XC 2026 Athlete Handbook
Willmar Cross Country is a team of athletes and coaches who through hard work and dedication strive for
total formation of the athlete. Each athlete is considered to be an important part of the team.
Participation is open to all students in most meets. Some meets are limited to a set number of
participants and they will be determined by past performances, attendance and the coaches’ discretion.
We will be a team, we will work smart, and we will adopt a progress mindset as we approach racing and
performing.
- Academics: We see academics as the student’s first priority and we will follow the guidelines established by the Willmar High School Academic Eligibility Policy and the MSHSL rules. Students must be passing all of their classes at mid-quarter of quarter 1 to be eligible. If you are NOT cleared by the time the lineup is created, you will not be in the meet.
- MSHSL Rules: All rules established by the MSHSL must be followed.
- School Attendance: Students must be in attendance by the 3rd block/6th hour class to be eligible to participate in practice or meets that day. School sponsored activities are considered class attendance. Students in evening activities are expected to be in all their classes the following day.
- Uniforms: Uniforms will be issued prior to the first meet. Each athlete is expected to take care of their own uniform. Do not wear uniforms to school or practice! Wash with care in cold water and hang dry. If you lose or mistreat your uniform you will be financially responsible. Replacement costs: Uniform tops...$55.00, Bottoms...$40.00.
A uniform consists of:
- Singlet top
- Shorts (compression shorts are often worn underneath the shorts)
- Spikes are available for rent for $10
XC attendance: Practice during school days starts at 3:15pm unless otherwise announced. Practice
starts Monday August 17. Our practice and meet times are all listed on our calendar. Due to MN
weather, this is subject to change, so check the calendar weekly. It is a google sheet, so updates are live.
You are expected to be at practice unless prior arrangements with the coach have been made. If you are
in school you should be at practice. If feeling “under the weather” talk with the coach. If you are behind
in school work make arrangements to get caught up before school, but if after school is the only option,
bring a note and checkout time from that teacher and be at practice no later than 4:15pm. Practices are
Monday-Friday.
Practice expectations:
- Effort
- Proper attitude
Traveling: All athletes are expected to ride the bus to the competition. The ride to the meet is expected
to be relaxed and quiet. The ride home should be without yelling and there should be respect to the
driver, teammates, and coaches at all times. A sign out sheet must be signed by the parent and given to
a coach if the athlete plans to ride home with a parent from the meet. Athletes are only allowed to ride
home with their parent/guardian.
At Meets: Remember that you are part of a team. Your actions reflect on the team as a whole.
Memorize the order of races, rules, and strategies. When not competing: cheer for your teammates,
prepare well, and stay warm. It is important to stay until the end of the meet, participate in the
post-meet huddle, help pick up after the meet and thank the meet workers.
Conflicts: It is the hope of the coaching staff that if an athlete has a conflict that they talk to a coach. If
this cannot resolve the problem then the parent should talk to the coach with their son/daughter. This
discussion must be focused on the athlete and not other participants on the team.
Conduct: It is expected that all team members will conduct themselves in a manner that will reflect
positively on themselves, the coaches, their school, their family, and the community. This applies to
practice and meets.
PREPARING FOR SUCCESS IN XC
The Preparation
Before practice or meets the most important thing you can do is to prepare properly. As with any sport
the preparation should be specific to the activity being performed. In XC we use light jogging and
dynamic drills. The length should be from 10-15 minutes or until the body breaks a sweat. The
preparation is to be taken seriously; this is an important part of training. Here are some benefits of a
proper preparation:
- When muscle is warm and has increased blood flow it is able to contract and relax with greater speed.
- Blood flow is increased due to vessel dilation and muscle movement.
- Increased blood flow carries more oxygen for energy and carries away waste products.
- Warm muscles reduce the risk of injury.
Additional ways to improve your preparation:
- If it is under 70 degrees wear sweats, layer clothes, and use a hat or hood.
- Start your preparation at least 30 minutes prior to race time.
- Wear sweats until the starter says to take them off and put them back on when finished.
- After a race, jog or walk around slowly for a few minutes and eat a snack within 30 minutes of the end of the race. This will speed up recovery time and help ease soreness the next day.
Pre-meet checklist:
- Meet uniform, shoes, sweats, extra socks, and any under garments worn.
- Running shoes, spikes, uniform, and outer garment wear
- Food, water, and or money (sport drink, snack bar, fruit, a sandwich, etc.). Your lunch should be eaten after the meet or at least 2-3 hours before competition.
- Suggested: Extra shirt, Long or short sleeve (wear Willmar)
The Big ‘Little’ Things
- Nutrition
- Water/Gatorade
- Consuming water during the day is important.
- You should use a drinking fountain every time you pass one.
- You should have your water bottle with you during the day and be consuming water on a regular basis.
- If you are adequately hydrated, your pee should be a light yellow color
- It would be good, but not necessary, to have some Gatorade (this is the recommended electrolyte replacement drink) on hand to drink after races and hard workouts.
- This aids in the recovery process.
- Food
- Right type and portions of food
- Red meat
- Complex carbohydrates
- Fruits and vegetables
- Whole grains and cereal, have a favorable sodium to potassium ratio
- Variety, Trace Nutrients come from variety
- Vitamins
- Athletes are stressing their bodies in ways that typical teenagers are not and could benefit from vitamin supplementation.
- Recommended for everyone = Vitamin C or Multi-vitamin (but take them with meals)
- Iron Supplements if necessary
- Adolescent girls are more prone to iron deficiency. The symptoms can ruin a season. I would recommend an iron supplement + orange juice each morning OR evening (stay away from dairy an hour on each side of taking the supplement)
- For more information - check out the Wayzata Girls XC website: https://wayzatagirlscrosscountry.squarespace.com/iron
- Other ideas
- Calcium (bones…99% of calcium is in your bones) sources
- Low fat dairy, dark green leafy veggies, salmon, oats, almonds
- Potassium (helps maintain normal water balance in the body & essential for muscle contraction) sources
- Melons, bananas, sport drinks, pineapples, salmon, whole wheat flour
- Sleep - a 10:00 bedtime can help us beat a lot of teams.
- It is important that each athlete get the proper amount of uninterrupted sleep each night.
- It is important that they are consistent when they get to bed and get up.
- Ideally not varying more than 20 minutes at night and morning is good.
- Most importantly - go to bed at the same time each night.
- Avoid talking on the phone/texting 30 minutes prior to bedtime.
- Avoid drinking fluids 20 minutes prior to bedtime
- Zinc
- Consider having zinc lozenges on hand to take immediately upon noticing a raspy throat or noticing symptoms of upper respiratory problems.
CELEBRATING SUCCESS
Personal Records/Bests: The letters PR stand for PERSONAL RECORD and can also be called a PERSONAL BEST or PB. A PR is
best individual performance to date. PR's also serve as goals, something to lock onto and focus all your
energies towards. In this program we will set goals, achieve them, and then continually adjust to form
new goals. After each competition we will spend the beginning of the next practice celebrating new PR’s.
By knowing your PR and comparing it to others in your event, you can better prepare for the
competition. They give each individual athlete a benchmark to build upon and provide moments to
celebrate regardless of if an athlete “won” or “lost”.
REQUIREMENTS FOR EARNING A LETTER IN XC
- Remain a member in good standing of the team for the entire season (through sections)
- Regular attendance at practice and informing coaches of future absences.
- Meet one of the following requirements:
- Score in a Varsity Meet
- Seniors who have been in Cross Country 4 full years and are contributing members.
- Extraordinary commitment to the sport and to the team
- Run the average time of the 7th runner at state
2026 COACHING STAFF
Head Coach: Kim Shumlansky
Assistant Coaches: Jay Lawton, Erika Dalen, Brian Heinen, Missy Aaker
