9/1: Cross Country Practice tomorrow and uniforms

XC families-

Just a reminder that our first practice is tomorrow (Tuesday) 5-6 pm, which is a departure from our usual Monday/Wednesday/Saturday schedule (season calendar is on longmeadowtrack.org). We will be at Bliss Park. Middle School will meet near the tennis courts and the asphalt parking lot. Elementary will be in two groups (grades 1-3 and 4-5) between the baseball fields and the playground. 

Elementary will stay in Bliss Park, including our trail in the woods. While we have a sufficient number of coaches, it is not possible to have eyes on every child at every moment while they are in the woods or in the field portion of Bliss Park. Every child needs to find their own pace and that means kids tend to spread out.

Middle School will run in Bliss Park and on streets and sidewalks in Longmeadow. We will explain the courses in advance and athletes should ask questions if they have them. Tomorrow, the middle schoolers will be staying close to Bliss Park.

Everyone should bring a water bottle to every practice–one quart. Also, we recommend bug spray.

For uniforms, we will have them available tomorrow near the tennis courts between 5:45 and 6:15 pm. We will have a couple more dates if you miss it tomorrow. They are $12 and if you have a uniform from last year or from this spring’s track season that fits, you don’t need another one. They’re interchangeable. Please pay by check made out to Longmeadow Parks and Recreation or cash (check preferred).

Coach Alex

P.S. For those of you who may not have received my email from last week, it is re-produced below.

8/27/25 email

First Practice

Our first practice for elementary and middle school is Tuesday, September 2 at 5:00 pm at Bliss Park.  All of our practices and home meets will be at Bliss Park unless otherwise indicated. Please note that our first practice on Tuesday is an exception to our usual schedule of practices on Mondays and Wednesdays. I apologize for the change, especially if you have a conflict on that day. Next Wednesday is a Longmeadow High School XC meet day, and we would be without almost all of our teen coaches. That’s why we are starting on Tuesday.

Season Calendar

The season calendar is up on the longmeadowtrack.org website.  There might be a couple of tweaks, but it is close to final form.  The calendar will be updated with new information as the season goes along.  Remember that our Saturday races at Bliss Park will be open to parents, siblings, and friends.

Team Snap

Everyone should have received an email invitation from TeamSnap. This will be the only group email I will send from this address. All the announcements will be through TeamSnap emails. Here are a couple points about TeamSnap:

*Everyone can add email addresses to their TeamSnap account. 

*The chat function in TeamSnap is not monitored. If you have a question, please email me or your child’s coach.

*The calendar on TeamSnap is not populated. Go to longmeadowtrack.org for the calendar.

Coaching

If you would like to be a volunteer parent coach, please email me at alex@longmeadowtrack.org.  It's great fun, and if you'd like, a way to get a little exercise yourself.  You will be provided the workouts and you'll be with other parent and teen coaches.

Uniforms

We are looking for a volunteer to manage the uniform distribution.  Please email me if you're interested:  alex@longmeadowtrack.org.  Uniforms are black/white singlets (tank tops) and the cost is $12.  If you have one from a prior season, or you got one during Spring track, and it still fits, you're all set.  The uniforms for track and cross country are interchangeable.

Coach Alex