🍂 Celebrating 60 Years of the Autumn Cross Country Classic! 🏃♀️🏃♂️
🎉 60 YEARS. ONE GREAT TRADITION. 🎉
Wow! What an amazing 60th Autumn Cross Country Classic!
On October 17, 2026, we celebrated a major milestone with one of the most exciting Autumn Classics I’ve had the pleasure of being part of. With more than 750 registrants representing 55 schools, this year’s event brought together a fantastic community of young runners, families, teachers, volunteers, and supporters to celebrate six decades of cross-country tradition.
From fast races around the lake to battling the autumn winds, this year’s Classic gave us plenty of memories to carry forward! 🍂
🔥 A Fast Start Around the Lake!
We kicked things off with some heat on our improved 1200m lake loop! These young runners were moving so fast that some spectators had a hard time making it back to the finish line before the runners came flying around the lake. Talk about speed! 🏃♀️💨
🌬️ Then Came the Wind!
One of the most memorable moments came as we switched over to the 2km loop. Just as the next races got underway, the wind rolled in!
With a helpful tailwind at the start and finish, runners had to muscle their way through some intense headwinds along the course. Add in a few flying leaves, and we had all the ingredients for a true autumn cross-country experience! 🍁💨
Across 15 races, including the parent/teacher run, runners took on the challenge and brought the energy that makes this event so special. Congratulations to everyone who lined up at the start and gave it their best! 👏
🏁 [VIEW THE 2026 RACE RESULTS] (Insert direct Ellis Timing results link.)
🙌 A Community Effort: Thank You!
An event like the Autumn Classic takes a whole community working together, and our 60th anniversary was no exception.
A huge thank-you to the Volunteer from EPS Recruit Class #167 who supported the event, along with the volunteers from Sisters Soccer who helped keep parking running smoothly. Their contributions alone represent more than 40 people along with our individual volunteers giving their time to help make race day a success! 💙
We are also grateful to everyone who worked behind the scenes to make the event possible.
A special thank-you to:
- 🚑 Production Paramedics — for providing medical support.
- 🍜 Lemon Grass Grill food truck — for helping fuel the day.
- 🚌 Golden Arrow — for providing shuttle service.
- ⏱️ Vernon Schmid from Ellis Timing — for helping keep our races on track.
- 👏 Irv Barros and Colleen Sayer — for their support and contributions.
- 📝 Our registration crew, timing team, setup helpers, and everyone else who contributed — thank you for the time and effort you put into this event.
Every contribution matters, and we appreciate everyone who helped make our 60th anniversary memorable! ❤️
🏅 Celebrating Our Autumn Classic History
Sixty years of tradition is something special, and it’s even more meaningful when we recognize the people who have been part of that journey.
A special thank-you to Vernon Schmid and Irv Barros, who have been involved with the Autumn Classic since its beginnings as the C.A.H.P.E.R.D. Cross Country Race all those years ago!
Having people connected to the event from its earliest days is a remarkable part of our history. Thank you both for helping carry this tradition forward through the decades! 👏
❤️ A Tradition Passed Through Generations
One of the most special things about celebrating 60 years is hearing stories from people who once ran the Autumn Classic themselves and are now watching their own children take part.
And who knows? There may even be families whose connection to this event stretches back further, with grandchildren now carrying on the tradition!
It’s a wonderful reminder that the Autumn Classic is about more than running. It’s about the memories, connections, and traditions that bring generations together. 🏃♂️👨👩👧👦
🏆 School Participation Awards
A big congratulations to the schools that brought out fantastic numbers of participants this year!
With 55 schools represented, it was great to see so many students getting active, challenging themselves, and being part of the Autumn Classic tradition.
🥇 1st Place — École Greenfield: 94 participants
🥈 2nd Place — Brander Gardens: 64 participants
🥉 3rd Place — Richard Secord School: 42 participants
Congratulations to all four schools! Your participation helped make our 60th anniversary a memorable one. 🎉
📸 Instagram Contest Winner!
We saw some amazing Instagram posts this year that captured the excitement, energy, and fun of the day. Thank you to everyone who shared their Autumn Classic experience and helped spread the word!
🎉 Congratulations to Jodi Cuevas, our winner of the $50 Running Room gift card! 🎁
Thank you to everyone who participated in the contest and helped celebrate this milestone event online.
💬 Help Us Make Next Year Even Better!
We’d love to hear from you!
Whether you were a runner, parent, coach, teacher, volunteer, or spectator, your feedback helps us continue to improve the Autumn Classic.
- What did you enjoy most this year?
- Is there anything we could do better next time?
- Do you have ideas you’d love to see included in future events?
We welcome your comments and suggestions. Get in touch through the Inspiring Athletics website and help us continue building an event that brings people together through running, movement, and community. 💙
🍂 Looking Ahead: Year 61!
Sixty years is an incredible milestone, but the Autumn Classic tradition continues!
We’re already looking ahead to the 61st Autumn Cross Country Classic on October 16, 2027 at Hawrelak Park, and we look forward to welcoming runners, schools, families, and volunteers back for another great day of cross-country running! 🏃♀️🏃♂️
📣 Stay tuned to our newsletter and follow us on Instagram and Facebook (@inspiring_athletics_ab), sign up for our Autumn Classic Newsletter or visit the this page in spring for announcements, registration information, and updates on what’s in store for next year’s event.
Thank you to everyone who was part of our 60th anniversary. Whether you ran, cheered, volunteered, organized, or supported someone along the course, you helped keep this wonderful tradition running. ❤️
Here’s to the next chapter!
🏁 See you at the starting line in 2027!
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We look forward to celebrating 60 years of cross-country tradition with you at Hawrelak Park!