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EDWARDSVILLE - The Edwardsville boys and girls cross country teams continue to develop long-standing traditions under head coach George Patrylak and assistant coach Dustin Davis.
That tradition is always apparent the day of the Mud Mountain race, an annual summer fund-raising event for the Edwardsville cross country and track teams.
The event is also something special for families of young children around the area who aspire to future running careers to test their strengths.
“I don't know how many teams have people ranging in age from 17 – freshly out of high school – all the way up to 33 and above coming out and running and supporting their high school team; it's awesome for us,” Edwardsville head boys and girls cross country coach Patrylak said. “It hopefully means we're doing things the right way, not just the right way in our training and being successful in terms of a team, but we've made some positive impacts in the lives of young men and young women and more than anything, that some of these guys and ladies have remained such good friends, which is pretty special.”
As always, the stories about how things were when the alumni were on the team generally get better and better as the years go on.
“It's amazing how the kids seem to get faster and faster in their minds, but if you look back at the results – it's fun,” Patrylak said. “I look forward to the stories at lunch and later on today.”
Brent Feeney also contributed to this story.
