The toy cannon they use to start races at Foot Locker Midwest packs a bigger punch than you would think at first glance.
The drought is over for Arizona boys as the State sends its first boys team to Nike Cross Nationals this Saturday.
See which teams the selection committee has chosen to run at NXN Nationals.
Which teams on the bubble of NXN will get chosen as at-large bids?
Carley Bennett was one of a lengthy list of Colorado athletes enjoying stellar days at this year's NXR-SW.
Cole Munoz led more or less throughout the Medium School Boys race, but met with a stiff challenge from Wyatt Evans at the end.
Ty McCray of Wings surged to an early lead, but most of the trailing pack ended up reeling him in.
Check out over 2,600 photos from Nike Southwest by our very own Harold Smith!
Midway through, Nicole Lawrence and Kaylee Thompson were still battling over the lead, and the field was beginning to string out behind them.
Up until about half-way through the race, the pack of leaders was tight and consistent.
The race standings were a lot different at one mile from what they would end up being at the end.
If you like thinking ahead to next year, you might want to check out how Dakota Ridge fares in a virtual meet of returning runners from NXR-SW.
An interesting thing happens when you plug Allie Chipman's result into the team scoring from NXR-SW.
Utah only results from the 2017 NXN Southwest Regional this past weekend.
Late in the race, Aidan Troutner took on the look of invincibility, while the team race came to a rolling boil behind him.
Lizzie Harding, Elizabeth Constien, and Naomi Harding set up strong early. And, they had some important folks in the rear-view mirror.
Even the evening sky was gearing up for a big race tomorrow!
Quinn McConnell is the top returner from 2016 who will actually be back to run this year.
Top returners from NXR-SW, 2016? How about these two guys?
Will American Fork (UT) continue in its dominance and recent history at NXR Southwest
Aidan Troutner figures as a top contender for an individual berth to NXN on Saturday.
Mountain Vista (Vista Nation) figures to be a force in the open races as well as the championship races.
Alyssa Wells of Holy Family (Colorado) should figure as one of the favorites in the small school girls open race.
Brace yourself for another rousing edition of NXR-SW Boys, but with lots of new faces this time around!
Of course it's another year of hold-your-breath racing shaping up at NXR-SW! And a few girls who stand out from this photo in last year's race are very much in the hunt again this year.
The Flagstaff girls came out the surprising big winner in the Arizona state meet.
The 2016 Boys Championship race descends into the dip.
Grant Gardner led Springville to a Utah 5A state title over Timpanogos and the top place in the boys merge.
We caught up with Matthew Bradley of the Prescott Badgers for our latest Q&A Interview where he talks about running in Prescott and how his teammates have shaped his high school running experience.