News

Hello ORXC fam! We had terrific races last week, with our JH runners winning the Pryor Invitational on Friday. Our boys took the win, and our girls finished 3rd. On Saturday the Varsity team traveled to Joplin to compete in the MSSU Southern Stampede. Our Varsity and JV girls both won the meet, beating out over 30 teams. Our Varsity boys finished 26th, and our JV boys finished 5th against a massive field of over 40 teams. We had some lifetime PRs and lots of medals. Congratulations to Bella Nelson, Ava Cornelius, and Lillith Johnson who all medaled in the Varsity race. Madison Friday, Chloe Matheny, and Gwyneth Collins all earned medals in the JV girls division, and Brady Hugueley and Wilder Collins earned medals in the JV boys division. Runners earning a lifetime PR on a very tough course included Ava Cornelius, Taylor Snyder, Bijoux Milien, and Hannah Toews. It was a fun day other than the sno-cones which might be called slushies at best and really should be called syrup poured over partially crushed ice.

On a sadder note, I would like to share that I am officially resigning from ORXC after this season. I will continue coaching but will no longer be the ORXC Gear Coordinator. I’m not too fond of this imaginary position at the best of times, and by the end of last week, it had caused me to want to jump head-first into a pile of rocks.

We have more gear on the way, including the embroidered warm-up jackets and warm-up pants. Nike is still out of stock on girls’ shorts, and it’s too late to order jerseys now. (It takes three months for those to come in.) We tried to accommodate as many runners as we could with the sizes we had, but nothing angers XC moms more than their athletes wearing big jerseys and tiny pants. Hence, my resignation.

I hope JH gear is in before Claremore next week, but I’m choosing to ignore it and hope it goes away. If you still need to pay for gear the Booster Club QR code is attached.

On a much more fun note, we have two races this week: our JH and JV runners compete on Friday at Claremore, and our HS Varsity top 8 (currently being heavily debated between the coaches via SMS text) compete at Chile Pepper on Saturday morning.

Next week is our annual Owasso Invitational at Mohawk Park. This is shaping up to be a big meet with several schools coming to race. We still need help in the tent, concession stand, and parking. Please click on the link below and get in on the action!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0F4AA8A92FA1FE3-50386238-2024#

We’re looking forward to some cooler temps and the death of the wet bulb this week! Thank you all for coming to support your runners last week and we look forward to seeing everyone on Friday and Saturday. Thank you for all you do and as always…GO RAMS!!!

Week Eight Schedule

https://docs.google.com/document/d/17b2BiSJsu_WP8YtyuMXRWMhxXa3N3bMalYvZxrMhwfQ/edit?usp=sharing

Good afternoon, ORXC Army! It’s another balmy day here in the fake desert of Oklahoma. I love how we are teased with one or two decent days and then fall right back to the sun’s surface. Ugh.

Congrats to our JH squad for an excellent race last week at Choctaw. They will head over to Pryor this week for their next meet, and the HS TEAM will travel to MSSU in Joplin for a big race on Saturday. Our JH and JV runners only have four and a half weeks of the season remaining! Hard to believe.

We will be passing out HS gear this week and, fingers crossed, JH gear next week. Runners must have their gear payment turned in to receive their gear packs. If you need more time, please reach out to a coach. We will work something out. The QR code is attached.

We will also be hosting our next meet, the Owasso Invitational, on October 3rd. We need volunteers to help with medals, water, parking, concessions, and chip recovery. Volunteers get prime parking and to be right in the middle of the action! Please click on the link below if you can help…

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0F4AA8A92FA1FE3-50386238-2024#

Please remind your runners to stay on top of their academics and for our high school TCC students to turn in their grades every Wednesday. We had several athletes on probation this past week.

Also, a constant reminder of the three R’s…REST, REHYDRATE, and REFUEL. When the weather is like this, with high heat and no wind, runners must take care of themselves outside of practice so they can perform at their best during practice.

Lastly, thank you all who have donated snacks and water. This has been, far and away, the best season ever in that regard. It is very much appreciated!

Thank you for your constant support of your kids and the program and as always…GO RAMS!

Weekly Schedule

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pSFDxKB9ZzNbMC2oDdt2qFh_UhJjF-Y0eeSwaWXqfe8/edit?usp=sharing

Weekly Post

https://www.owassostriders.com/post/how-to-maintain-focus-for-high-school-runners

redirecting...

redirecting...

Good evening! First, a huge shoutout to Amber Ashley Hall and Kelly Mangelson for putting together the ORXC Cookout last Friday night. Also, thank you to Coach Parker for cooking all the hamburgers and hot dogs! Another huge shoutout to Jason Ward and the Ward family for bringing Chick-fil-A to the TEAM after the Long Run on Saturday. In the words of the great philosopher Aristotle, “They descended on the chicken like a pack of rabid hyenas.” This week is the start of school… I’m sorry. I needed a moment there. Our HS practices will transition to the afternoons on Monday and Tuesday. We always give them Wednesday off for the last day of summer. JH will not practice this week. They will resume a week from tomorrow, August 19th. As always, when we move to the afternoon, Oklahoma pulls up its boots and kicks us square in the backside with 100-degree temperatures and high humidity.

Ferritin Levels

We have finished Striders, and we are now OFFICIALLY RAMS! I thought this year’s Striders Camp was the best we’ve ever had. Everything seemed to have a nice flow to it, and most of the workouts had really good energy. We’ll continue to make adjustments and improve but this summer was great!

Now that we’ve established a solid base during the summer and, runners have reached their full mileage, it’s time to start incorporating race-pace-type workouts that they haven’t done up to this point. Most of our workouts will resemble those from the summer but with a bit more structure. Everything kicks off with our Newcomer’s Mile (new name) on August 5th. This will serve as a preview of our race-pace workouts and help define the groups you will run with at the beginning of the season and serve as a try-out for our new runners. This is a positive step in preparing everyone to run fast this fall.

Before we go to camp, we have a week off (the fourth week of every cycle) and ORXC Camp. For kids attending camp, we will establish the expectations for the season and have a great time running together and spending time with each other. For kids not attending camp, it’s a chance to rest up after Striders and prepare for the start of ORXC. It’s not a week off…they will still need to run…but the runs are easy and relaxed.

Starting tomorrow, we will have an optional practice from 8:00 – 9:30 for anyone interested. Coach Clark and Coach Parker will be there. I won’t be able to attend as my dad is having surgery, and I will be at the hospital with him. After practice, everyone will go home and then the campers should be back to leave at 1:00. Please park in the front parking lot, and the bus will depart from the Fieldhouse as usual. I have attached an itinerary and a packing list for the trip.

You must have your Physical and Rankone complete to go! Make sure you take care of that today if you haven’t already.

I can’t wait to get things kicked off this week! I love Striders but it’s so nice when we get down to just OUR runners. We can really start to focus on the season and on you all. It’s going to be a FREEMONT season suckas!

Commander Out

Week One Schedule

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rwXL0sxO2AuUWjlNOllx1eXMzGOmbNC0ldA27iTtabw

Workouts

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1o1myosmnZ8zssIFvjqHnsrFXeYK209rTPzSVUPxI-RE/edit?gid=0#gid=0

ORXC Camp Itinerary

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1D0_kvxHDJ9m_tqCppPkDkO_gzROtS7a4DLJEam1bmnE

ORXC Camp Detailed Itinerary

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GTsZ_55FE4xqma6KrqEXnkUisnr9cBzSEWQx1A_mZr0

Good afternoon! There’s not much happening this week but I wanted to send out a little information regarding Striders starting up in a couple of weeks.

I usually only post workouts for ORXC athletes in their Google Classroom but because we have runners from other school districts in the Striders program I will post workouts through SportsYou in addition to Classroom. This week is just maintenance. Runners need to get used to being on their feet and maintaining somewhat of a routine. More importantly, they need to rest and have fun. We spend around 48 weeks of the year training, these three weeks between the end of Track and the start of Striders are intentionally left open-ended with only a suggestion of a workout. Runners can run, swim, bike, play basketball, etc… They need to enjoy being a normal kid for a few weeks! We’ll have plenty of time to get them in top shape before the end of the XC season. Here is the link to this week’s workouts…

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1WBX64qcra0S-h-fChLbObAcAxmIe_p9AL1XXNqk8iZk/edit#gid=0

We have a special deal with Garmin for our runners to get watches. We do a lot of our workouts based on time and Garmin has a great app that uploads the runners’ workouts directly to the coach so we can see how they’re doing. It’s much easier than getting them to fill out training logs. If anyone is interested please email me (blake.collins@owassops.org.) and let me know what you’d like to purchase. I will gather together everyone’s orders and send them to Garmin. Our ORXC/Track Booster Club will pay Garmin and runners need to pay the Booster Club. It’s much easier to do one big order than several small ones…plus we get discounted shipping. Here is the pricing breakdown…

Basic-Level Running Watches:

Forerunner 55

List Price $199.99
Your Price $139.99
Bulk Deals:

10-19 ordered, $129.99 each
20+ ordered, $119.99 each

Forerunner 165 *recommended / popular

List Price $249.99 ($299.99 with music)
Your Price $174.99 ($209.99 with music)

Advanced Level with Training Features:

Forerunner 265 *popular

List Price $449.99
Your Price $314.99

Elite Level with Training Features & Maps:

Forerunner 965

List Price $599.99
Your Price $419.99

*Free shipping on orders $1,500+

(Flat Rate Shipping = $10 or $15 depending on order size)

We highly recommend the Forerunner 165 for high school and college runners. If an athlete wants a watch with additional features and triathlon support, then the Forerunner 265 is great.

Below is a link to a comparison guide for you to look over…

file:///C:/Users/collinsbl/Downloads/Forerunner%20Guide.pdf

If you haven’t signed up for the Striders SportsYou please do. Below is a link to an instructional PDF as well. We will stop posting on the Owasso Track 24 site soon.

file:///C:/Users/collinsbl/Downloads/signup_Owasso_Striders_24%20(3).pdf

Next week I will send more detailed information regarding the first day of Striders practice and information for our first race, The Trail Nut 5k! I’m excited to get started!

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Later bros,

Commander Out

We are officially moving towards Striders and ORXC training now!  After last week’s rest time, we’ll start easing back slowly with some recovery runs just to get their legs moving again.  Another big thing we always do these last few days of school is have the runners start on their Rankone forms.  On Tuesday at practice, we’ll have everyone bring their chromebooks to start that process.  Runners can’t participate in ORXC without completing their Rankone forms and uploading a current physical (taken after April 30th.)  The coaches will walk them through the process.  If they need some information, you might be getting a text.  Any help you can give will be greatly appreciated.  This is a pain every year but if we can get it done now, we don’t have to worry about it when XC starts.

For the last week of school, we’ll have a short practice on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.  We’ll still be done by 2:45.  Semester Testing starts on Thursday with 1-3-5th hours.  We will NOT have practice that day.  Runners can leave to go home as soon as school ends.  On Friday we have 2-4-6th hours.  We’ll have runners coming to the Fieldhouse at 12:40.  We will go for an easy run that day but we’ll be all done with practice by 1:30.  Runners can’t leave early unless they are checked out by a parent.  If runners are exempt from semester tests and want to drive up on their own to run at the Fieldhouse that will be up to you and them.

Striders Camp is now open!  We will start practice on June 10th.  All information including schedules, sign-ups, and the parent/athlete handbook for our summer program can be found at www.owassostriders.com.  Summer training is essential for our cross-country athletes.  It serves as injury prevention, heat acclimatization, and team building for the fall.  We spend time teaching runners all about how to be successful athletes and teammates.  They run together, learn together, and have fun together.  That’s what leads to a great XC season!  I attached a QR code for our Striders SportsYou page so you can stay up to date on any new information.

Thank you all again for an AWESOME Track season and I can’t wait to get started this summer on XC! 

Thank you for everything you do and as always…GO RAMS!  –  Coach Collins

Weekly Schedule 

Monday, May 20th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – Easy Recovery Run

Tuesday, May 21st

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – No Running/Bring Chromebooks – RANKONE Day

Wednesday, May 22nd

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – Easy Recovery Run

Thursday, May 23rd

No practice – Semester Test Day – Even hours

Friday, May 24th

HS Practice –  12:40 – 2:45 pm – Easy Recovery Run – Runners can go home if checked out early by a parent.

Saturday, May 25th

HS Practice –  No Practice

Hot Dang!  State was great!  Our girls kicked things off this past weekend with Sarah Swofford running an early 3200m.  She was followed by the girls 4×800 running a season PR and the second-fastest time in school history leading to a 4th place finish.  Erin Hendrick led off, followed by Taylor Snyder, Stella Jones, and anchored by Bella Nelson.  Those girls looked fantastic!  The boys were up next and ran equally well with a season PR and the second-fastest time in school history for a 3rd place finish.  The boys were led by Sam Hays, followed by Evan Carter, Isaac Krueger, and slamming the door was Dane Janowski.  They beat their State Championship time from last year and missed the school record by only .09 seconds!  Bella defended both her 800m title and 1600m title from last year on Saturday winning going away.  She was half a second from the all-time State record in the 800!  It was an awesome way to finish off the season for sure.

This is one of only two weeks all year we tell the kids to NOT RUN!  They have been training for 21 weeks straight and need a break.  Collegiate and Professional runners take time off.  They need time to reset both mentally and physically.  Our kids are no different.  We’ll have an easy return-to-run schedule posted soon, but they get to be normal teenagers this week.  Wait…normal teenagers is an oxymoron.  They get to be non-running teenagers this week.  There’s no such thing as a “normal teenager.”  Practice will end at 2:45 every day this week.  

Striders Camp is open!  Summer training is CRUCIAL to a successful XC season and training together with teammates helps create the kind of culture we seek in the fall.  Since we started the Striders program twelve years ago, our XC program has grown in leaps and bounds.  It’s not the only reason but Striders certainly plays a huge role in that success.  The website is www.owassostriders.com.   We’d love to have all of our athletes there!

We have our annual end-of-the-season banquet coming up on Wednesday of this week..  The ever-vigilant Kelly Mangelson has put together an RSVP link and another link for volunteers.  Here are those…

Banquet RSVP Link – RSVP no later than Tuesday, May 7

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0F4AA8A92FA1FE3-49219672-2024

Banquet Volunteer Link

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0F4AA8A92FA1FE3-49226486-2024

I have a really hard time finishing up one season before I start looking to the next one.  I think I’ll know I’m done coaching when I don’t get excited for the next season to start.  I am SO EXCITED for Striders and ORXC!  We are going to have an amazing time this summer and I can’t wait to see what these kids are capable of this fall!  It’s CROSS COUNTRY TIME BABY!!!!

Thank you for everything you do and as always…GO RAMS!  –  Coach Collins

Weekly Schedule 

Monday, May 13th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – No Running

Tuesday, May 14th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – No Running

Wednesday, May 15th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – No Running

HS Track Banquet

Thursday, May 16th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – No Running

Friday, May 17th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 pm – No Running

Saturday, May 18th

HS Practice –  No Practice

Congratulations to all of our State Qualifiers!  We have 24 athletes who successfully qualified to compete this Friday and Saturday after great performances yesterday at Regionals!  We had several PR performances including Gabe Baughman in the 3200 and Taylor Snyder in the 800.  Our boys 4×800 (Dane Janowski, Isaac Krueger, Sam Hays, Evan Carter), Bella Nelson, and Dane Janowski were all Regional Champions yesterday.  Isaac Krueger finished right behind Dane in the 800 for second place.  Senior Sarah Swofford qualified for Track State for the first time finishing 3rd in the 3200.  It was a long hot day but our athletes performed well.  Coach Parker will be posting more information regarding State this week.

Our JV runners will finish the training cycle and culminate their season with our annual Mile Day on Thursday.  It’s always a lot of fun and parents are welcome to watch.  On Friday we’ll have a coach at practice to check for those athletes not going to State.  They will be free to go at 2:45.

Striders Camp is open!    We’ll have our annual parent meeting on May 7th at 7:00 pm at the Owasso 8th Grade Center Media Center.  Please try to be there as we’ll answer a lot of questions that night.  Summer training is CRUCIAL to a successful XC season and training together with teammates helps create the kind of culture we seek in the fall.  Since we started the Striders program twelve years ago, our XC program has grown in leaps and bounds.  It’s not the only reason but Striders certainly plays a huge role in that success.  The website is www.owassostriders.com. 

We have our annual end-of-the-season banquet coming up in a few weeks.  The ever-vigilant Kelly Mangelson has put together an RSVP link and another link for volunteers.  Here are those…

Banquet RSVP Link – RSVP no later than Tuesday, May 7

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0F4AA8A92FA1FE3-49219672-2024

Banquet Volunteer Link

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0F4AA8A92FA1FE3-49226486-2024

Lastly, we have Physical Night for the 2024-2025 seasons coming up tomorrow night.  Track and XC are scheduled for 6:00.  The cost is $25.  Athletes will start at the football stadium and they’ll move them through the line from there.  The funds from Physical Night go directly to our athletic training rooms for things like tape, recovery equipment, and Gatorade bottles.  The more money raised on Physical Night the more access our runners will have to the best treatment available.  Plus, it means you don’t have to worry about uploading a physical to Rankone later this summer.  It all stays in-house.  

Thank you for everything you do and as always…GO RAMS!  –  Coach Collins

Weekly Schedule 

Monday, May 6th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 3:30 pm Workout

Physical Night – 6:00 pm at the OHS Football Stadium

Tuesday, May 7th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 3:30 pm Workout

Monthly Booster Club Meeting – 5:00 pm at the Owasso Eighth Grade Media Center

Striders Parent Meeting – 7:00 pm at the Owasso Eighth Grade Media Center

Wednesday, May 8th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 3:30 pm Workout

Thursday, May 9th

HS Practice – 2:00 – 3:30 pm Workout – Mile Day

State Runners leave for OKC

Friday, May 10th

HS Practice –  2:00 – 2:45 – Runners not going to State

State Track Meet – Western Heights, OKC

Saturday, May 11th

No HS Practice

State Track Meet – Western Heights, OKC