Logically, it would seem impossible to run into a headwind for an entire lap around a 400m oval; at some point, you have to turn downwind.  But if you ask anyone that has participated in Winter Track, they will confirm the seemingly impossible, we run against an inescapable headwind.

The phenomenon is a neat microcosm of the Winter Track experience – sub-freezing temperatures, a perpetual headwind with 20+ mile-per-hour gusts, and a continual desire to go inside to warm up. 

Nevertheless, the sport holds a certain appeal for many. Perhaps it is the camaraderie that stems from the shared pain of running in the cold. Or maybe it is the perfectly breathable and not at all suffocating air of the Drew University track at which most of the meets are held. 

In any case, the Dodgers are back in action and are scrambling to get back in shape before the first meet of the year on December 15th, which will (unfortunately) be held at the aforementioned indoor track at Drew University. The Drew series continues throughout the month of December, with meets being held on the 17th, 20th, 22nd, 30th. January 3rd features the first championship meet of the year – the Morris County Relays – and is followed by the Freshman-Sophomore relay championships on January 6th.

The last of the meets at Drew University are on January 7th, 10th, and 16th, after which the Dodgers will get two weeks to prepare for the Morris County Championship at the Ocean Breeze facility in Staten Island on January 30th. On the following Saturday, the running equivalent of the state tournament begins in the form of the NJSIAA Sectional Championships on February 4th, and is succeeded by the Group Championships on February 18 and the Meet of Champions on March 5th. 

The Winter Track season is relatively short, but it is action-packed and demands a level of sacrifice and grit endemic to the so-called “pain sports.” And when it gets hard as it so often does, sometimes you have to embrace the discomfort. On those days, as the great Emil Zatopek said best, “we die a little.”