Sharon Carter
Cross Country Coordinator
Room Number:
Email:
Meeting dates, times, and location still need to be confirmed with Mrs. Carter.
The BHS Cross Country program represents Bellville High School in long-distance running competitions. Runners develop endurance, pacing, discipline, and teamwork while training for courses that may include grass, hills, trails, and uneven terrain. Follow the team throughout the season for race results, individual progress, and the preparation behind each meet.
- Upcoming meets and schedule changes
- Meet results and team standings
- Individual times and personal records
- District, regional, and state advancement
- Training, conditioning, and race preparation
- Course conditions and race-day challenges
- New runners and emerging team leaders
- Senior recognition and final races
- Awards, honors, and season milestones
- Team activities and community involvement
Covering the Bellville Cross Country Beat
Start Here
- Introduce yourself to Mrs. Carter and explain that you are covering Bellville Cross Country for the BVP Newsroom.
- Ask how she prefers to be contacted and how far in advance interviews, photography, or video coverage should be arranged.
- Request the current boys’ and girls’ schedules, including meets, invitationals, district competition, and postseason events.
- Find out where and when the team practices and whether reporters may attend.
- Ask how official results, individual times, schedule changes, and cancellations will be communicated.
- Request the roster, including each runner’s grade level and team classification.
- Ask when runners and coaches will be available for interviews.
- Check regularly with Mrs. Carter for updates and possible stories.
- Submit possible stories as pitches before beginning full coverage unless your teacher tells you otherwise.
Your Responsibilities
- Check for Cross Country updates at least once each news cycle.
- Track meets, schedule changes, team standings, individual times, and postseason advancement.
- Watch for personal records, close finishes, breakthrough performances, and important team milestones.
- Look beyond finishing places to explain runners’ preparation, pacing, strategy, and improvement.
- Pitch promising stories to the newsroom.
- Arrange interviews, photography, and video coverage in advance.
- Confirm names, distances, times, placements, team scores, records, and advancement before publication.
- Follow up after meets for official results, photographs, reactions, and information about the next competition.
- Include runners’ voices by asking about training, race strategy, course conditions, challenges, and goals.
Important
Cross-country results may include individual times, individual places, team scores, and qualifying positions. Clearly distinguish between a runner’s individual finish, the team’s overall placement, a personal record, and advancement to the next level. Confirm all results with Mrs. Carter or the official meet results before publication.
Courses may include hills, trails, wet ground, traffic crossings, and uneven terrain. Obtain permission before entering the course, remain outside marked competition areas, and do not interfere with runners or meet officials.
A finishing time is only part of the story. Explain how the race developed—the course conditions, pacing decisions, difficult sections, position changes, and final push that helped produce the result.
Reporting Your Bellville Cross Country Stories
Possible Story Ideas
- Season previews for the boys’ and girls’ teams
- Upcoming meets, invitationals, and district competition
- Meet results and team standings
- Runners setting personal records
- District, regional, or state advancement
- A runner returning from an injury or setback
- New runners making an impact
- Seniors competing in their final season
- Difficult courses or unusual weather conditions
- Training routines and preparation for major meets
- Team leadership, traditions, and mentoring
- Awards, honors, scholarships, and college commitments
- Season milestones and championship goals
Signs There May Be A Story
Pay attention when:
- A runner records a new personal-best time
- The team wins or places highly at a meet
- A runner or team qualifies for the next level
- An athlete makes a major improvement during the season
- A newcomer earns a varsity position
- A runner returns after an injury or other setback
- Weather or course conditions significantly affect a race
- A close finish determines an individual or team placement
- A senior reaches an important milestone
- A runner earns an award, honor, or college opportunity
- The team changes its training or race strategy
- An upcoming meet could affect district or postseason advancement
Questions to Ask: The 5 W's and 1 H
You will not necessarily ask every question. Select those that fit your story and ask follow-up questions whenever an answer is unclear or incomplete.
Who was involved?
- Which runners competed?
- Who produced the strongest performances?
- Which runners contributed to the team score?
- Who qualified or advanced?
- Who helped prepare the runners for the meet?
- Who was affected by an injury, absence, or lineup change?
What happened?
- What meet or race took place?
- What distance did the runners compete in?
- What were the individual and team results?
- Did anyone set a personal or school record?
- What was the turning point in the race?
- What challenges did the runners face?
- What happens next?
When did it happen?
- When and what time was the meet?
- When were the official results released?
- When did preparation for this meet begin?
- When is the next competition?
- When will qualifying runners compete again?
Where did it happen?
- Where was the meet held?
- What was the course like?
- Where were the most difficult parts of the course?
- Where did the decisive move or final push occur?
- Where can students find official results or upcoming schedules?
Why does it matter?
- Why was this meet important?
- Why did the team use a particular race strategy?
- Why did a runner’s performance stand out?
- Why were the course or weather conditions challenging?
- Why does the result matter for district standings or advancement?
- Why should students follow or support the team?
How did it happen?
- How did the runners prepare?
- How did the race develop from start to finish?
- How did pacing or positioning affect the outcome?
- How did the course and weather influence the race?
- How was the team score calculated?
- How will the team prepare for its next competition?
People You May Need to Interview
Depending on the story, consider interviewing:
- Cross Country coordinator Sharon Carter
- Boys’ and girls’ team leaders
- Runners who placed or advanced
- Runners who established personal records
- Seniors and returning varsity runners
- New runners making an impact
- Athletes who overcame an injury or setback
- Teammates who contributed to the team score
- Students or families attending the meet
- Other coaches involved in training the runners
Do not interview only the fastest runner. Include teammates whose improvement, leadership, preparation, or scoring contributions help explain the complete story.
What You Need to Collect
Before writing or producing the story, collect:
- Correctly spelled names and grade levels
- The official name, date, and location of the meet
- The race distance and course information
- Official individual times and finishing places
- Verified team scores and standings
- Previous times needed to confirm personal records
- District, regional, or state advancement information
- Important course and weather conditions
- Details about training, pacing, and race strategy
- Useful quotes from Mrs. Carter and participating runners
- Photographs or video of the race, preparation, and finish
- Identification of everyone shown in photographs
- Information about the next meet or postseason round
- The official source that confirmed the results
Before You Leave
Ask yourself:
- Do I have every name spelled correctly?
- Do I know each runner’s grade level?
- Do I have the official meet name, date, and location?
- Did I confirm the race distance?
- Are all times, placements, and team scores official?
- Did I distinguish between an individual finish and the team’s placement?
- Did I verify whether a time was truly a personal or school record?
- Did I confirm who qualified or advanced?
- Do I understand how the course and weather affected the race?
- Can I explain how the race developed—not merely who finished first?
- Did I interview Mrs. Carter and appropriate runners?
- Do I have strong quotes about preparation, strategy, or challenges?
- Do I know what happens next?
- Do I have usable photographs or video?
- Did I identify everyone shown in my photographs?