THIS IS CROSS COUNTRY BABY! Cold weather is nothing. Excess wind and wetness would be the only challenges, everyone is gonna feel F.I.N.E. at the 4K ;-)
Yes. If it were going to be like it is supposed to be at D3 nationals this weekend (wind chill factor of 5 degrees F and course covered in snow), then it could have a big impact on the race. But I think the temperature itself is probably less important than the hills and possibly the wind to the extent it impacts tactics.
Yep, while the weather may not be ideal for some, the best guys can perform to their max regardless of the elements. It's all part of the sport, and an integral part at that. May the best athlete win.
Even if someone is used to cold/heat/wet in general, it might be the <1% difference between first and second or further behind.
Euro XC under 23 2017 with temperature slightly below freezing (there is a small ditch in the course with a considerable ice sheet. Klosterhalfen (14:51 in the preceding track season) ran "Valby-style" pushing the pace after 3 min. but looked miserable in the cold and was beaten at the end by Reh (15:10 on track). One can also see a 20 sec. margin (in a 6.6 km race, so close to NCAA) between 2 and 3 here, that's A LOT and not gonna happen on saturday...
I was there that day and it was absolutely miserable. It may have been 21 degrees but sure felt like it was right around 0. Then again that was the year a bunch of warm weather boys from Palo alto put on the most dominant performance in modern times at a championship meet.
To the weather point though, I could be misrembering but I feel like the Kenyan runners vastly underperformed that year.
Current conditions in Stillwater are very light snow showers, ending by 11:30am today; measurable precipitation is very low.
Current temperature is 30 degrees; ‘feels like’ temp is 25 degrees. Tomorrow morning’s forecast at 9am is for a temperature of 34 degrees and ‘feels like’ 26 degrees.
Wind gusts are currently 5mph out of the North-NorthWest. This evening, wind will shift to more out of the West, and should be ~9mph tomorrow morning, out of the W-SW.
The athletes should be going out on the course today for pre-race procedural checks, to make any requisite last minute clothing decisions.
Ever been to Sioux Falls in mid-November for NXR Heartland? The forecast for NCAA’s sounds fine. If high school kids can run in 17 degrees, with a windchill likely around zero, and sleet pelting them (i.e. NXR Heartland 2019), then college athletes should be able to manage in better conditions.