Game version
Strong-finish game: build smoothly through the last stretch while a partner cheers, then jog it out together. Swap.
Answer the Surge
A cooperative drill: your partner picks up the pace and you match it, then swap.
By Coach Evan Waechtler Youth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTracker Updated October 30, 2026
Set up
Run steady side by side.
Core: Medium. Aim for tall and relaxed.
- Ages
- 14 and up
- Time
- 15 min
- Players
- You and a partner
- Space
- Yard or field
- Bring
- Partner, loop
- Level · skill
- Advanced · Finishing Kick
The steps
How it works
- Run steady side by side.
- Your partner surges for 15 seconds without warning.
- Stay on their shoulder, then both settle.
- Do 6 surges, 3 each.
Coaching point
Stay with it, then settle.
Safety: Drink water and eat a meal or snack before and after, run in the cool part of the day, and stop and tell an adult if you feel dizzy or sick. Thunder or lightning: go inside now and wait 30 minutes after the last one.
Make it fun
Play it, don't drill it
Challenge
Pick a stretch: Less (short), Core (medium), More (a little longer). Aim for tall and relaxed.
Story
You are a train picking up steam toward the station.
My best
Beat your own count
Aim for tall and relaxed. Only your own number counts: today against last time.
Practice makes progress
Print it now, or save it free
Free for families and teams
Save this drill to your child or team, free
Sign up and the free cross country week for this age opens in your child's planner, kept to healthy limits. A coach can send this drill to the whole team as homework, and parents see every session logged.
14 days free for a family, no card · Running a team is always free
Does your child's coach know about this?
An email from you to the coach, with the words ready. Nothing is tracked and nobody is rewarded.