

What Needs To Be Done Before August 19th

1) Fill out Athlete Questionnaire (click HERE and fill out ASAP)
2) Schedule a Physical
3) Parent & Athlete Attend Spartan Sports Kickoff on  August 1st At Madison Memorial 
(this is when you will fill out cautionary statement, physical cards, insurance cards, athletic code verification, pay athletic fees, etc)
4) Begin RUNNING (check out www.madisonmileageclub.blogspot.com for more information)
everyone will run 30 + minutes of continuous running the 1st day of practice

First Day of Practice 

Monday August 19th

8:00am in Lower Team Room

Must have all paperwork completed prior to practice to participate

We will go for a run on the first day of practice...have your running shoes and a watch