Many LHS students have participated in at least one LHS summer sports camp; 15 sports through LHS have camps over the summer and there are 50 different camps. Cross country is one of these fifteen sports; both boys and girls cross country have camps over the summer.

Even though the IHSA only allows coaches to spend 25 days with their athletes, the coaches use that time to the best of their ability.

“Since we can only have 25 days of contact over the summer, we do work every day, but in each of those days. there’s something fun that’s going on,” Mark Buesing, the Head coach for the boys cross country team, said, “Every day you’re going to work hard but everyday there’s going to be be something fun about that day.”     

Although most teams work hard during camp, many also incorporate other activities to get students to become used to being a part of the team.

“We try to use camp as an opportunity for girls to get to know each other and just become familiar with what we do; teaching them the warm ups, showing them the different runs we do. It’s not as strict. It’s summer. It’s meant to be more fun,” Kristen Kuceyeski, an assistant coach for girls cross country said, “We try to use summer to get back in shape and get ready for the season and learn about what we are as a team.”

Both the Girls and Boys Cross Country teams go on a trip over the summer with a few of their athletes so that their team can bond even more. The first 24 members of the boys cross country team to sign up go to Kettle Moraine National Forest in Wisconsin, where they spend a week running through the woods and doing normal summer camp activities, like having campfires and swimming. The girls cross country team goes on a trip that only includes higher-ranked athletes, although Coach Kuceyeski said she hopes to include more of the team in upcoming years.

Although not all of the athletes get to go on these trips, they all get to have fun during the camps.  The camps are open to all team members and some camps are even open to younger athletes who might be joining the team in a few years, whereas the trips inlude a more selective group.

“Once we get our work done we have absolutely no problem busting out the chocolate milk or the popsicles or going out to Panera. Those moments are so, so important to an athletic team. It’s not just about the running, not just about the racing. It’s about the fun stuff too,” Mrs. Mary Kate Schoenbeck, an assistant coach for the girls cross country team, said.

As much as the summer camps have their similarities to the season, they also have their differences. The absence of meets and other pressures allows athletes to relax and enjoy participating in a sport.

“The camp is more laid back and you’re not really running to do better in the next race, where in the season you usually have one race each week, so in between each race you want to run harder. Over the summer you run to get in shape more because you have so much time before your first race.” Tom Doherty, junior who is a member of the boys cross country team, said.

Baseball, basketball, cheerleading, competitive dance, cross fit, football, gymnastics, lacrosse, soccer, tennis, volleyball, weight training and wrestling all have camps through LHS. The sign up for all LHS sports camps can be viewed at http://comed128.augusoft.net/index.cfm?method=ClassListing.ClassListingDisplay&int_category_id=2&int_sub_category_id=28