Fall Cross Country Season

Fall Cross Country Information

Registration for Fall Cross Country is now closed. Follow us on Facebook for future program registration.

Season Dates: August 11 – November 15
Post-season opportunities for qualifying athletes continue through:

  • Regionals: November 22

  • Nationals: December 13
    (Locations TBD)

  • Special Event:
    All athletes are invited to run in the LINC’d Up Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving Day (November 27), hosted by the Comets. This is included in registration and open to all team members, regardless of post-season qualification.

Practice:

  • Mondays & Wednesdays | 6:00–7:15 PM

  • Saturdays (non-race days) | 8:30–9:30 AM

  • Locations: Primarily Brown’s Mill Battlefield and the LINC Trail, with occasional alternate sites (advance notice provided)

Program Cost:

  • $175 per athlete

  • +$30 annual club membership fee for households new to the Comets
    Fees cover equipment, uniforms, race entries, team shirts, volunteer training, and more.

Volunteers:

We welcome parents and guardians who run—at any pace—to volunteer during practices. It’s a great way to support the team, stay active, and model leadership. A minimum number of running volunteers is required to conduct practices safely.

Prerequisites:

All athletes must be able to run 2K (1.24 miles) without stopping. We’ll run this distance together on the first day of practice to ensure everyone is ready for team training. We also hold a time trial the first Saturday of the season for 2K and 3K distances.

Racing:

The tentative 2025 race schedule can be found on the race page. Athletes will participate in 7+ races, including at least five youth cross country meets on Saturdays. These are sanctioned events where athletes race in age-appropriate USATF divisions, both individually and as part of a team (minimum of 5 runners per age group to score as a team).

  • Race Distances by Age Group:

    • 8U: 2K

    • 10U and 12U: 3K

    • 14U: 4K

  • Additional Races Included:

    • Peachtree City Classic 5K

    • LINC’d Up Turkey Trot 5K – our very first Comets-hosted Thanksgiving Day event!

Post-Season:

All athletes receive a USATF youth membership, allowing them to compete at the State Championship on November 15.
From there:

  • Top 15 individuals and top 2 teams per age group at State qualify for Regionals.

  • Top 30 individuals and top 5 teams at Regionals advance to Nationals.

  • These qualifying numbers may expand at the discretion of Georgia USATF.

Cross Country Scoring:

Cross country is both a team and individual sport. Here’s how it works:

Team Scoring:

  • A team’s score is the sum of the finishing places of its top five runners in a given age group.

  • The lowest score wins.

    • Example: Finishes of 2nd, 5th, 8th, 11th, and 20th = team score of 46.

Team Eligibility:

  • A team must have at least 5 runners in the same age group to be eligible for team scoring.

  • Teams with fewer than 5 athletes do not receive a team score. Their runners still compete, but are skipped in team scoring calculations.

The Role of Runners 6 and 7:

  • While only the top 5 runners score, the 6th and 7th runners can impact the outcome.

  • If they finish ahead of scoring runners from other teams, they push those runners back and increase the other teams’ scores.

Individual Competition:

  • All athletes also compete individually.

  • Awards are given to top individual finishers in each age group, regardless of team size or placement.

Program Expectations

To keep practices safe, positive, and well-organized, we ask all families to follow these expectations:

  • Registered athletes only: Only athletes who are officially registered may participate in programming with the team, including running with training groups.

  • Registered coaches only: Only coaches who are officially registered with the Comets — and have completed SafeSport training and background screening — may coach or run with training groups.

  • Age requirement: Fall Cross Country requires athletes to be at least 7 years old by September 1. Exceptions may be considered for 6-year-olds (by September 1) who:

    • Can demonstrate readiness to meet the program prerequisites, and

    • Have a parent who can volunteer consistently at practices.

  • Under age 6: For safety and liability reasons, children under the age of 6 are not eligible to participate in the program.

To learn more about Coweta Youth Running Club visit the About page.