Sioux Falls, SD: Cross Country Mecca of the Galaxy

SIOUX FALLS, SOUTH DAKOTA: Cross Country Mecca of the Galaxy 

You’re probably thinking, “Man, that’s kind of a bold statement.  The galaxy is really big.  I don’t know if this guy knows what he’s talking about.”

Here are a couple pieces of evidence to support the said claim regarding Sioux Falls.

Exhibit A:

Saturday, November 9th: NCAA Division II Central Region Championships at Yankton Trails Park.

Exhibit B:

Sunday, November 10th, Nike Heartland Regional Championships at Yankton Trails Park. 

Okay, so maybe Sioux Falls isn’t the cross country mecca of the entire galaxy.  

But, it’s safe to say as far as the Heartland of America is concerned, Sioux Falls is the place to be if you want to watch some good cross country racing.

In short, let’s just say Sioux Falls is going to be a cross country madhouse this weekend.    

FANS, START YOUR TAPER

Diehard distance running fans: get your rest and start your taper now, because you’re going to have cross country overload with back-to-back days of championship excitement.  

The NCAA II Central Region and the Nike Heartland Regional meet both serve as qualifiers for their respective national championships. 

And as we all know, in the U.S.A., national championships are a big deal.

WHY SHOULD I WATCH THESE MEETS?

Why should you head down to Yankton Trails this weekend?

If you’re one of those crazy, committed cross country fans, you’re going to be at the meet anyway, so you don’t need “a reason”.

But what about those of you out there who are the casual sports fan?   Why should you take time out of your NCAA BCS and NFL action to watch cross country?

To begin with, the NCAA II Central Regional and the Nike Heartland Regional Cross Country Championships are a step-up from your run-of-the-mill regular-season cross country meets.

Not only are these meets directed with first-class precision, but you’re going to be able to watch some crazy talent. 

There will be several high school boys that will run under five-minutes-per-mile for 5,000 meters (3.1 miles) and college guys that can replicate that for 10,000 meters (6.2 miles).  

The girls are fast, too.  The top groups of girls in both races will be averaging well under six minute-mile pace for 5,000 meters in the high school races and 6,000 meters at Saturday’s NCAA meet.

If that doesn’t impress you, then I think you should try a little experiment.   

Set your treadmill at about 10.6-10.9 miles per hour and see if you can hold that pace for a single minute. 

For some of you, this might be the most painful minute of exertion you’ve experienced in quite some time; that’s okay and totally understandable.  But also realize, between gasps for air, that this is the pace the top girls in the high school races will hold for over seventeen minutes.  The college girls will run at this intensity for nearly four miles.  

As for the boys/men’s race-paces, you probably don’t have access a treadmill that goes as fast as the leaders will be running (over 12.0 mph) for the duration of their event.

The athletes that will race in Sioux Falls this weekend are really that good.

ELECTRICITY IN THE ATMOSPHERE

Each of these meets has a certain “finality” to them. 

The Nike Heartland and NCAA Division II Central Regional meets will be the last cross country races of the year for the vast majority of participants with only an elite few advancing to the national championships.

With those kind of stakes at hand, you will be able to feel the electricity in the atmosphere much like Ben Franklin did while flying his kite some 260 odd years ago.   

WHY THIS SPORT IS EXCITING

Unique to cross country is that fact that once the race begins, there are no time-outs to regroup; no chance for coaches to throw in a bench-warmer and no game-time adjustments.   

For teams and athletes to succeed, they have to bring their “A Game” from meter number one. 

Cross country team scores are figured using the sum of places from each team’s first five finishers.  What that really means is that each member of a team is essentially of equal importance.  If your first runner gets passed by five people on the homestretch, it carries the same impact on the team score as if the fourth runner was passed by five runners at the finish. 

This means all members of the team need to be in top form. 

And in all honesty, even 99% of top form usually isn’t good enough, as mathematically, that’s about a ten second drop in performance over a typical cross country race.  If all five scoring runners on a team are at 99% fitness for whatever reason (over training, under training, illness, etc.) then that team probably won’t see the podium.

After the race ends, the real excitement begins.  You may think your team had a good day, but you typically don’t know the true fate for another 20-30 minutes. 

Team scores must first be electronically compiled, then checked, re-checked and then double and triple re-checked again before official announcements regarding team scores are made. 

That’s a lot of hurry-up and waiting, but it adds to the cross country experience, particularly for the teams that are in the podium hunt.

During this time of limbo, especially at these qualifying meets, the individuals vying for national qualifying tickets are no better off as they too must await to see who the qualifiers for the national meet will be. 

In both of the meets this weekend, the Nike Meet and the NCAA DII meet, the top individuals not on teams that qualified for nationals will earn a trip to the northwest later this fall.

Who would have ever thought so much could be packed into a single race!

NIKE HEARTLAND FACTS

The Nike Heartland Championships are one of eight regional championships around the United States that serve as a qualifiers for the Nike National Cross Country Championships, which are held each year in Portland, Oregon.  

The Heartland Region consists of competition between the best teams and individuals from seven states: South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Kansas.

The top two teams out of each region, plus the top five individuals not on those qualifying teams earn their trip to Portland, Oregon to compete with the best cross country talent in America.

2012 Nike Heartland Results

 

NCAA DII CENTRAL REGION FACTS

Via the NCAA Central Region meet, five men’s teams and four women’s teams along with the top three individuals not on a qualifying team will advance to the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships. This year’s nationals meet will be contested in Spokane, Washington on November 23rd.

Teams competing in the Central Region are from the Great American, Mid-America Athletic Association and the Northern Sun Conferences.

2012 Results