To a non-runner, cross country and track and field are the same sport. To a runner, however, they are night and day. I cannot blame people for not understanding the differences between the two. Most people on campus only see us running around campus or out on the roads, no matter if the leaves are falling, snow is covering the ground, or the flowers are beginning to bloom. Even  my own family often gets the two mixed up. By now I am used to my grandma or my mother asking me during cross country season, “When is your next track meet?” I used to correct them, but it is not worth starting a fight over. The goal of this blog entry is to simply educate readers on the differences between the two.

            First, I will start with the basics. Cross country is a sport that takes place in the fall, roughly from the end of August until mid-November. Race distances differ. In junior high school, the majority of my races were about a mile and a half long. In high school, races for both men and women were 5k in length, or 3.1 miles. College level race distances differ by gender. Men generally run 8k, or around 5 miles. For regional championships, men bump up to the 10k, or 6.2 miles. Females run 5ks for many races, but championship races are often 6k, or around 3.75 miles. Cross country races can vary greatly, depending on the course’s terrain. Some cross country courses I have been on have been as flat as a track. In others, I have had to run up treacherous hills. Some courses take place completely on grass. Others feature rocky terrain, mud, or even some concrete paths. I have even had to run across creeks and streams in cross country races. Some races feature hay barrels that must be jumped over.

            Track and Field takes place from the end of Cross Country season until May. During the winter, track and field competitions take place on indoor tracks. Indoor tracks are 200m in length, or approximately 1/8^th of a mile. Come outdoor season, tracks are twice the length, 400m. Track and field features a great variety of different events, not just track events. The jumping events are long jump, triple jump, high jump, and pole vault. The field events include javelin, shot put, discus, weight throw, and hammer. Track events include races from the 100m dash, all the way up to the 10k, including team relays.

            Scoring differs between cross country and track. In cross country, a team wants to have the lowest score possible, kind of like golf. The first five finishers on a team count for scoring. The next two runners on the team play an important role as well, as they can finish in front of another team’s top five runners, affecting the scoring. For example, if a runner places first overall, the team receives one point. If a runner places 28^th overall, a team receives 28 points. In track, a team must receive the highest score to win. At most large invitational meets, the first eight finishers in each event score. The first place finisher will receive eight points; the second place finisher will receive seven points, and so on.  

            Cross country races often include huge numbers of competitors. I have competed in races with as many as four hundred other runners. Therefore, even placing in the top one hundred is a great achievement. Sometimes it is embarrassing to tell people that I placed 45^th in a race, because they do not understand that 45 out of 300 or 400 is actually a good performance. In a college race against juniors and seniors, I would be ecstatic to place in the top 15% or so.

            While cross country runners all run in one race, track races are separated into heats. At large meets, there can be as many as ten heats of the same event. Heat sheets are issued, with runners listed from fastest to slowest, so people run in heats against competitors of similar ability.

            I have found cross country to be a much more team-oriented sport. Cross country teams are made up of only the distance runners, so the team is a lot tighter knit. Cross country teams spend a lot of time together, so they often become very close. I have made good friends from other events in track, as well, but I do not spend nearly as much time as them. Also, cross country runners have the same interests, as they are all running the same type of race. I have definitely noticed differences between the personalities of distance runners and throwers, for example. Distance runners spend most of their time out on the roads, logging mile after mile. Throwers on the other hand, spend much of their time in the gym, working on their strength, or on the field, perfecting their throwing technique.

            Most distance runners either prefer cross country or track. For me personally, I enjoy aspects of both. I enjoy the team aspect of cross country, but I am better suited to track running. I am better at middle-distance races, such as the 1500m or 3,000m, which require more speed than endurance. Cross country is definitely more of an endurance sport. I easily beat some competitors during track season who ran faster than me in cross country, and vice versa. During a cross country race, you have more time to make up ground. If you go out too slow in an 800m race, you do not have much time to catch back up. In a cross country race, a runner can start out towards the back and slowly make their way to the front of the pack.

            Even though there are many differences between cross country and track and field, the two sports build on each other. The endurance I gain from training over the summer for cross country season carries over to my track performances come winter. The speed I gain in track helps me to outkick other runners at the end of cross country races. Running can be a very repetitive activity, and I welcome the differences between cross country and track. Each sport has much to offer, and I cannot see myself being solely a track runner or a cross country runner. So, next time you are talking to a runner about their competitions, keep in mind the differences between cross country and track. You may just impress them with your knowledge!