Cross-country runners experience upward growth at Brevard, NC camp
When it comes to the summer of a Jones County cross-country runner, late July is a time of year that ends with a bit of experience at the higher levels.
Literally. For roughly the 13th year, JCHS crosscountry runners spent a week growing as competitors and more at one of the running camps hosted each year by Brevard College.
This year, some 22 Greyhound and Lady Greyhound runners took part, trading the hot and humid climate of Gray, Georgia, and the cooler temperatures of Brevard, NC, and its elevation of about 2,000 feet above sea level.
“Being able to run up there in the weather is the main thing. The other thing is all the coaches that are there, the counselors are all college runners,” Jones County head cross-country coach Geoff Moore said. “They’re able to see how they do things, the routine, the lifestyle. Being a runner is a lifestyle; it’s not like other sports. If you want to be great at it, you have to do the little things. These are the people who actually live it.”
From being around high-level coaches and runners plus teams from multiple states, there’s plenty of learning by osmosis.
In fact, one anecdote from the week in the mountains perhaps sums up the impact of why last month’s camp is key for the Greyhounds and Lady Greyhounds.
“We had a kid come up to me and said that he was understanding what it takes to be good at this because he had never been around this many runners before,” Moore said. “To have that many kids, that, for them, this is their thing, it can be eye-opening.”
And the camp is hardly an on/off experience once the JCHS cross-country runners get home. As the season goes on, it’s not uncommon to refer back to the lessons learned at camp.
“We have situations come up, and we’ll talk about, ‘What did we learn at camp?’ We kind of review what we talked about because with training, it’s a lifestyle at the higher levels,” Moore said.
