BIXC Summer Training for Cross Country 2024, 2nd ed.
BASICS of Pre-Season Summer Conditioning
Highly recommended. Completely optional. Open to 7-12th grade students. Free. A voluntary program of BIXC.
Not sanctioned by BHS nor BISD. Coaches will not be present at all summer practices; workouts will be led by
team captains and leaders.
Participants sign in and check out for safety and communication before leaving.
Pre-season conditioning is important. It takes months of consistent, progressive training to build your strength
and endurance for a 5k competition.
Equipment needed: running shoes, a chrono watch, water bottle, and post-run fueling snack. Recommended -
carry your phone in a spi-belt or pocket in case of an emergency. Need anything? Ask about our gear stash.
Cross country team members can do pre-season conditioning on their own, or with the BIXC summer
conditioning program.
Persons who will be out of town should 1) get their BIXC training plan from a coach, 2) set up a training log
w/coaches, 3) communicate with coaches over the summer.
All participants need to complete this "open gym" waiver and return to a coach, printed out or via email.

Schedule - runs and strength training for all levels
Fri, June 21 - Fri, August 25: Pre-season Foundational Training in parks and trails and some roads.
* In general if your run is >30 minutes, plan on being at the workout an extra 15-30 min.
➔ Mondays
◆ 9:30-10:30 AM* @ Phelps/Hidden Cove ballfields
◆ 6:00 - 8:00 PM @ Woodward track - Run or volunteer for All Comers Track Meets
➔ Tuesdays
◆ 9:30-10:30 AM* @ Woodward grass field.
◆ 1:00-2:00 PM Lifting @ BHS gym
◆ 6:30 - 7:30 PM* @ Woodward grass field
➔ Wednesdays
◆ 9:30-10:30 AM* @ Battle Point ball fields
➔ Thursdays
◆ 1:00-2:00 PM Lifting @ BHS gym
◆ 6:30-7:30 PM* @ Lynwood Center. Meet outside Walt’s Market. Don’t park in front of store.
➔ Fridays
◆ 9:30-10:30 AM* @ Fort Ward boat ramp
➔ Weekends
◆ Team leaders organize hikes, off-island runs, team bonding events. All optional. Also, you
need one full day of complete recovery with no workout!

Mobility/Plyometric Clinics with Erin Chadburn, DPT
➔ Tuesdays, 6:30-7:30 PM on July 23, July 30, August 13, August 20, at Woodward field.
◆ Speciality running clinic for developing efficient running form, resilience and neuromuscular
reactiveness. Subsidized by BIXC. Registration will be $10 per session.
Sunday, August 25 - Midnight Mile, 11:59 pm Details TBA, organized by team captains
Monday, August 26: First day of BHS Cross Country season. Practices M-F, 3:30-5:30pm, thru late Oct/early Nov.

BASICS of the Fall BHS Cross Country Season (August 26 - November 9)
The season Starts Monday, Aug. 26! Practices are Monday-Friday 3:30-5:30pm, at BHS, local parks and trails.
Week 1 - Tuesday, August 27, 6:00-7:00pm Mandatory Team/Parent meeting. Gear ordering, season info,
required by WIAA and BHS. Thursday, August 29 all-team, all-day camp. A mandatory, fun team-building day.
In-season participation is required - not optional. Fall sports start 1 1⁄2 weeks before school begins. The season is
only 10-11 weeks long, depending on qualifying for District and State Championships. See our athletic.net site.
Team Values: Inclusiveness, strong work ethic, challenging training, supportive behavior expectations, and
commitment to both individual and team improvement are expected at all levels of experience and pace.
BHS Cross Country is a “no-cut” sport. Everyone participates, everyone races, everyone is your team. Most XC
meets consist of 2-4 races: boys team, girls team, and sometimes junior varsity/open races. At weekend
invitationals and at Championship meets, the top 7 runners will compete as the varsity team. Depending on the
meet’s structure, the next 7-14 may race as the junior varsity team, and the following runners may have the
opportunity to compete in an open division race. The entire team competes in most meets scheduled.
In-Season Training: Appropriate training is specific and is determined by coaches based on athletes’ health,
running experience, and preseason conditioning. Training groups are with teammates of similar pace, set by
coaches. Recovery runs are often with a different mix of teammates.
Competition: Races are between 2 - 3.1 miles over varying courses of dirt/mud trails, grass, hills, and some
pavement. You can expect 4-5 weekday Olympic League meets culminating in a League Championship, along
with 2, possibly 3 Saturday “invitationals,” and the District and State Championships for qualifying varsity
runners. Participation in meets is part of the team experience and therefore not optional. All team members
eligible to compete in a race are expected to do so as members of BHS Cross Country.
Requirements: Commitment to the BHS and BIXC activities/athletic standards. Able to be physically active 5
days/week and able to run for 30+ minutes. The XC experience is more rewarding with a foundation of
pre-season training. Cross Country is a competitive BHS sport, so regardless of ability and experience, the work
ethic and participant expectations are high for all team members.
TO SIGN-UP for the Bainbridge HIgh School Cross Country team:
1. Register online for BHS fall sports. Registration is open at BHS Athletics: www.bisd303.org/domain/865. The
sports fee of $250 fee can be paid later.Scholarships and payment plans are available. Contact Julie Larson Hugues,
jlarsonhughes@bisd303.org or Sarah Spray, BHS Accounts, sspray@bisd303.org for information.
2. Baseline Concussion test. All athletes must also have a current baseline concussion test on file in the office.
Baseline tests are considered current for two years from the date of the exam. Fall Concussion Baseline Testing is
being scheduled now. Contact Julie Hughes or BHS athletic trainer Amanda Sageser, asageser@bisd303.org.
3. Sports physical is required. All athletes must have a current physical exam on file in the office before turning out
for a team in the official season. Physical exams are considered current for two years from the date of the exam.
4. Get a full iron panel blood test from your health care provider. Low serum ferritin levels are common among
both male and female distance runners, and indicate lowered oxygen-carrying capacity, which causes difficulty
running and other health problems. Improvement takes 1-3 months. It’s helpful to know your healthy serum ferritin
baseline. This is a standard pre-season procedure for collegiate runners. See coaches for more information.
MORE Info:
● Bainbridge High School website > Athletics > Fall Sports > Cross Country
● Facebook: BIXC Parents; BI Cross-Country (“Closed” and “Secret” groups, request to join)
● Instagram: bixctf
● Coaches: Anne Howard (ahoward@bisd303.org), Dana Amore, Rick Peters (rpeters@bisd303.org), Marianne
Lindsey (mlindsey@bisd303.org), Jena Winger (jwinger@bisd303.ord), Ford Eimon (feimon@bisd303.org).

PRE-SEASON Conditioning FAQ’s

Why join in the pre-season training runs?
● Faster. You will be if you train with easy-moderate effort in the off-season. Consistent distance
running/practice improves endurance, physical resilience and mental strength.
● Fun. You’ll meet yet-unknown, wonderful people, you’ll have more fun and challenge while running together,
and you might like the optional team-bonding experiences too.
● Fall. A beautiful time of year to be out running! Runners who improve their fitness by joining summer
training are less prone to injuries and enjoy their racing more during the fall.
● Fear not. Pre-season running groups vary in pace and distance. Start within yourself. Take on more mileage
and faster speed as you improve.
● Flexible. Come as often as you can to the summer organized workouts, and when you can’t, train on your
own, or with family. Coaches will help younset up a plan.
● Friends. Get to know some teammates. Many unexpected friendships are made through BIXC.
● Free.One of the best deals around. Running shoes are the biggest cost. Let us know, we’ve got some extras.
What type of equipment do I need? Quality training/running shoes with less than a season of running (<300 miles)
are your most important and largest training expense. Shorts, t-shirt, sports bra, socks, warm layers depending on
the weather. Some runners opt to purchase cross country spikes for competitions. Shoe scholarships and running
clothes available via our BIXC parent booster club.
What about days when I can’t go to organized training? Coaches will give you a basic plan and a calendar to log
your running miles and all other workouts. You should also keep track of what you do in a personal training journal.
You can log your workouts on paper or online using our google sheets document. Everyone needs to train on their
own sometimes! Everyone is responsible for starting the season ready to go!
What does the BHS XC team look like? 80-90ish people, of all genders, 14-18 years old, with a wide range of abilities
and talents, who develop common team goals and unique personal goals for training and racing.
What’s an Invitational? Large meets that take place on Saturdays. These include more schools across multiple
divisions than we face in our regular season meets. These meets may include relays, underclassmen and/or
JV/Varsity races. Invitationals are an important part of team bonding and are not optional.
What type of training does the Cross Country team do? The team runs on trails, grass, beaches, fields, parks and
open space around Bainbridge Island, reducing but not eliminating running on pavement. Varied training from
endurance/distance runs to strength training on hills to speedwork to mystery fartlek. Challenging runs, including
racing days, are balanced with recovery days. Cross-training is a staple of our program via spinning, pool running,
elliptical, swimming, hiking, strength training, yoga and pilates.
In-season time commitment: Practice 3:30-5:30pm, M-F, 5-6 weekday meets (out of school mid-day), 3-6 Saturday
competitions (including invitationals and championship meets), and a few Saturday workouts for more advanced
runners. For recovery/rebuilding and to avoid injury, burnout, stress and over-fatigue, student-athletes must have
one rest day per week (no workout), should get 8-10 hours of sleep each night, and refuel adequately. For best
results, we highly recommend not concurrently participating in other competitive sports and limiting commitments
to other activities during the short XC season. Team policy limits the total number of planned absences during the
regular season to 4, excluding illness and family emergencies.
How much does it cost to be on the XC team? The BHS season sports fee is $250, to be paid before the first XC meet.
Scholarships and payment plans available via BHS front office. Cost should not prohibit anyone from running XC.
Summer pre-season conditioning is free and no registration required, as it’s not BISD nor BHS affiliated, and not
supervised by coaches at all times.