In every sport, setbacks are just another aspect of competition. In football, teams must face an entire week of practice after a loss before playing their next game. In basketball, it is just as difficult to come back and play the day after losing by means of a buzzer-beater.

The women’s track and field team faces the challenge of having a month off in the middle of the season. For runners, it is particularly difficult to stay in the same shape after being removed from normal team workouts for a month.

 “I like to call the time before break our maintenance and conditioning phase,” Head Coach Jennifer Potter said.

In a sense, the first half of the season is a warm-up for the second half. The most important meets, like the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) and the National Championships, take place after winter break.

That time off allows for many different kinds of workouts, as the different members of the team don’t always have access to a track or workout facility.

“Some of the girls have to lift Pepsi bottles, or whatever they can find because their area lacks the facilities they need,” Potter said.

Keeping in shape is important, as no member of the team wants to let all of their hard work before break go to waste.

That hard work was shown last Saturday in the team’s strong showing at the Cornell Relays. The freshmen showed almost no signs of nervousness despite it being their first meet.

Freshman Marcia McCord led the Bombers, breaking the school’s 300-meter dash record with a time of 43.8 seconds. Another freshman, Laura Morehouse, missed the school record in the 60-meter dash by only .01 seconds. The challenge will be carrying that momentum throughout winter break.

“I’ve always had trouble training by myself,” freshman runner Emily Ondrejka said. “I may even train with my high school team.”

The team always stresses the importance of practicing and supporting each other every day. With break approaching, they will have to adjust to the new sounds of the breeze or iPod in their ears, instead of the shouts of support from their teammates.

The team does know that the break time will be as important as any other part of the season.

Even freshman distance runner Allie Haff, a newcomer to the sport, noted the importance of keeping up her training.

“We have to keep training or else we will fall behind where we should be,” she said.

Because of attitudes like that, Potter calls the break a “good time off.” She uses that philosophy because of the length of the season. The team doesn’t really stop running until May. For most teams, that amount of time would include two seasons. Many of the team members are also part of the cross country team in the fall as well. Track and field is a sport that doesn’t have much of an off season.

That long road to the championship doesn’t stop when break starts. With the determination to work hard when no one is watching, the team won’t miss a beat.