Sept. 19 dawned overcast and gray: perfect weather for running. The men and women’s cross-country teams ran the Meadows at the first-ever Guilford X-C Carnival. “Our team did really well; everyone looked really strong,” said head coach Heidi Pinkerton. “We were competing against some of the top conference teams.”

Nine teams competed in both the men’s and women’s races, three of whom the Quakers compete with in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC). The Bridgewater College squad that placed fifth in the 2008 ODAC tournament took first place in the women’s race while another ODAC team, Washington and Lee placed first in the men’s race.

The Guilford men’s team ranked fifth overall. The top times for Guilford’s eight-kilometer male runners were 28:10 by first-year Richard Rogers, 28:48 by sophomore Derick Kosgei, 30:03 by first-year Ryan Wroblewski, and 30:24 by first-year Andre Arguimbau.

Guilford’s five-kilometer women runner’s times were 28:53 by sophomore Linnea Saby, 28:55 by first-year Tessy Omina, 35:32 by sophomore Ariel Lang, and 38:12 by senior Dana Small.

Top-20 finishes by Guilford’s young runners Rogers and Kosgei and the first-ever hosting of a cross-country meet have contributed to the new era in Guilford cross-country.

The Guilford Carnival showed off Guilford’s way of hosting cross-country meets. Coaches, family members, fans and friends rested under the tents that spanned the first field of the Meadows. Small children tossed Frisbees or jogged with the teams that they supported.

“It was a very good atmosphere; positive, good vibes,” Pinkerton said.

When the race was over, the Guilford coaches asked what the runners thought of the five-mile course.

“I actually really enjoyed it,” St. Andrews Presbyterian College senior Heather Jackson said. “It’s like you’re out on your own doing a trail-run.”

A few runners had some issues navigating the course because of the mud.

“Once you get in the first loop.that was crazy man, I almost fell down a couple times,” said first-year Dwight Jacobs.

“The weather was weird; it had rained the day before so the course was muddy as hell,” said sophomore Palmer Hicks. “It was intense. There’s that turn where you feel like you’re gonna fall off the side of a mountain.”

Overall, Quaker runners were pleased about the race.

“Pretty good first race for me, I really enjoyed it,” said Rogers. “I wanted to at least place in the top 20, and I did, and I’m looking to improve at least a minute for Regionals.”

“It felt good for my first race,” said Wroblewski. “Now I know what I can improve on.”

Pinkerton was also all smiles when the races were over.

“Everything went well,” she said. “No one got lost, so it’s a winner!