If you’ve been a regular at the beautiful parks of Marysville, Ohio this summer, chances are, you’ve probably seen the Fairbanks Panther Cross Country teams out on the trails putting in some miles. Inspired by the changing locales and their own will to run, the athletes have come to find that these parks are a second home, and full of the beauty of nature. Here’s a quick overview of the different places the runners have claimed as “home turf.”
Schwarzkopf Park
Sometimes, the Fairbanks Cross Country teams head to Schwartzkopf Park,
which definitely has the most crowded trails that the Panthers face. Set across from Marysville High School, Schwartzkopf Park is a lovely, long park that is complete with a prairie, a disc golf course, and a first class playground for Little Vivienne Van Winkle (and often, the junior boys) all of which are laid out beside a gently flowing creek. There is plenty of shade and the options for trail running are varied. Fairbanks Captain Bryce Nisly really likes Schwarzkopf the best because, “There are so many things to do here besides run. You can go down the slides on the playground, you can climb trees and risk your life, or you can just chill in one of the shelter houses as you are waiting for practice to start, or at the end, to enjoy some refreshing popsicles. Once, we even tried making a bridge out of logs to span the creek. It really brings out the child in you, and I think it’s a great way to start the week.”
Fairbanks High School
Often, the Panthers at home, where up until not too long ago, we didn’t even have a cross country course. Practices start on the track with a warm-up mile and some plyometric stretching. Then, depending on the workout regimen, the Panthers either do speedwork on the track or they go out and run the home course, which sprawls over 3.1 miles of beautiful farmland and our exquisite school campus. Keeping the course mowed is always a challenge, and sometimes, the grasses can get knee high, but that is just a facet of cross country that the athletes have to be ready for. “I love our home course,” says Senior Rachael Hoover. “I don’t know how many times I’ve run it, but by now, I know it like the back of my hand and I don’t ever like taking a second or third place finish here. It’s my land. It’s in my blood, and I will bring the heat every time I get to race it. I’m sad that this season will be my last Farmbanks Panther Invitational, but I’m going to go ahead and predict a dominant victory for our girls team. And then we’ll stand atop the hay trailer, the long shadows of evening spreading out on the front lawn of my school, and we’ll hoist that trophy high, weeping softly with pride.”
MacIvor Woods
Regularly, MacIvor Woods, located next to the Kroger Marketplace in Marysville, is the place to be. Though not quite as expansive or as crowded as Schwarzkopf Park, MacIvor offers the runners a quiet chance to reflect on why they do what they do. Without paved trails, this is the landscape most similar to a standard cross country course, when it comes to the parks. The main loop in the woods is about a mile long exactly with some hills and dips, so it makes for a good place to do some long, slow runs in order to get the legs ready for the upcoming season. According to Assistant Coach Jeff Powell, “MacIvor is great, except for the strange smell that wafts through the air sometimes. Is it a dead animal? Maybe. Or maybe it’s some sewage runoff somewhere, but it’s weird, because it’s only there on every third or fourth inhale.”
Marysville Reservoir
You may find the Panthers at the Marysville Reservoir, arguably the most inhospitable place for running, as it is long, flat, and exposed constantly to the sun. The cool, blue water taunts the runners as they pound out the miles, far from any reprieve. Being a reservoir, there are also some steep hills and stairways that make for great conditioning exercises. “The reservoir was a great find for us,” says Coach Mike Van Winkle. “There is rarely anyone there besides your random dog walker, and the bleak trail, just a giant loop around the reservoir itself, forces the athletes to focus on nothing but running. There really aren’t any distractions, and whether the sun is shining or not, there’s usually a nice breeze bolstering a great workout.”
Prairie Oaks
Prairie Oaks is a first class outdoor area, featuring more than 500 acres of lush flowering prairies and grasslands amidst the sprawling 2,200 acre park. There are several deep lakes and the Big Darby National Scenic River flows through the heart of it all. Panther athletes have been known to put on extra miles here, as they are lulled into a “runner’s trance” by the glorious outdoors. Freshman Izzy Miller really responds to running at Prairie Oaks. “It’s like being in another world entirely. The whole Metro Parks system is a luxury that we get here in Central Ohio, and it’s like Prairie Oaks was designed by a cross country runner. It’s beautiful. It’s breath-taking, and it reminds us all why we do what we do.”
As you can clearly see, the Panthers are here, there and everywhere when it comes to tracking down the best running venues in the region. “I’m always on the search for a new place,” says Coach Emily Van Winkle. “Union County and the surrounding areas are beautiful, with the fields and the forests offering our teams quite a variety when it comes to training.” The Panthers are currently healthy, strong, and looking forward to the first race of the season, the OHSAA Preseason Race at the Fortress in Obetz on August 19th.