State 2017

MN State CC meet! Such a great day in so many ways. It was sweet to see Erika gather the Section 5A representatives for a "team huddle," which the other girls loved. And this NIGHTHAWK TEAM! Thank you to all who spent their Saturday with us--Erika is proud to represent you all, and it meant the world to her and our family to have your support. She ran a season best time (19:27), faster than State last year and arguably her best-ever cross country performance. Her 20th place overall earned her All State honors (top 25) for a second time. We've been in this sport long enough to recognize that things don't always fall into place when you want them to, so it's extra special when they do. Thanks to all who made this experience possible! (Lower left photo by MN Prep Photo/www.mnprepphoto.com)

CC Junior Championships

 "CC Junior" is an annual tradition where Nighthawk team members host younger siblings for a cross country meet of their own. Nighthawks are assigned jobs such as race directors, "golf carts" (run as fast as you can ahead of the racers), "sag wagons" (make sure no one gets lost), timers, chute organizers, snack wranglers, award presenters, and more. Races include the 400m (ages 3-5 only), 800m (anyone age 8 or younger), and the 1600m (anyone age 11 or younger). This year, we had over 25 siblings participating, accompanied by dozens and dozens of cheering fans. Cutest thing ever.

2016 Nighthawk Cross Country Banquet

That's a wrap! The End-of-Season Banquet is a sweet time of celebration for a season well done. Many thanks to the team-moms who made it all so beautiful. This is a family event (130 in attendance, wow) designed to recognize, encourage, and honor each athlete's unique character and contribution to the team. Thanks to all runners for giving us your hearts for a season and to all of the parents, grandparents, and siblings who supported us each step of the way. And best wishes to our seniors--we will miss you!

2nd Annual CC Jr.

The 2nd Annual CC Jr. run was a success! This family event is our way of thanking the younger team-siblings for being our biggest fans. The sibs (20+ of them) enter races of various distances (up to 1 mile) while the Nighthawk runners serve as meet directors, race starters, timers, chute helpers, awards presenters, and more. Thanks to all who participated!

Geezers

Another early-season favorite: the Geezer Chase 2-mile fun run in St. Louis Park. Non-CC runners (parents, siblings, and friends) get a 2-minute head start, and the CC runners chase the "geezers." Brings an entirely new level of motivation! :D Thanks to all for the fun and sportsmanship.

A New Take on Hill Training

Making good on a promise today! They do seem to enjoy sliding down it in the winter more than running up it in the fall. :)

End-of-Season Awards Banquet 2015

A sweet ending to a great season. We had over 100 in attendance--everyone brought their families, which is so representative of our team and the support these kids have. Amazingly there was plenty of food (one of our team-girls made the Nighthawk cakes!), and cleanup was quick with all hands on deck.

The program takes a while, with words of encouragement spoken over each athlete, one at a time, as Participation and Dedication awards are presented. Additional awards include Presidential Volunteer Service, Athlete of the Meet (given for any number of reasons and one of our favorites), Most Improved, MVP, Captains, and Seniors. And now being a Varsity program, we had the exciting privilege of awarding our very first Varsity Letters (pictured, minus a couple boys).

So cool to have all these "firsts." Love this crew. Go Nighthawks!

Cross Country Junior Fun Run

Team siblings come watch and cheer for so many meets, so this was their chance at a race of their own--and this time, the Nighthawks were out there cheering for *them*! Cutest thing ever (e.g., "I have to take off my warmups"). Several of these kids have been working out with a few of the team moms at a local park during regular CC practice on Mondays, so there were some pretty impressive performances out there.

 It was also an opportunity for a few of our high school student-athletes to take on a service project of organizing an event: plan the races (various distances depending on age group, up to one mile), promote the event, take registrations, purchase awards and post-race snacks, enlist their teammates as race-day volunteers...and make sure the course was mowed and marked, the horses in, and the electric fences OFF. ;)

Overall, lots of smiles from kids and spectators alike. Looking forward to having these "juniors" on the team in the future!