Colorado XC Thread 2024

Recruiting in 8th graders from all over the state from your "club" is not turning around a program, I'm sorry.

Not saying Niwot or CM don’t have a great culture… would actually vote Vista as one of the best long term cultured programs in CO. But what Lisa has done in a short time with her crew should be congratulated. Recruited or not… she still has to keep them healthy and progressing both mentally and physically. Not many coaches can take on elite talent and keep it. Excited to watch her program grow over next several years and rank up there with other great names like niwot CM and vista, etc

How many of the Coronado kids come from outside of Colorado Springs?

I can agree with that it is a great program right now and can 100% become a vista, CM, Niwot type program that is great for the long run with a great culture. I am also excited to see it grow and hopefully become like these other greats that we mentioned.

What I am getting at though is she is only applying it to top level talent (which I am not saying isn't impressive) right now, but cross country is about so much more then winning.

There are only 13 boys on the roster, what happened to the rest of the kids that were at coronado that wanted to do cross country, but only run 20-21 minutes for a 5k... those are the kids that need this more then anything because they don't have any other sport. To me it seems like she is pushing them away to only focus on the success of the great athletes she has.

All 3 of the other schools mentioned have rosters many times the size, talent right up to and even better then coronado, but also kids who aren't going to be super successful and just need to be out doing something and chose cross country and it seems as if Coronado is not giving kids that opportunity.

That is my only problem with them right now.

I'm am not sure I do not think any, just part of the point I was saying that recruiting in highschool is not turning a program around.

I am also Not saying kids/parents cannot do that. If that is what they think is best then that is fine and obviously it is working out very well and the kids are becoming very successful and fast. It was just a point to what I was saying.

Looks like no varsity-level freshmen from the feeder program joined Coronado’s team this year.
I wonder if there will be any next year or during the future years

Maybe Coronado only has 13 boys and 14 girls because the demographics are quite different than the more affluent schools mentioned in your comments. Maybe kids are not able to participate in sports due to babysitting younger siblings after school, needing to get a part time job after school or not having carpool home after sports practices and they have to ride the bus home. So, before you throw shade at any program try looking at the big picture.

Do you have first hand knowledge of her discouraging kids from coming out? Because that would not be consistent with what I know of Rainsberger. Her club teams have kids of all levels. My guess is there just aren’t that many kids interested in coming out or are intimidated by the workload. AA has a pretty large program, but most others are fairly small. How many of the twenty or so high schools with 1,000 students or so in and around Colorado Springs field a JV team? What was Coronado like on the boy’s side pre-Rainsberger?

Went back and checked real quick. In 2018, they had 8 kids compete at the Coronado Cougar Classic. You sound like you have sour grapes. Why is beyond me.

In 2012, Coronado's boys were 4A state champs.

Milesplit shows there were at least on the roster that fall.

co.milesplit.com

Colorado High School Boys Rankings | Cross Country 20125000 Meter Run

Link:co.milesplit.com/rankings/events/high-...

Upon Hugill's retirement, Coronado's teams shrunk substantially.

They also had a full team compete the JV championships that year

Exactly they were good then and had 40 they are good now and have 13....

only difference is the coaching

I’m a neutral. Don’t live on the front range. Not affiliated with any 4A school.

I do feel like what’s happening at Coronado is different. Niwot, Mountain Vista, and Cheyenne Mountain’s success came over decades. It started with homegrown talent, and it attracted more talent over time. From an outsider’s perspective, Coronado seems less to have developed talent than acquired it. Obviously, Lisa’s pedigree and club give her a leg up in that department. Coronado shouldn’t be that surprised when there’s some consternation over that. Obviously, it’s easier to build a program when you’re recruiting talent from around the region, rather than developing it from within your district.

But it is what it is. I’m not against anyone in this sport. If you’re kind and collegial with other teams, I will support your success, as long as you’re playing within the rules. I have many years of positive connections with many teams on the front range. I’m open to having that perspective with Coronado, too, regardless of how they come about their success. Just be nice,
people!

The people supporting Coronado on this thread (particularly DeadBilly) could be a bit nicer. That would help. Celebrate your accomplishments all you want! But don’t do it to the detriment of other teams. There are lots of talented people doing great things across the state. Be willing to celebrate the accomplishments of others, not just your own. That’s how you contribute to the state XC community. And that’s how you’ll bring neutrals to your side.

Could be very much that. FM NY has won many consecutive national championships but those rosters were small. Why were they so small? Because the training was just too much for everyone else. Coronado is probably like that too

100% Niwot is chock full of affulent white people. Case in point, they had dozens of parents/ supporters at desert twilight. They are also illegally entered in multiple races. (only one team per school was the rule). They are basically Valor w/o the christianity.

Anytime you have change in leadership of any kind, numbers tend to drop before trending upwards again. People have to “buy into” the program. Case in point, look how Valor’s program grew after Cole Sprout. People follow success. A few yrs of big wins and more kids will want to be part of something great. Building a program like that takes time, especially as mentioned before, in a less affluent area.

Do you think is Dalby from Vista or Christensen from Niwot quit that their program would fold? Asking to understand. Or do you think they have built a program that can withstand their loss? I think Valor had turmoil caused by athletes, that caused a beloved coach to quit and the program to fold.

Thoughts????

probably..depending on how the transition is handled . Just think most people don’t like change