Tag Archives: Running

Nice Weather, Good Luck Studying

Posted on by
Reply

The first truly beautiful day of the year came today, just three days after the biggest snowstorm of the year. Some blame global warming, I just call it luck. Out on the quad between ANW and DMC, two dorm buildings by the gym, students were strewn about with laptops, with laptops and blankets; some tanning, some studying…most tanning. You can’t pass up a beautiful Saturday afternoon in early March.

One fun thing to do at McDaniel when the weather gets nice is run a trail around the golf course. It’s beautiful, the grass smells nice and is a nice soft landing for your knees, and there are plenty of hills. You also cannot overlook the fact that one lap around the course is one mile. In the springtime you can see plenty of students using this trail to get in shape and get outside.

Others who are more desperate to get outside, but can’t take a break from their homework take advantage of the courtyard outside of the library. It provides a nice, quiet study place while still allowing students to enjoy a nice day. There’s also a statue that some have nicknamed “The Pissing Rock” because of the slow trickle of the fountain that is reminiscent of…you guessed it. Anyways it provides a nice tranquil feel to the courtyard and makes it one of the most popular study spots on campus.

Personally, I took a jog on the golf course, worked out in the gym, then tried my luck getting homework done while lounging out on the quad. I was unsuccessful and ended up playing pick up soccer with some of my friends. Either Way, this week has come with a few crazy weather trends and while they haven’t been the most conducive to studying they were certainly great for hanging out and enjoying good company.

Share

Last cross country meet of the season

Posted on by
Reply

Today was our cross country Regionals race at Dickinson’s cross country course in Pennsylvania. The course is notorious for its difficulty in the wooded sections during the middle section, but we had ran it before this season and have done a ton of hill workouts since we started training in August.

For two of our team members, it was their very last cross country race ever. Joy and Kristen are both seniors who have been with our team since freshman year. Joy has aspirations to run marathons when this school year ends! Luckily, we have two more seasons of track to run together before we graduate, so it didn’t feel particularly sad.

Today was also special because I got to run against two of my high school teammates, one who is a sophomore and another who is a freshman. We were all captains of the team during our senior year and still maintain contact. Hannah, who is in her first year of college at Johns Hopkins, won the whole race today! It’s awesome to see her succeed because I remember her very first day of cross country practice when she first joined our high school team.

Though I felt a little apprehensive about racing today because I wasn’t sure if I was mentally ready, the friends I raced with reallly made me glad that I did. From people I’ve met here at McDaniel to those who I ran with back in high school, my running friends are some of the most important in my life, and they keep me coming back to the sport each year.

It’s been a great season, GTXC; I can’t wait for track!

Share

Hashawha Rejuvenation

Posted on by
Reply

“It’s getting to that point in the semester when my eye starts twitching,” my friend Lauren said to me. I felt it too. After a month of classes, cross country practice, and work, our routines for the semester have now become established. Sleep deprivation becomes the norm.

So, we decided to escape routine for a day and run the trails of Hashawha Environmental Center rather than the roads surrounding Westminster, which is what we usually do for cross country practice. In the years that I’ve spent exploring Hashawha, I’ve shared the trails and 380 acre facility with hikers, bikers, birders, picnicking families, dog walkers, fishermen, geocachers, and fellow runners. The best part is that it’s about 10 minutes from campus.

We decided to do a 45 minute run and decided to abandon the wider running trails that we usually favor to explore the upper bike paths that run deeper into the woods. Though we didn’t always know where we were going and I couldn’t pick up GPS signal on my phone, we were able to find a trail marker at least ever half mile or so. A few times we just stopped to admire how the leaves were beginning to change and how far away we felt from Westminster.

Though we weren’t quite sure where we were going while on the Lower Trail, we were too distracted by the wildlife we found and little streams we encountered to get nervous. Thankfully, we ended up finishing the run in perfect timing, and as we stretched I felt rejuvenated, energized, and ready to tackle the tasks waiting at school.

Whether it is through a sport, a club, or simply a walk through town, it’s great to take a break from the daily grind of work, school, and classes to explore the area around campus. Hitting the trails at Hashawha always calms me down and helps me to focus when I get back to campus

Share