Scoutin' Routes: Mendon Ponds West

It has been a few many weeks since I last took the opportunity to scout out any of the routes (the first being Basil Marella Park--our "home course")that the Girls Cross-Country team will be racing on this year, but this afternoon after summer school, I made my way to Mendon Ponds Park. Though I have run many races ranging in distances from 32 (ultra marathon) to 3.1 (5k) at Mendon, and watched my daughter, son and students run races there, too, I had not previously taken first hand walk of the course myself, until today that is. Today I walked one of two high school courses at Mendon Ponds, the Mendon West Course (click map to right to enlarge). Both the course map and verbal directions were plucked form the Monroe County Cross Country website.

The best way to use this walk through is to enlarge the verbal directions posted to the left and follow along with the pictures below. Of course, you'll have to visualize the flags and cones, but despite getting turned around at the "hills," I stayed true to the directions... if not comment below and I'll update accordingly.

Any course at hilly Mendon Ponds is apt to be more challenging than Basil and the West course certainly offers more hills and turns. It would seem to play to a variety of individual runner's strengths: something for those who excel at inclines and a very little something for downhill runners. The course also covers a range of surfaces: packed dirt, small stone, paved roads, grass, and a few tree roots thrown in for good measure. (Of course, surface quality is a huge variable in cross-country as the potential for rain or--brrrr!--snow is always present.)With designations like "Cardiac" and "Coronary" Hill (s), I was expecting something slightly more rigorous, but then again these are high school (and middle school) student-athletes and perhaps the "Directions for course set-up" (posted to the left and right) I used to guide me along the trails may have been tinged with a wee bit of sarcasm.

Above are the directions for the remainder of the course images.

If you happen to spot a miscue or misstep, please feel free to let me know! After a summer of "captain's practices," team practices officially start this coming Friday, and I am looking forward to setting off on my first season as the Varsity Girls Cross-Country coach!