Golden's Mary Fox may have come in at a bit of an advantage, and she only built on that advantage to claim the individual title at the Rampart Foxes and Hounds race. Colorado Track XC file photo by Alan Versaw.
Some things, and some people, simply can't be stopped. Golden has a couple of runners like that.
It doesn't matter if you score this meet in Foxes and Hounds time or in actual elapsed time. Either way, Mary Fox and Alec Hornecker come out at the front of the pack.
The Cottonwood Creek Park has a couple of interesting elements that tend to slow things down a little--those most notable of which is a creek crossing, but there are short little climbs as well--so the times of 19:40 and 16:06 don't really rival season best marks for either, but the wins came with a much longer element of uncertainty that either is accustomed to.
For those unfamiliar with Rampart's Foxes and Hounds format, each team starts their seventh runner when the official meet clock starts. 20 seconds later, the sixth runners start. 20 seconds after that, the fifth, and so on.
It means, among other things, some people who are very used to running in clear air get to deal with a little traffic. And those who've never known the feeling of leading the pack get to enjoy a few moments up at the front.
A little thinking and you come to realize pretty quickly that a tight pack time is favored under this format. The stronger your seventh and sixth runners are, the greater the demands placed on the number ones
Eagle Valley's Jack Neifert made the most of his opportunity in the sun. Holding the lead until very late in the race, Neifert ended up second overall, as only Hornecker would get by him. Even Lamar's vaunted trio of Jake Rogers, Kaleb Crum, and Blake Davis fell a little short of running Neifert down.
Lamar's depth, though, showed up in a big way in the team scoring. The Savages had five of the top ten finishers.
I'm guessing Neifert climbed a step or two on the Eagle Valley ladder as a result of this weekend's effort. At the very least, there should be a fine new edge on his confidence.
For the girls, Fox and St. Mary's ace Hannah McReavy both ran from the last start group to the front of the pack, finishing 1-2 with actual times under 20 minutes.
Making the most of her opportunity was Rampart's Lynzie Kutsner. Kutsner started in the Rampart #4 position with one minute elapsed on the race clock and managed to end up third overall. But, Kutsner was also part of something much bigger as Rampart nailed down five of the first nine finishes, running to an easy team title.
Complete Results in Conventional and Foxes and Hounds Format