Meet in Maine!

The Smith cross-country women will be traveling to Maine this weekend to contest the 2011 New England Region Cross-Country Championships. Bowdoin will be hosting the meet, held Saturday, 12 November at 11:00am. Men run after the women at noon.

Come and support us in Brunswick. If you think the meet is too far, think again! There's so much to do!

You may see a moose...

 You could pick some blueberries...

You could buy some maple syrup...

Or even catch a lobster and cook it like fellow Smithie Julia Child!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPcGiLVp9Zw

See you all this weekend!

Runner of the Week AND Fans of the Week!

Runner of the Week: Kristin Peck '12

Who needs a hamstring, anyway?  Senior Kristin Peck takes the Runner of the Week honors for her stoic effort at the NEWMAC championship on Monday.  Undeterred by either the pain or the hulking Ace wrap, she finished third for the team with a time of 21:01.  Kristin is also known for her skills as a James Bond intimidator, Japanese speaker, and the ever-important purveyor of Sophia.

Super Fans Extraordinaire!  

A huge thanks from the cross-country team to Nina Kimball and Justine Brusseau!  Not only did they manage to attend the NEWMAC race in Boston on a Monday afternoon, but they also treated us to a sampling of their fine catering skills.  As all the other NEWMAC teams looked on with longing, these two set up a dinner-picnic for the team, complete with tablecloths (Smith colors!), homemade pesto, pizza, utensils, plates, and even Halloween candy.  Most memorable and still discussed at practice three days later was the rich and delicious HOT hot chocolate.  Talk about a Halloween treat.  Thank you, Nina and Justine!

Smith Places Fourth at NEWMACs!

Clarke cheers as the team takes off at Franklin Park.

Snowstorm, race delay, a surprise Saturday workout, power outage, dorm evacuation....these are not the events that normally precede a championship cross-country race, but there's nothing like New England weather to remind us that cross country is not a sport for those who like predictability.  The championship race finally took place Monday afternoon, October 31, on the muddy, soggy Franklin Park course.  Conditions were not exactly prime for record-breaking times, but this did not stop the rugged Smith runners from  doing just that. They raced to a fourth place finish out of the ten NEWMAC Conference teams.  MIT, Wellesley, and Coast Guard captured first, second, and third respectively.

A few gems from the race:

Sophomore Victoria Dunch raced through the mud to a personal best time of 19:57 and finished 20th overall.

 Senior Hania Thomas-Adams tackled Bear Cage Hill to finish 60th overall.

The Pack: Kristin, fierce wounded warrior (note the intimidating hamstring wrap front and center), Abby, and Katie (about to pass the two Wellesley runners in the background) finished within five seconds of each other.

Courtney passes a runner from Babson en route to her strongest race performance so far this season.

Kylee was back in action for NEWMACs after overcoming a knee injury that kept her cross-training for the first part of the season.  Wounded knee no more!

Katie finds her fifth gear as she races to the finish line.

This picture does no justice to the muddiness of the runners' feet, legs, and backs after the race.

NEWMAC All Conference Team: Caroline Kimball-Katz (left) placed fourteenth place overall to secure a spot on the All Conference team.

Big thanks to Liza for taking all these pictures!

UPDATE

**UPDATE**

NEWMAC CHAMPIONSHIPS

ARE POSTPONED UNTIL

MONDAY, 31 OCTOBER 2011

MEN @ 3P

WOMEN @ 4P

If you are coming to cheer our women on please

drive safely. See you then! 

Smithies Prepare for Battle!

This weekend will see the Smith women battle it out for the NEWMAC Cross-Country Championship crown. Wellesley will be hosting the meet to be held at Franklin Park in Boston. Women begin racing at noon. The Pioneers have their eyes set on the Cadets... err... Midshipwomen... err... Coast Guarders (and not the kind you place on your coffee table, ba'dum chhh). It should be a good, hard fight, but we think we may sink their battleship...err... rescue dinghy?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgDVU934HzA

Meet the Team!

Runners of the Week from the Past Two Weeks: 

Hania Thomas-Adams '12 and Courtney Collins '15

(Photo) Courtney and Hania smile for the camera as Kristin peaks in from behind.

Captain and Senior Hania Thomas-Adams made her first race appearance in three years on Saturday, October 15 at the Seven Sisters Championship! Despite a series of frustrating injuries that have prevented her from running for years, Hania has come to practice every day, completely committed to the sport and her team.  All her work finally paid off.  Not only did she race at Seven Sisters, but she raced well, placing fifth for the team.  All this from workouts done mostly on the elliptical!  Well done, Hania!

Hania passed on the Runner of the Week honors to first year runner Courtney Collins, from Cincinnati, Ohio.  Courtney wowed us all during the infamous "Michigan" workout last Tuesday.  This workout is mentally and physically tough, requiring multiple intervals on the track with very little recovery.  Courtney has always said that she loves running on the track, and now we understand why.  Great work, Courtney!

The team competes at Franklin Park in Boston, MA, this weekend for the NEWMAC Championship.

Smith Makes the New York Times!

Here is a photo of Smithie Julia Chase-Brand '64 at the AAU sanctioned Manchester Road Race.

 
Fifty years ago she defied the social constructs of womanhood and ran the race, though shunned. The New York Times wrote a very eloquent piece about this pioneer of our sport, referring to her as America's first true woman road racer. Check out the awesome article below:


http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/sports/julia-chase-brand-a-leading-pioneer-in-womens-running.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Perhaps she was also a trailblazer in the name department? What do you think Drugan-Eppich, Kimball-Katz, Paulson-Smith and Thomas-Adams?