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| Views from a village run:) |
Everyone has their own way of unwinding after a long day; something that can help them recuperate and de-stress. My personal favorite is to go for a run after school, especially in Alaska where I get to see incredible views along the way. Running, in my opinion, is a great way to spend time reflecting on the day and getting out any frustrations. Last year when I moved to Pilot Point, I had been excited to have the opportunity to coach cross country because I thought it would be fun to inspire students to take up running as a hobby. While I wasn’t able to convince my three eligible students to run, I had been able to chaperone the jamboree in Naknek. It was such a fun experience, and in starting the new school year in Nondalton, I was hesitantly excited at the thought that I might get to attend as a coach this year.
Luckily, my wish came true and I had nine students who signed up and joined me after school everyday for practices! While our sporting seasons are shorter than average high-school seasons, my students followed through and came to all of our practices. Many of them had not run cross country before, but at my request, they agreed to give it a try. Without much complaint, they ran all the paths I created around the village, ran sprints in the gym, and they absolutely
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| A great night for the Newhalen River Race! |
After a few weeks of practice in the village, some of us were able to take a ride across the lake to run in the Newhalen River Race. Considering this wasn’t a school sponsored race, I was happy to see how many of my runners chose to hop on a boat with me and run a hilly three mile course. This event was especially fun because younger students who aren’t eligible to be on the team (7th grade and below) joined us and were able to run shorter courses with other students their age. One of the third graders from our school came in first in her age group!
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| Off they go! |
Finally, their hard work was rewarded and all nine of my athletes were cleared to travel to Naknek for the jamboree this past weekend. Last Thursday, we boarded two planes and made our way south. Once all of the teams arrived, the students were able to walk the race course to get a better feel for it. Shortly after, the girls were the first to run and off they went! I was a proud coach as I watched all of my runners giving it their all. Regardless of their time or the place they came in, all of them did their best and proved to themselves that they could complete the course! I was beaming ear to ear as I watched my one normally sluggish runner come barreling through the finish line. All of the athletes seemed happy to have the race behind them and were ready to spend the next two days visiting with their friends from other schools.
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| Some of the final bridge creations |
On Friday, professors from the University of Alaska led team building activities for all of the students. They were placed in groups and asked to use limited materials to create a bridge and a tower, both of which would be tested for how much weight they could hold. This task was a lot harder than it looked, but the students came together and had some awesome creations. Later in the day, they were paired up and asked to make a basket to safely house an egg as it plummeted to the ground. It was a fun, but long day and all of the students were eager to go to the dance that was held that night. There is also a community pool across from the school we stayed at, so many of the students took advantage of that during their free choice time.
At the same time that the students were happy to see friends they don’t see often, I was eager to have time to catch up with teachers that I rarely see. Honestly it was just nice to have some adult time in the midst of being surrounded by students 24/7. Then, before we knew it, Saturday morning came and it was time to head back to our home villages. However, the weather did not want to cooperate, and only some of the teams were able to fly home that day. Nondalton, and five other teams were “weathered” overnight, something our students were more than happy about because it meant watching movies in the auditorium all day and spending the night splashing around in the pool. As much as I wanted to sleep in my bed as opposed to a hard classroom floor, I was glad to see that my students were having a good time.
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| Riding co-pilot is my favorite! |
On Sunday, I was awakened by the sound of heavy rain hitting the school and I feared that we would not get home. However, the rain slowed and with the help of a larger plane, we were able to make it out of King Salmon. My students and I were glad to be on a bigger plane and I quickly claimed co-pilot seat as we were flying with one of my favorite pilots. Our flight was uneventful and thanks to a powerful tail wind, we made it home in record time. Being able to shower in clean water (Bristol Bay water is kind of icky) and sleep in my own bed brought a great end to a busy, yet fun few days spent away from home. While I enjoyed the chance to travel and was proud of my runners, I am happy to be home and content to stay in my quiet little village for a little while as I recover from this trip!
**As most of the students were enjoying the activities on Friday, two boys and two girls from our district packed up and flew down to Unalaska (yes it’s a real place) to compete in the regional cross country meet. On Saturday we found out that all four of these students had done well at regionals and will be able to travel to Anchorage to compete in the state cross country meet! We’ll be keeping our fingers crossed that all of these students continue to run their hearts out!
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