The Vaquero’s 2024 cross-country season was canceled since they did not have enough team members last season.
Cross country had been a successful sport at City College for many years, with team members like Sage Holter winning the Scholar-Athlete of the Year award last year. As well as the WSC championship a few years ago.
Only four runners were interested in joining cross country last season. Those four runners still ran in solo events but could not compete in team events. With the lack of students joining cross country, the athletic directors decided to cancel the 2024 season.
The low number of students joining cross country in recent years has brought some concern to faculty members because many students may not know cross country still exists at City College.
With the hope of attracting more runners and eventually bringing cross country back to City College, Michael Gamboa started the cross country club.
“This is a running town, lots of people run,” Gamboa said. “I know there are people here on campus that want to [particapte], they just don’t know about it.”
Gamboa is the coordinator of the student athletic success programs at City College. He ran cross country in high school and still runs every day. His passion for running and the hope to bring cross country back to City College led him to create the club.
“It’s another sport [for] somebody that doesn’t want to play baseball, basketball or football,” Gamboa explained. “ Some people don’t want to do all of those things, they just want to go out and run.”
The cross country club began this semester, and they meet at 12:15, Monday through Thursday near the track at La Playa stadium. They run together for 20 minutes as a warm-up, then they run for another 40 minutes going at a moderate pace. The club is also planning to start competing in races as they continue to grow.
The club currently has 11 members and is encouraging anyone and everyone interested in running to join.
“Everyone is welcome. There are no guidelines or experience needed, just come out and run,” Gamboa said.
If enough students join the club, the athletic program can bring cross-country back to City College by the fall 2025 season. More information can be found through Michael Gamboa.
