Cross Country Team Challenge

Running IS a team sport, and the Brian Diemer Family of Races Cross Country Team Challenge allows you and four (or more) of your friends to experience it all together.  This event resembles a high school-style cross country meet, using standard scoring and a 5K course.  If you don't have a team or enough people to make an entire team, let us know, and we will help you put a team together. We also allow participants to run without being attached to a team.

This year are back at Richmond Park in the City of Grand Rapids. The 5K course will feature mowed grass, packed dirt, and gravel.  The FREE community 1 Mile Run, which is open to both youth & adults, kicks off the evening.   

Here is an overview of the 2025 course, https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2330110. We expect the 2026 course to be similar. It will be well-marked, with cyclists leading the way. 

For a quick video on how a cross country race is scored, check out this video or simply ask us.  

How to Register

We tried to make it easy for you to register and start your team (if you have one). The first person on your team to register can create the team. From there, that person can share the team name and a link for others to join. We also activated the features that allow you to change your team name and the type of team you have (female, male, coed). We are also happy to help with all of this.

If you don't have a team yet (or don't want the pressure of creating a team name), no worries! Go ahead and register yourself, and we can help you form a team later. We also allow participants to run solo, unattached from a team.

When in doubt, ask! Remember, teams can range from 5 to 7 individuals, with only the top 5 places counting towards your score (with any other runners on your team helping to block other team members from securing lower points). Coed teams do not require the number of males or females they have on them, just at least one member of the opposite gender.

The 5K portion of the event is chip-timed. 

We have youth pricing turned on so anyone under the age of 20 will receive a $10 entry. Contact us at lmcubridgerun@gmail.com if you would like to set up your team so members can all register for free, with a single invoice issued after the event. 

Awards

Gazelle Sports has generously signed on board as an Awards Sponsor this year. They have helped us since the first year.

• First Overall Female: $20 to Gazelle Sports
• First Overall Male: $20 to Gazelle Sports
• First Overall Female Masters: $20 to Gazelle Sports
• First Overall Male Masters: $20 to Gazelle Sports
• Middle of the Pack Award: $20 to Gazelle Sports 
  (given to the person who finishes in the middle of the final order)
  
  
• Overall Female Team: all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
• Overall Male Team: all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
• Overall Coed Team: all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
• Overall Masters Female Team (all team members must be 40+): all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
• Overall Masters Male Team (all team members must be 40+): all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
• Overall Masters Coed Team (all team members must be 40+):  all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
• Most Spirited Team: all team members receive a $15 to Gazelle Sports
  (this will be voted on by the race day volunteers)

The FUN Run Mile participants are not eligible for awards. The FUN Run Mile is also not timed.

Race Day Timeline

• 5pm: Bib pickup
• 6:00pm: Community Fun Run Mile
• 6:25pm: XC teams report to the starting line
• 6:30pm: XC race starts
• 7:30pm: awards
  
  

We look forward to seeing you on race day!

This email will be in the inboxes of all participants registered as of 2:00pm on July 15th. To view it, click the PDF icon below. 

It contains the parking information, where to find us within Richmond Park, and a rough outline of the route map. If you have any questions, email us at lmcubridgerun@gmail.com!

See you at the park!

The Brian Diemer Family of Races is a non-profit running club dedicated to helping people get out and active. Partners help us provide our participants with a great experience while allowing us to keep the cost of our events affordable for all. See the Partnership Opportunities for the various ways you can engage with our participants. We are also open to hearing your ideas on how to partner, which can include a booth on race day.

Feel free to reach out to us at lmcubridgerun@gmail.com. 

New to cross country?  No problem! Welcome.  Below are some snipets from Wikipedia to help you better understand cross country.  if you have any questions, let us know.

Starting & Finishing
All runners start at the same time, from a starting or line marked with lanes on the field. An official, 50 meters or more in front of the starting line, uses an airhorn to start the race.  Crossing the line or starting before the starting pistol is fired most often results in disqualification of the runner.  Depending on the number of participants we have, not everyone on your team will be able to start with their foot on the line.

The course ends at a finish line located at the beginning of a chute (a long walkway marked with flags) that keeps athletes single-file in order of finish and facilitates accurate scoring.  Everyone will be handed a slip of paper that will be turned into a scoring table near the exit of the finish chute.  This will help us give all individuals a score and a time.

Scoring
Scores are determined by summing each of five individual finishing places on each team. Points are awarded to the individual runners, equal to the position in which they cross the finish line (first place gets 1 point, second place gets 2 points, etc.). The points for these runners are summed, and the low score wins.

For the Cross Country Team Challenge, we score all of the individuals together, but provide team awards based on the specific team categories.

Timing
Our event will be chip-timed.

For more information, you can view the full article on Wikipedia.