Warms their hearts ...

The saga of the team jackets has been an ongoing undercurrent of conversation among our men’s cross country team this fall. It started the first day of preseason, when all the gear was handed out. Gear handout day is like Christmas morning for our athletes. In playing the role of Santa, I also noted that heavier “winter coats” out of the Nike baseball catalog (they’re called “Dugout Jackets”) were on back order till October. The subject was left alone for a month. Then, the last week of September, on the first few cold mornings, the rumblings started. “Coach. When are those jackets coming in?” “Coach. Any word on those coats?” There were far more queries about this piece of outer apparel then, say, the purpose of our fartleks or Farm Lane pushes or tempo runs.

The calendar flipped to October. The crescendo of questions about the whereabouts of said jackets grew louder and louder, into a cacophony of wanting and wishing … and ultimately whining. “Coach. Jackets. Back order. You said. October. When. Wait. Are they warm? Do they have HOODS? October. Back order. Jackets. Coach.” A call to our retailer and the word was “a few more weeks.” The background noise continued as the mornings grew chillier. Then, the call arrived, ironically enough, when we were in Florida for the MAAC Championships – 80 degrees and sunny, and the subject is winter coats: Bad news and good news. Bad news, Nike screwed up the inventory, coats aren’t available till the spring! As my blood pressure began creeping up, the good news was that there were similar coats available right away, a more expensive version but you’ll get charged the same as the cheaper jackets. “Do you want a sample, Pete, see what they look like?” NO. Are they red? Do they say “Marist track” on them? OK. Good. Order them. Ship them. Right away. Get these guys off my BACK already.

The riotous behavior calmed down with the anticipation of the newer, fancier coats. Finally, they arrived. Five big boxes, on the afternoon we returned from the NCAA Regionals, on Friday. Neat. I can hand them out after long run on Saturday. I texted a few of my more persistent jacket stalkers. “Coats are in.” The text replies were instantaneous: “Can we come and get them NOW?” No. “Can you take a picture of one of them?” No. I offered to take a picture of the five unopened boxes, and that shut them up. After Saturday’s long run, the guys came zooming into the racquetball court to get their jackets. “How was the long run, guys?” “Sore from the race yesterday?” “Sore from the hill workout yesterday?” “Anybody hear about state meet results?” Silence. Their focus was keen: They were rummaging through the boxes, trying to find the perfect size. Kids on Christmas morning.

The picture above is of sophomore guys in the Foy house. They love their new jackets. The team loves their new jackets. They will be warm this winter. With the way the long-range forecast is looking, they’ll need them. Finally.