In It for the Long Run

Friends bond over mutual interests. Families (attempt to) bond over the dinner table. Bellaire’s cross country team, according to senior Sophia Hamdani, bonds over “the trauma of hard workouts.”

Hamdani, who began casually running in third grade and competitively racing in sixth, has experienced this team bonding since freshman year. It’s what really pulled her into the sport; in fact, she revealed, “Literally, I don’t think I would continue running without Bellaire’s team.” There’s something "specific and special” about sharing workouts together, she noted.

And it’s not just during the hard work of practices that cross country members do team building. Before big meets, such as the HISD district competition, the students usually meet up for “team dinners.” Sometimes, they get together more often- in previous years, the season was marked by a dinner “before every single meet.”

“We always put Auntie Pasto’s,” Hamdani smiled. “I can’t call in anymore because there are always more people that show up than whatever they want to reserve for us.”

Bellaire's Varsity Boys cross country team. Back row (left to right): Jair Quintana, Ziyad Joudah. Middle row (left to right): Brian Zhang, Jonathan Nguyen, Thomas Darmodjo, Diego Herrejon Trevino, Harrison Sealock. Front (left to right): Reid Dang, Jeremiah Thomas, Preston Lew. (Photo: Courtney Meekins)

Hamdani isn’t the only one who appreciates the team’s community atmosphere. When asked why he enjoys cross country, Preston Lew, also in his senior year, exclaimed, “The people!” As evidence, he pointed to the chats he has with teammates on “easy runs.” “It makes [the runs] go quicker,” he explained.

Junior Jessica Wang could recall multiple instances where team members pushed each other, encouraged one another, or simply lived moments together. One of the funniest stories she shared was when “one of [her] teammates jumped the fence to get to practice because it was locked.” “He climbed up that thing!” she laughed.

The team’s tight-knit nature is also reflected in the welcome students new to the program receive from more veteran runners. Freshman Astrid Le Grand expressed that she has “had some trouble making friends” during her recent transition to high school, but, after joining Bellaire’s cross country team, she discovered that “the upperclassmen are really nice.” Though she may not always love “waking up at 5:00 a.m.” for practice, she thinks it’s “worthwhile” to take time to find new friends in her team members.

"Hair Care": During their spare time at one of the meets, the cross country girls braided and tied red ribbons into each other's hair to show Cardinal spirit. From left to right: Sophia Hamdani, Elizabeth Tang, Mia Noamouz, Elizabeth Gamero. (Photo: Courtney Meekins)

The strong team relationships are due in part to the efforts of Coach Courtney Meekins, head of Bellaire’s cross country program, whose main goal last year was to build “a team atmosphere.” “We win together,” she said. And it shows.

“I know this sounds silly… But our set up and pack up at meets is one way [we] team bond,” she said. “Setting up the tent, getting food, and even just the hair care and uniform care” all seem to tighten team relationships.

As the athletes of Bellaire’s cross country team race deeper into the fall, the competitive season begins to draw to a close. But the bonds that have been formed during just the past couple months will last for the remainder of these students’ high school journeys.