Tag Archives: cross country

50 Years of Running: Time to fly

Posted on February 8, 2022 by Christopher Cudworth

Heading into the month of September 1983, I looked at the schedule and planned a three-week period of quality training to prepare for races. First I drove up to Luther College to have a go during the Intrasquad race. “Gonna … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Take Nothing For Granted

Posted on December 4, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

After team members circulated rumors about feeling “burnout,” our coach Kent Finanager turned on the motivational jets. What coach wants to hear their runners bitching and whining their way into failure? The season was already marked by success. But it … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Petrified into silence

Posted on December 3, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Coming off our narrow 28-29 dual meet win over LaCrosse, our team traveled east across Wisconsin to compete in the Carthage Invitational at Petrifying Springs State Park in Kenosha. We’d always performed well in that meet, and our pack was … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: A New Me

Posted on November 29, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

My parents both drove back with me to Luther College in the fall of 1978. We took the back roads through southwestern Wisconsin to enjoy the scenery, stopping at times to get out and stretch while gazing at the hazy … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: First steps to clarity

Posted on November 26, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Coming off the two semesters that my friends called “Cud’s weird year,” I arrived home at the farmhouse where our family lived for a year and took a hard look in the mirror. My hair was so thick and long … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: First, a flight. Then I woke up dead.

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Following a successful conference meet, our team earned a trip to Nationals out in Boston, Massachusetts. We’d swept the top five spots at the IIAC race and our coach Kent Finanger followed through on getting us an entry to the … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: A Perfect Score for the Ages

Posted on October 28, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

The 1975 season saw plenty of jostling among the top ten runners to remain in the Top 7. Everyone had their ups and downs, but one runner in particular, my roommate Keith Ellingson, started coming into his own. At a … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: JV and The Dedicated Crew

Posted on October 27, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

Those first few weeks of cross country competition as a freshman in college always features ups and down. At our most important early season meet, the Luther All-American Invite, I ran a credible 21:23 four-mile on the rolling home course. … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Logging miles, swapping tales

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

The hours spent running with twenty-four guys proved to be great way to get to know people that freshman year in college. While dorm life was a rush of introductions and a socially manic environment by nature, running cross country … Continue reading →

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50 Years of Running: Sweet consolation

Posted on October 19, 2021 by Christopher Cudworth

When indoor track rolled around in the winter of 1974, our track team moved over to an elementary building called Davis School five blocks from the high school. There we engaged in an intense series of proprioceptive exercises under the … Continue reading →

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