Rod Tempel’s cross country team travelled to Silverwood, Idaho for the Silverwood Coaster Meet last Saturday, and the young runners showed marked improvement in the fun and friendly environment.

Idaho, which measures its cross country races in 3.1 miles, or five kilometers, was a small change of pace for Libby. Montana uses a three-mile race, so some adjustments must be made with an additional 200 or so yards at the end.

Even with the change, many of the runners set personal records.

Team leader, junior Cody Barrick, almost broke 20 minutes, clocking in at 20:04 and 157th in the varsity boys race. His sister, Jenna Barrick, dropped nearly two minutes off her 26:58 time to finish at 25:06 and 138th in the girls varsity race.

The rising star, freshman Krysten Mossburg, ran a personal best with a speedy 22:14, 69th in the varsity race and a time that would have been good enough for tenth in junior varsity.

“We’re running for fun, just trying to build a base under us,” coach Tempel said. 

The large group of middle schoolers impressed as well, as eighth grader Colin Maloney ran a 19:25 and finished in the top-20 in the open race.

After the race, the 25 kids were allowed to play in Silverwood for the day, a benefit to running until their legs hurt. 

“All kids that ran gave a good effort,” Tempel wrote in an email. “Those kids are just awesome.”

The teams will be on the road again Saturday, heading to Coeur d’Alene for another 3.1 miler.