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Saturday, September 22, 2012
Miller Woods Workout

MCMINNVILLE, Ore. - With no race on the schedule, the Wildcats headed to Miller Woods for the now infamous “Hill 1981” workout followed by a brutal final climb to “The Bench.” A brief ten minute drive from Linfield, Miller Woods is a 130 acre property with 94 forested acres and 36 acres in pasture and hay land. You can find old growth trees, ponds and streams, great views of the Yamhill Valley, and of course, many miles of running trails. 

Miller Woods: The top of Hill 1981.

“I don’t think there is any other location in the county with trails and scenery that rival Miller Woods,” stated Associate Head Coach Greg Mitchell. “It’s great to be hammering your way up the hills through a tunnel of branches with the morning sun just breaking through the trees and the only sound is the gasping breathing of you and your teammates. It’s a quintessential cross country training ground.”

Revealing the incredibly creative origins of the name "Hill 1981."

The workout involves running a hill circuit on a double-track access road that loops through a heavily forested area of the park. The athletes complete four to nine circuits – depending on gender and fitness – and then finish the workout off with a climb out of the wooded area and up to The Bench, which sits at the apex of a hill at the center of the park. The workout builds physical strength, but perhaps more importantly, tests the mental toughness of the athletes.

Hannah Greider, Katie Skinner, Audrey Lichten and Claire Hann attack The Bench.

“It’s a soul-searching kind of workout,” continued Mitchell. “Only you know what kind of effort you’re putting in. I hope at the end of the day, the athletes will be able to answer the question: ‘What am I made of?’”

“At the Sundodger Invitational, I was thinking of the Bench hill,” stated junior Claire Hann. “I told myself that if I could do that super tough hill in practice, the little uphill in the race should be nothing. It really helped me mentally.”

Linfield Cross Country

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Saturday, September 15, 2012

Linfield women shine at Sundodger

SEATTLE – A pair of top-20 finishes by Hannah Greider and Joe Gladow highlighted Linfield’s appearance at the University of Washington Sundodger Invitational, contested Saturday morning at Lincoln Park.
 
The fourth finisher from the Northwest Conference and the 15th overall, Greider completed the six-kilometer course nearly a minute faster than she did at last year’s invitational, crossing the tape in 22 minutes, 50.75 seconds. “I felt good and we had a big Linfield pack for a lot of the race,” stated Greider. “Every race the confidence on our team grows a bit more.”

Hannah Greider leads teammates Audrey Lichten and Siena Noe early in the race.

Her effort helped the Wildcat women place fourth out of 19 in the team standings, second among squads representing NCAA Division III.
 
Siena Noe was Linfield’s No. 2 runner and the 27th overall runner (23:10.46). Sophomores Brooke Niemann and Audrey Lichten half a second apart in 30th and 31st place, respectively. Niemann clocked a time of 23 minutes, 16.07 seconds to edge Lichten, who dropped 33 seconds off her 2011 race time (23:16.57).
 
Gladow led the Linfield men, finishing 17th out of 236 (25:31.60). Calvin Howell and Frankie Moncada were Linfield’s next-highest finishers. Howell, who was 48th overall, crossed the tape 26:10.31, about 28 seconds faster than he did last season. Moncada, who took 66th in his first time running the Sundodger course, recorded a time of 26 minutes, 23.96 seconds.

Joe Gladow battles to the finish.

As a team, the Wildcat men placed 11th overall out of a 22 team field. “Our men’s team is looking for a fourth and fifth runner to step up,” stated Head Coach Travis Olson. “We’re heading in the right direction and guys are working hard so I think we’ll be a different team come championship time.”

Linfield Cross Country

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Friday, August 31, 2012

Linfield men win over Pios

PORTLAND, Ore. – Linfield’s Joe Gladow outdueled teammate Calvin Howell pulling away over the final two kilometers to win Friday’s season-opening dual meet by eight seconds at Westmoreland Park. “I stuck to my  race plan and started conservatively,” stated Gladow. “I really pushed it from 5k on and it worked out well.”

Calvin Howell and Joe Gladow push the pace.

The Linfield men outdistanced host Lewis & Clark 25-31. The L&C women, last season’s Northwest Conference champions, grabbed the three leading spots to defeat the Wildcat women 18-34.

On the women’s side, though the Pioneers snatched the top two spots, the Wildcats were hot on their heals.  Linfield’s Hannah Greider broke up the Pioneer sweep and the trio of Siena Noe, Brooke Niemann and Audrey Lichten were right behind her. “We raced well against the two-time defending NWC champs,” stated Head Coach Travis Olson.  “They definitely have some talent but we were closer than the final score shows.  It will be interesting to see where we are by the end of the season.”

The Wildcat women pose after the race.

Linfield Cross Country