While most cross country coaches are runners themselves and York Suburban boys' coach Ron Herman is certainly no exception to the rule.
This included running the difficult Parkview Cross Country Course in Hershey on Wednesday morning before the Trojans went on to win the District 3 Class AA team championship.
"I ran with them most of the way, so I am a bit tired and sore," Herman said. "(The course) is harder this year. It is a killer. The hill at the end it is almost cruel. There is no way anybody who has ever ran cross country has designed this course."
Still, the 19-year coaching veteran prepared his team well and the team rewarded him with a sixth district title over that span.
"We prepared them for this course because we knew it was probably the most difficult course we have experienced," Herman said. "They ran the miles and did the work."
Dallastown's Emily Ballantyne, who placed third in the girls' AAA race agreed with Herman's assessment of the course.
"I think it is a lot harder," she said. "They added in that hill and it is like a total wall. You don't have once you get up it, there is not that much more distance to kick."
At least District 3 runners should be better prepared for the PIAA meet, which is Saturday, November 1 at the same course.
In previous years, the district has held its championships one week before states, unlike other areas that had 10 days between their district meet and states.
Plus, running on the difficult course this week could pay some dividends.
"This year they moved (districts) to Wednesday, which is really helpful," Herman said. "All the other districts used to have 10 days rest before they hit this course. I think this year District 3 will have an advantage because we now have the 10 day rest like the other teams."
It is clearly obvious that it wasn't a XC runner (or even somebody tangentially familiar with XC) that designed that course. Besides 'the wall', which will be treacherous if there is any amount of moisture on the morning of Nov 1, the preceding portion passes a sewage treatment plant. It is not uncommon to see runners vomit *after* a race, but during the District 3 run, runners were hurling when they passed the plant. Not a good thing to do when your next hurdle is 'the wall'.