But even one fast-moving afternoon on campus made a strong impression on the runners and coaches who visited, many of whom will return on October 29, 2010, when Montreat College hosts the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association state championship race. And, according to Charlotte Latin School cross-country coach Mike Weiss, they’ll be eager to come back.
Weiss, whose girls’ teams have won three consecutive North Carolina Independent Schools state championships at the 3-A level, said his Hawks had a great day. “The campus itself has a friendly feel and a beautiful setting, but I could see that the entire community pulled together to stage this event. I saw other teams, staff, and students from the college working hard, and we felt a genuine spirit of welcoming today.”
The impression made on Weiss and others was not an accident, and Montreat College’s head cross-country coach Jose Larios credited scores of people for the flawless appearance of the course and the smooth execution of the race itself. Said Larios, “This event, which brought 1,000 people to campus, would not have come together without meticulous preparation and incredible effort by many volunteers from every corner of the college. Athletes from other Cavalier teams, and their coaches, staff and faculty members, and students all pitched in to make this event run well. Yesterday was a great example of community.”
Baseball coach Mike Bender, who drove a shuttle all day, ferrying guests to campus from parking lots, agreed. “This is the way our department and our school should always be, willing to come together and help one another.”
On such a momentous day, Larios felt proud to recognize the efforts of two men in particular and did so by announcing that Thursday marked the last running of the race called the Cavalier Kickoff Classic. Of course, he was quick to explain that the event is simply being renamed.
In a ceremony before the races, Larios led the Montreat College community in saluting Joe Hyder and Don McMahill, whose years of diligent and humble labor have resulted in the Black Mountain campus Cross-Country course becoming what Larios calls “the finest course in Western North Carolina.”
Such has been the humble and hard work done by this dynamic duo, in fact, that beginning in 2011, the race will be renamed the Hyder - McMahill Invitational.
Larios catalogued some of the work the men have done on the land over the past thirteen years: “Joe, and then Don soon after, started clearing land, moving rocks, cutting trees, plotting the course, hauling thousands of loads of wood chips, and spending hours on the course, always working hard.”
Typical of the two men, they were reluctant to stand before the big crowd and receive acknowledgment. Larios said they never asked for recognition. “When they see me, they simply ask, ‘what can we do to make the course better?’”
It seems that little could have gone better on Thursday, as coaches left happy and eager to return at season’s end. After watching his girls place five runners in the top ten and easily win the team competition, Weiss anticipated a return to the Black Mountain course in October: “This is a classic cross-country course: it’s a challenging, interesting place to compete with a beautiful mountain backdrop.”