From shivering cold practices to cozy indoor meets, track is always running.
Last year, winter track endured the freezing weather that hit the DMV area. According to senior Captain Andrew Lackey, they had a couple days of subzero temperatures they practiced in.
Due to the frosty conditions, the coaches had to change up the normal routine.
“Our training in extreme temperatures consists of a very short run, followed by a lengthier strength training workout and a stretching period indoors,” said Lackey.
Participants of winter track must buy proper cold weather running gear to prevent both overheating and chills. This gear includes gloves, hats, warm yet breathable pants and long shirts.
“Training during the winter can get pretty cold, we do require long pants for practice each day, and continually encourage athletes to wear appropriate cold weather running clothes,” said coach Chris Pellegrini.
Since running in the cold can cause people more susceptible to illness, wearing the right clothing is something everyone has to worry about when being a part of the winter track program.
“The coaches require us to wear long pants to practice for the entire season because they know how cold it can be, especially while running in high winds,” said Lackey.
On rare occasions, practice is held indoors. The school doesn’t let teams practice outside when ice or rain is present. Indoor practices are usually held in the weight room. Also, winter track meets were always held indoors.
“While we do have a few “Polar Bear” meets outdoors, most of our meets are indoors. This is because when the weather gets too cold, it just isn’t feasible to conduct an all-day meet outside,” said Pellegrini.
Although a few people may enjoy running in the chilly weather, many do not. It’s hard to get used to running in the cold.
“It is annoying having to buy cold weather gear and running in the cold can be inconvenient,” said senior Jacob Levine.
People, who join winter track, unaware of the conditions they would be running in, may end up quitting or stick around for the new experience.
Training in the cold build camarderie because all the runners must deal with the conditions together.
“It makes it a different sport than spring track or cross country, but the cold is part of the experience and once you get used to it, it’s kind of fun,” said Levine.