It is early in the morning, and the sun is not up yet. The only people up are a handful of people, running five to ten miles through a nearby neighborhood in neon-colored jackets.

They will finish their morning run. Then they will shower and head to class, where they will stay until after school and run some more. It is hard to believe anyone would ever love a routine like this.

The cross country team is a very close-knitted group, and practicing every day draws them ever closer. Working their bodies, they show up continually and keep running, all while maintaining close relationships with their teammates.

“The team is great. We have lots of fun together. A big part of your schedule is cross country, so you want to make sure you have a big set of people that do the same things you do on a daily basis,” sophomore XC member Eric Wells said.

Another part of being on cross country is the meets and invitationals they go to. This upcoming weekend is the A&M meet in College Station. Meets are when the cross country athletes get to experience competing against others and do their very best in new places with other teams. These meets allow them to achieve personal records that they can attempt to break later in the season.

“My goal this season is to try to beat Eric’s time,” fellow sophomore runner Bryce Walker said, “if I can’t do that, I want to improve my personal record and try to make it on to the varsity team.”

The cross country team shows persistence through their hectic work out schedule. Nevertheless, an everyday schedule such as this keeps the runners ready to take the next step in acquiring their goals. One of these would be beating their own PR’s (personal records).

“On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays the team does mileage; sometimes five miles, sometimes ten. Tuesdays and Thursdays are for workouts, which is either sprints or medium-sized distances. Those days are usually the harder days out of them all,” Wells said.

Running at this extreme amount has proven to be a draining activity. However, the cross country team has lots of promising things to offer, such as setting new records, traveling to new places, and, of course, winning races. It is also a great place to make friends.

“My favorite part of being on the team is probably spending pretty much the whole day with the same guys,” junior member Tyler Smalley said, “everyone here is cool, especially the freshmen.”

Another aspect of being on the cross country team is being able to push to the limit. This requires lots of dedication from team members that they are willing to give.

“I think the biggest challenge for me right now is pushing myself and really giving it my all,” junior Kyla Miller said.

Yet another part of being on this team is the weather. On most days in Texas, the temperature is almost too hot to bear.

“One of the challenges I’m facing is the heat of the afternoon sun when we practice,” sophomore Stacy Alvarez said.

Overall, cross country is viewed as a very positive sports team by its members. By spending so much time together, the team grows stronger through support and pushing forward whilst improving together. This allows them to thrive at meets, becoming better and better. Their hard worth ethic helps contribute to the actions of the team, and each member walks away with a different story to tell.

“Oh man, the team is great. I like going to meets, all of us together there. I mean, I spend most of my day with them, so we’re like a family here,” Walker said.