University of Richmond Athletics
Inside the Loop with Conor Phelan
11/08/2011 | Cross Country
Editor's Note: Cross country junior Conor Phelan will take some time over the course of the year to share his thoughts and experiences in an ongoing blog that offers readers an inside look into life as a Spider both on and off the course. Below is his most recent entry of the season.
Now is my chance to brag about how wonderful my decision was to come southward to the University of Richmond for college. Here I sit with Chris York and Kyle Ragan in a café in downtown Richmond called the Urban Farmhouse. It is 65 degrees out and the open-aired atmosphere of the café truly lets you relax while getting schoolwork done.
The autumn air flowing through the open windows helps to waft the smell of freshly brewed coffee and bakery goods over to where we sit overlooking the cobblestone streets of Shockoe Slip. The afternoon sun slants down between corporate buildings in the distance and spotlights the bright red and yellow trees lining the streets against the pure blue sky. This is perfect. On my recovery run this morning, I felt tremendous; just one of those days when you remember why you love running so much.
This past week hasn't been too crazy for most of us. After returning from the A-10 Championships, we had this past week to get in a few more solid workouts in preparation for the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships on Saturday. Held in Louisville, Ky., the regional meet is the first time in the season that the men move up from the 8K to the 10K distance. For many of us, myself included, this is the first 10K I will have ever raced, and I must say I am very excited to test myself at this archetypal distance. I had a great time on the trip to Louisville last year and cannot wait to experience it again.
Last week also marked the last section of registration for the freshmen and sophomores on the team. Registration is both a stressful time as well as an exciting time when you start determining which classes you are taking next semester, finding out if any teammates are in your classes and starting to think about planning your lunches, dinners and second workouts around your new class schedule. Sometimes a member of the team ends up getting unlucky with their classes, but so far I haven't heard any horror stories!
Being the blog writer I am, I'm lucky enough to be able to announce that yesterday my little brother, Will, who is a junior in high school, came in 10th place in our highly competitive sectional championship meet back home with a time of 16:31. Will has overcome a lot of adversity this past year in order to continue competing hard all season. I can definitely say that he inspires me to keep focusing and working hard each and every day.
Sometimes it's the little things in life like a great little bro, or a wonderful fall day, that remind me about the utter beauty of cross country running.
Until next week, try to enjoy the weather wherever you might be. I look forward to writing to you after our regional championship.
