After being unable to field a full scoring roster at any meet a year ago, the Altoona cross country team took a big step toward restoring itself this fall, fielding a full boys’ team at every meet and getting consistent performances from the girls’ side as well.

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   The Altoona cross country teams concluded their seasons on Saturday, October 25, at the WIAA Division 2 Sectional Meet at the Skyline Golf Course in Black River Falls.

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   Ryan Hanson finished in 19 minutes and Chait Gaddam crossed eight seconds later to lead the Altoona boys at the Cloverbelt Conference Cross Country Meet at Whispering Pines Golf Course in Cadott on Saturday, October 18. The Railroaders tied for 11th place with Fall Creek at the meet, which featured 81 varsity runners from 15 teams. Eau Claire Regis won the team competition.

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  The Altoona cross country teams continued their improvement, setting numerous personal-best times at two recent area meets.

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   The Altoona cross country teams went up against some of the top competition in western Wisconsin on Thursday, October 2, at Lake Wissota State Park outside Chippewa Falls.

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   Luke Revello placed 18th in a 76-runner field and Chait Gaddam took 21st just three seconds behind as the Altoona boys’ cross country team placed sixth at the Durand Cross Country Invitational on Thursday, September 25.

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Chait Gaddam recorded his best time of the year for 36th place and Luke Revello finished 20 seconds later in 39th for the Altoona cross country team on Tuesday, September 23 at the Mondovi Buffalo Cross Country Invitational at Arboretum Park in Mondovi. Read the rest of this entry »

Above, Chait Gaddam (middle) crosses the water hazard in the boys’ 5,000-meter race at the Altoona High School cross country season opener on Saturday, August 30.

   The Altoona cross country teams opened their season at the Columbus Catholic Labor Day Weekend Invitational at Marshfield’s Wildwood Park on Saturday, August 30.

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   The Altoona cross country program was unable to field a full team at any meet last season, but the Railroaders hope to change that this year, and are still looking for runners who would like to help.

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Just like many of the courses they race on, the 2007 season was not always the smoothest ride for the Altoona cross country team. They underwent a coaching change shortly after the season began, had to battle through a series of injuries, and were never able to field a full varsity team on either the boys’ or the girls’ sides.

But yet, the team was able to overcome those obstacles and finish the season with several strong races and lay a foundation to build on for next year’s team.

“Everybody’s times improved, and that was kind of what I was looking for from the beginning of the season to the end,” said coach Nate Jackson, who replaced Tim Dusick in early September. “I wanted us to be ready and be in peak form by the time we hit the conference meet, and that will be the way we approach it again next year.”

Jackson said the team’s home meet at the Eau Claire City Wells on October 9 was a turning point late in the season.

“I was happy with everybody’s race at the Wells,” he said. “It was a fast course and everybody had incredible times. I think that kind of helped their confidence a little bit, and they went out and realized that they can run those times, and it helped them going into (the conference meet).”

“Kate Gessert put together really great races from then on, and Ryan (Hanson) started to really run some strong races at the end of the year,” he added. “Everybody came around.”

The Railroaders lose just two seniors – Jake Wayne and Katie Hanson – but that leaves just five returning runners coming back in 2008. Jon Vollmer, Ryan Hanson, and Tyler Hinnendael will return on the boys’ side, while the girls return Gessert and Rebecca Weinmeister.

“We didn’t have a huge senior class but we lose two, definitely two hard workers,” said Jackson. “They did a good job kind of pushing everybody along.”

As for next year, Jackson is looking forward to being able to work with the team for a full season.

“After taking over kind of two weeks into it by the time I got around to implementing what I wanted to do, it will be nice to get them from the start of the season,” said Jackson. “They got to know me enough last year – I ran with them every day as their assistant – so they kind of knew what they had in store for them as far as workload. But it was a bit of a challenge, and I look forward to a full year.”

It appears the biggest challenge facing the team next season will again be participation, but there is room for optimism.

“If we can add a few more non-freshmen and bring in a decent freshman class, I think our numbers will be back to fine,” said Jackson. “It’s worth a try… if they’ve run in the past or even if they haven’t, it’s something that you grow to enjoy and you can do your entire life.”

“We do have some talent and if we get everything out of them that I think they have, we have a couple runners who I think can be in contention for at least all conference honors,” Jackson added. “I think we’ll be in decent shape.”