Jake Pessia held a look of intense concentration on his face. All his energy was focused toward one thing: finishing. He had come so far, success seemed as if it were almost within reach. Less braver men might have given up long before, but Jake was still going strong. "Come on Jake!" the rest of us cheered. "You've got this, you can make it!" Sweat was rolling down Jake's face. He wiped away the sweat calmly and told us, "I've got this."

Jake was eating the Indonesian Peanut Sauté at Noodles and Company. On the menu, the spicy dishes are marked by a small picture of a pepper at the end of the description. Only one item on the menu is given two peppers. This item is the Indonesian Peanut Sauté. Undeterred by the sight of the two peppers, Jake ordered this exotic dish and put hot sauce on it.

We were at Noodles and Company eating after a successful race at Ohio Wesleyan University. Having never raced at this course before we were unsure of what to expect. Personally, I did not like the course. We were in a very small park, and the course was (likely) measured wrong, so everyone ran too far. Also, the bathrooms were made entirely of concrete and stainless steel, and resembled a prison. Occasionally, there was a rumbling in the walls in conjunction with a high-pitched warble. (We attributed these noises to the bathroom gods.) On the positive side, the weather was very nice and we had many fans come to watch us race.

We actually had nice weather for most of the week. The only day that we didn't have nice weather was Wednesday. Wednesday was the day of our first morning run and, as if running in the early morning wasn't miserable enough, it had to be cold and raining. It wasn't raining too bad though, and we were able to finish and go to breakfast.

"Gentleman," I said, as we entered the cafeteria "We are about to observe one of the most time-honored and sacred traditions of this team. It is 6:58, and Saved By The Bell comes on in two minutes."

However, unbeknownst to us, TBS had decided to start showing Home Improvement at 7:00 am instead. We watched it anyway. Change is good. And I think we have seen just about every episode of Saved By The Bell over the past three years.

We don't have a race this weekend, but next weekend, we will be at Otterbein. Start making your travel plans now.

Let's meet some teammates!

Freshmen Runners

Name: CJ Larue

Hometown: Clendenin, West Virginia

Major: Chemistry

Favorite food: My mom's baked Mac & cheese

Favorite cross country course: I guess the one we ran this past weekend. It's the only one I've run.

Favorite movie: Toy Story

Favorite running quote: "I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure." (Eric Liddell)

Crazy running story: My junior year in high school, our track team only had five guys. We ended up winning our state meet against two teams that each doubled our size.

Other: This is my first year of running cross country ever. We didn't have a team at my high school.

Name: Chris Rednour

Hometown: Strongsville, Ohio

Major: Political Science

Favorite Food: BBQ Pulled Pork

Favorite cross country course: Haven't ran a college 8k and didn't particularly enjoy the Kenyon 5k. Favorite high school cross country course: Toledo Oregon Clay 5k

Favorite Movie: Monty Python and the Holy Grail or Toy Story

Favorite Running Quote: "It's rude to count people as you pass them. Out loud."

Crazy Running Story: In my junior year of high school, me and 6 or 7 of the guys on the team entered a forest on a faint path. After losing the path and searching for it for 45 minutes, we finally found it and exited the forest, only to find that the exit was 50 feet from where we entered.

Other: I ran 1 year of high school cross country and 2 years of high school track, mostly due to injuries. In addition, I have played baseball since I was 5, basketball, and soccer. Despite having webbed toes, I am a terrible swimmer.