Reporting From The ECAC Championships

I'm writing from a hotel somewhere in Rhode Island. We have the ECAC Championships tomorrow, a meet that is part of our postseason every year. We have two postseason races per season, and we try to peak for next weekend's Atlantic Regional Championships, a race that decides who qualifies for the NCAA National Championships. ECACs serves as our last tune-up before the big dance, and after a weekend off, it's important for us to remember how to race smart, going into Regionals. We usually travel to races the morning before, but the importance of the meet, combined with its distance from Vassar, made leaving this morning a wise choice. We got a chance to see the course in a low-stress environment, giving us enough time to become more familiar with the course layout, the firmness of the ground, and any potential trouble spots in footing or course design. We've never raced here before, and the more knowledge about the course we can use in tomorrow's race, the better I think we'll perform.

Last season, ECACs were held at Williams, a demanding course with which our team is familiar. The weather also didn't cooperate much, with a very cold morning in the Berkshires making for difficult racing conditions. This year, the weather report looks a little warmer, and the race is only a few minutes away from the coast. I don't think the times are going to be particularly impressive compared to other courses, nor do I know precisely which teams will show up tomorrow, but I do know that historically, a lot of great teams from New England and the Mid-Atlantic have come to this race. I also know that last year, our men finished 9th in the field, and our women came in 10th. Compared to teams of years past, both the men and women have turned in some of the best cumulative times in Vassar history at a number of races this year. I think we're poised to continue that trend, and best our results from last year and beyond.