Hello Macdonald Drive Junior High families,
My name is Antony Luchford and I will be coaching cross country this year. Having taught and coached in Toronto for almost 20 years, I’m accustomed to training throughout the month of September and then competing in races in mid October. That being said, I’m learning that things move quickly here and we are going to literally hit the ground running.
We just received communication from the NLAA that their dates for this year’s Cross Country Running Series are fast approaching. The meets will take place on Saturday, September 17th, Saturday, September 24th, and Saturday, October 1st at Bowring Park. The race distance is just under 2 km (1800 m) for students in Grades 7, 8 and 9 and goes up and down the various hills throughout the park. Any students who enjoy running and would like to join the team are invited to participate.
I will be available to run with any interested students on Thursday, September 15th from 4:30 to 5:30 and right after school on Friday, September 16th from 2:20 to 3:00. We will meet at the school main entrance and take things from there. I will post practices for the following weeks at a later date and try to not conflict with the practices of other sports teams going on.
I recognize that this is short notice and I’ve already expressed to students in our brief meeting today that if they can’t make these practices or the first race or are simply not feeling prepared to run against other students yet, that is fine.
I appreciate your patience and support.
Antony
Macdonald Drive Junior High 