Christian Schools Cross Country

Having completed the Auckland Home Educators cross country two weeks ago, my eldest children Grace and Alex were delighted to be invited to run in the Auckland Christian Schools Cross Country!

The AHE version

The homeschoolers’ one two weeks ago at Moire Park in Massey was fun. Thankfully the sun was shining and there was a great turnout. My kids enjoyed the muddy, slippery course, and relished the sausage sizzle reward afterwards! Unfortunately there was some confusion over the course, combined with a lack of markers and marshals. Consequently several kids – including Grace – lost their way during the run and were unable to complete their proper course! This caused the affected kids a bit of frustration, but it was partly made up for since they were allowed to run in another race (with a different age group) in order to obtain a time.

It was also a bit tricky to know exactly how well they all did in terms of place, since only the first three kids in each race were awarded a place – without separating kids by years or sex.

All the kids seemed like they did really well, and because of their times both Alex and Grace were asked to run in the Auckland Christian Schools Championship, which includes years 5 – 10.

The Christian Schools version

Yesterday morning was the Auckland Christian Schools championship, held in Alan Wood Reserve, Mt Albert. The course was very well marked with plenty of marshals, and the whole set up was done brilliantly. Just to be sure, we did a walk around the course beforehand, and even without marshals it was mostly very clear. Despite a forecast of showers, the rain held off for the time we were there, and the sun even shined for much of the morning.

Grace and Alex enjoyed the experience and challenge of running with kids from different schools. They had fun cheering on the other kids they knew too. In their races, Grace came in at an admirable 4th place, and Alex managed to come second, earning himself a certificate in the prizegiving!