Today is the day that elite high school runners have been aiming for since late summer workouts began.
The State Boys and Girls Cross Country Championships are set for Ridges Golf Course in Wisconsin Rapids.
The lakeshore area is well-represented with both Valders boys and girls teams competing in the Division-3 Run this afternoon, along with individual qualifiers across all 3 divisions.
Mikaela Helling of Two Rivers, Allena O’Connell of Reedsville, Brayden Yanda of Roncalli, Jacob Kanzenbach of Manitowoc Lutheran and Mason Gates of Manitowoc Lincoln are all competing today.
This marks the 3rd state appearance for Gates after placing 19th and 9th in two previous experiences.
We asked Mason what his goal is for this weekend.
“Bare minimum I would like to take top 10 in the state,” he said. “I believe I am a top 5 individual in the state.”
His coach, Mike Bubolz, told us that Gates’ goal of a top-5 finish at state is a realistic one.
And, he says the atmosphere awaiting the runners at Wisconsin Rapids is special.
“The amount of spectators and the atmosphere there, I have had it described by former athletes, they felt like they were running through the finish line for 3 miles,” he said. “A lot of rolling hills, and it’s definitely a challenging course, but it’s an honest course. You earn what you get there.”
The first of six races at the Ridges Golf Course begins at noon today.
