The Paly boys’ cross country team is prepared for the rainy season after finishing ninth out of 28 teams in the wet Concordia Classic this Saturday in Portland, Ore.
Senior Josh Newby led the Paly boys on the 5k course, which consisted of three loops around Fernhill Park, finishing 31st in the elite varsity race with a time of 16 minutes, 35 seconds. Senior standout Philip MacQuitty paced teammates to avoid stressing an injured leg, and finished 54th in 17:05.6.
“It was a really fun race,” Newby said.
While Newby personally enjoyed the race, he felt that the Vikings were at a disadvantage since most of the other teams were accustomed to running in the muddy conditions.
“Everyone in Portland was prepared for the conditions,” Newby said. “They had spikes while we had flats.” Spikes on the bottom of racing shoes provided a better grip in the mud than the smooth bottoms of flats.
Senior Peter Wilson, who finished third for Paly and 55th overall in 17:05.8, agreed that Paly faced disadvantages in the race.
“Not having spikes which are legal in Oregon was a disadvantage,” Wilson said. “Not having Phil [MacQuitty] run all-out was also a disadvantage.” In California, cross country runners are not allowed to wear spikes in races.
Wilson was followed closely by senior Ben Sklaroff, who finished 67th in 17:11.7. Not far behind were seniors Henry Jordan (97th overall in 17:37.7) and Alex Voet (109th in 17:50).
While Jordan felt that he could have done a little better, Voet was pleased with this race.
“I felt good about my race,” Voet said. “I think it was my first good race this year.”
Voet also noted that the slippery conditions resulted in several falls as runners fought their way through the muddy course.
“I fell once but got right back up,” Voet said. “Peter [Wilson] fell three times. I kind of knew I was going to fall.”
In the invitational varsity division, senior Varun Kohli finished 65th in 18:05, followed by senior Brian Raftrey (144th in 19:17.5).
As the rainy season approaches, the Vikings know that they already have more experience than most of their competitors. They will race again next Tuesday, Oct. 27, at the Palo Alto City Championships on the Bol Park course at Gunn High School.