Week #6 - Tandem Takes the Cup: Badgers Dominate Route 53 Classic!

Similar to the 2024 Virginia State Championships, Gabriel was in a tight pack with 800 meters to go. "You've got to win this duel," Coach Ned shouted as Gabriel rounded the corner and approached the finish line.  At the time, Gabriel was in tenth place. 400 meters later, he had left three runners in his rear view mirror, with his eyes on the next pack. 200 meters to go, he was on their shoulders. As he broke the tape, Gabriel had passed all five runners, placing him fourth overall. Gabriel's time of 18:59 is a nine second PR, and his first time under 19:00! Congratulations, Gabriel!

 

Running all alone as he emerged from the woods, Jack kicked it into another gear. I told him there was a runner close by. I lied. Jack crossed the line well ahead of the field in an impressive time of 17:00 as Route 53 Invitational Champion! For Miles, it was a heck of a birthday! We sang our usual version of Happy Birthday in our morning meeting, there were treats at lunch, and then he casually placed second overall in a time of 17:30, 13 seconds faster than he ran at FUMA on Saturday, despite the fact that he ran the entire race on his own.

 

Finishing in 8th and 9th place respectively, Brendan and Peter worked together and earned impressive times of 19:19. For Brendan, it was both his first appearance in Tandem's Top 5 and also his first Top Ten Finish overall! This is the product of so much hard work, Brendan! Cheers! Next up was the Badger pack of Jack Johnson (20:25), Will (20:37) and Asher (21:25) who finished 13th-15th each earning a podium spot during the awards ceremony!

 

Dropping eight seconds off his previous best, Peter D established a new PR of 21:52! He ran alongside Jude (21:59) who broke the 22:00 mark! With one of the biggest PR's of the day, Alexander's 22:21 is a FIFTY SECOND improvement off his previous best, and his second PR in a row! Alexander is rapidly improving and is in the midst of a special season! He worked closely with John B (22:22.)

 

Nico did it again. He has PRed in every single meet this season! This time, Nico dropped eleven seconds off his time from Saturday, finishing in a speedy time of 22:40! Zeke (22:53) dropped nearly thirty seconds from his FUMA time! Daniel also had a huge PR! His time of 25:10 is a SIXTY FIVE SECOND PR! Congratulations Daniel!

 

Bringing it home for the Badgers were PR Jon Derby (32:35) - a two second PR and Tyler (33:53!)  Congratulations to our Boys Varsity Cross Country team - Route 53 Champions! The Badgers placed 8 runners in the top 15, were all over the podium, and brought home a super cool cup! I am always impressed and proud of the way Tandem competes against these massive public schools: as champions!

 

Focused on her technique, Alice has steadily improved throughout the season. We did a difficult workout on Monday known as Newton's - including hills, sprints and lots of speed play, and something was different about Alice's approach. With quicker leg turnover and her arms pumping, she was clearly poised for a special race. Alice earned a new PR on Saturday at FUMA, and today she smashed it, finishing under 30:00 for the first time and qualifying for GPAC Championships! Alice's time of 29:58 is a PR of ONE MINUTE AND SIX SECONDS! Congratulations, Alice - we'll see you at Darden Towe in late October!

 

The Varsity Girls Cross Country Badgers were quick off the line. Pleasant Grove Park's course begins with a significant incline, and as the runners double back and make their move into the woods, Maeve had already positioned herself among the top runners. Strong and consistent, Maeve emerged ready to make a podium level finish, and passed several runners as her speed increased! Maeve crossed the line in an impressive time of 25:10, placing her 11th overall!

 

The Varsity Girls are led by Seniors, and Claire and Avery continue to lead by example. Today, they consistently moved up throughout the race, getting stronger as the meet went on! These Badgers crossed the line in Tandem: Claire was 16th in 26:42 while Avery took 17th in 26:43! 

 

Dhruvi ran much of the race with this pack of seniors, eventually settling into a pace that is well beyond any race pace she has experienced before. She had a huge PR on Saturday and it is very difficult to do that twice in one week. Tandem had never run today's course, it was hot and had a challenging section in the meadow, but Dhruvi's confidence never wavered. Her new PR of 27:20 is a FIFTY ONE SECOND PR and placed her in the top twenty! Congratulations Dhruvi - we're just getting started!

 

Hot on her tail was Sadie (28:10) who ran a FULL MINUTE faster than she ran at FUMA and Eve (28:35) who earned a TWENTY FIVE SECOND PR and looked super smooth doing it. Well done, Eve, your hard work is paying off! Julia crossed the line in under thirty minutes (29:57) running with Alice!

 

Annie continues to impress. Despite an ankle injury, Annie earned a strong time of 30:45, while Laurel came through in 33:19. Victoria (37:25) ran even more than 5K as she explored extra sections of the beautiful park and Ana finished her first ever 5K in a time of 43:23! Way to go Ana!

 

Congratulations to our Varsity Girls, who continue to compete at a high level, work together, and improve! The Varsity Badgers will also return to action for our second conference meet on Tuesday, September 30 at 4:00/4:30 at Darden Towe. We will have a short ceremony following the awards to celebrate our seniors!  Plan to be there!

It was only a few weeks ago when the Middle School Cross Country team stood in the meadow off at Monticello, toeing the line for a course designed by coach Julia for their first competition of the season. The course was two miles, or 3200 meters. Today, with eight other teams present, the Badgers took the line for a 4000 meter course... and they RAN EVEN FASTER THAN THEY RAN ON A COURSE THAT WAS A HALF MILE SHORTER!

 

Robert (13:53) was a top fifty finisher - and he earned it. Robert was constantly moving up - on the downhills, in the meadow, and certainly at the finish, where he blew by his competition. Robert's time is TWO MINUTES faster than he ran for the shorter course at Monticello, which is truly unbelievable!

 

Hot on his tail, the pack of Clyde (14:51) and Fletcher (14:52) worked together throughout the race. They opened their stride on the downhills and used short quick strides on the inclined portions of the course. If you can believe it, Clyde ran 15:48 at Monticello - giving him a ONE MINUTE SEVEN SECOND PR and on a longer course!  Fletcher ran 17:03 at Monticello - so he earned a PR of NEARLY THREE MINUTES!

 

James was consistent as he came out of the woods and approached the finish line. That said, he changed speeds in the homestretch, earning him a time of 15:29 and a PR of TWO AND A HALF MINUTES (still factoring in that this course is a full half mile longer than what he ran at Monticello!) 

 

Andrew dropped a full THREE MINUTES, finishing in 16:13 (19:06 a few weeks back) and he did it by working closely with Griffin (16:21) who dropped FOUR AND A HALF MINUTES (20:52 at Monticello!) Casey (19:24) was under 20 - after running 22:33 a few weeks back!

 

On the girls side, Eleanor's time of 17:29 earned her a top fifty scoring finish! Running like a seasoned veteran, Eleanor negative split the course (running the second half faster than the first) and finished in an impressive time of 17:29 - a full minute faster than her time at Monticello! Also breaking down were Raquel (19:19) and Juno (19:30) who dropped TWO MINUTES and eleven seconds off their times respectively.  Each runner worked through some discomfort, making the choice to push it on the home stretch!

 

Emma (20:29) dropped over TWO MINUTES off her Monticello time. As she was approaching the finish, I told her that the runner in front of her looked friendly and she should join her. That athlete turned around, waved Emma on, and they finished the race together. Wonderful embodiment of the Cross Country spirit! Hot on her tail was Nora (24:46) and Francesca (26:34) who each improved from their effort at Monticello. Francesca dropped a whopping FIVE MINUTES!

 

Congratulations to our Middle School Runners! The team didn't know they were running an extra half mile - and the results were incredible! Coach Jason remarked on how impressed he was with their effort - it's amazing to run faster for 4000 meters than for 3200! WOW!

 

Coaches Julia, Butch, Lize and Amanda are also incredibly proud of this team and all the work you've put in - as am I! What an amazing day!