Cross Country--The Spectator Sport That Too Many People Don't Know About

When you think of a sport to watch football, basketball, and baseball usually come to mind, right? People typically describe these sports as exciting, intense, and all around entertaining to watch. They have favorite teams or players, fantasy leagues and jerseys--people live for football season.

Personally, I think someone needs to create a fantasy league for cross country. Points could be scored by how many people each runner passes, the amount of time dropped from previous races, place (obviously), and total time. Cross country is just as (or in my biased opinion, more) exciting as any other.

For all of you cross country fans out there, you know what I’m talking about. Standing on the sidelines, fans feel the same adrenaline coursing through their bodies, they feel the same excitement and thrill; some can even feel the pain. Fans scream, yell, jump up and down, and dash from location to location along the course…spectators actually squeeze in a workout while they watch without even knowing, you can’t beat that. 

Cross country is considered a non-contact sport, but in reality, there can be a lot of contact that goes on among runners. It could be anywhere from elbowing to spiking. Runners can trip, get trampled, or fall down a hill in the woods. Anything could happen in a span of 3.1 miles. 

So for all of you out there who have yet experienced a cross country race, you’re missing out. Find one this weekend, pick a runner to root for (if you don’t already know one), and experience the thrill of the sport.

Happy Running (or Spectating)!