“Switchbacks,” “Poop Out,” and “Reservoir,” are words that, for many runners in California, bring back memories of pain, triumph, and agony, but above all, the fond memory of competing at the famed Mt. SAC cross country course. For the past 67 years, Mt. SAC has given athletes from around the country the chance to share in an experience that has brought runners together over multiple generations.

The first Mt. SAC Cross Country Invitational took place in 1948, when cross country was in its infancy in the U.S. Most schools in California didn’t have running programs, which prevented many teams from competing against one another.

The coaches at Mt. San Antonio College made a decision to promote the sport by creating a cross country invitational to allow schools who might not otherwise meet to have a chance to race. At the time, there were no regional, state or interstate championship competitions.

With 148 runners competing for 10 schools and nine community colleges, the first Mt. SAC Cross Country Invitational was born.

Meet director Doug Todd remembers the revolutionary innovations that have taken place over the years.

“If anything can be said about Mt. SAC is that it’s innovative,” Todd said, “And I say that because I haven’t been here forever but we’re so proud of the people that were here before and all that they’ve done.”



Also the Director of Cross Country and Track & Field, Todd arrived at Mt. SAC in 1992 and has coached the Mounties to 14 California community college state track and cross country championships. He may not have been present for the first Mt. SAC invite, but Todd appreciates the monumental steps his colleagues took to grow the sport.

“Even something as silly as saying, ‘Ok you gotta wear shoes now,’ we mandated shoes in the race, and even our timing system has progressed over the years.”

According to the Mt. SAC website, runners in the early years chose not to wear shoes while racing on the dirt paths of the course, causing callouses to act as protection. Many runners would rip the callouses off, exposing their bloody feet to the elements of the course, but smarter racers would wear a gymnastic-type shoe for protection. Thankfully, shoes were mandated on the course in 1965.

In the late 1970’s, Mt. SAC became the first invitational to include a women’s division where women competed in races at the same meet as the men.

“Mt. SAC was the first place to make the women’s race on par with the men, keep records and give out the same awards.” Todd recalled, “That’s definitely a proud moment in the legacy of this event.”

In 1998, Mt. SAC became the first invitational to use a big screen to showcase award presentations and live footage of races, giving fans unprecedented access to the meet experience. Todd remembers the beginning years of using the big screen, where he and other event coordinators showed the movie, “Running Brave” the night before the meet. They even brought the movie’s star, Olympic gold medalist Billy Mills to the showing for young runners to meet after the film.

Today, a production crew sets up six cameras throughout the course to show 90 percent of the race on the big screen as well as a live stream for viewers to watch online. There have also been talks of including a drone to help film portions of the race, an addition that may be made next year.

Along with it’s rich, extended history of innovation, Mt. SAC has been the site of many young runners getting their first taste of intense competition in a larger than life atmosphere. Famed alums such as the dominant 1972 Lompoc boys cross country team, the nail-biting dual in 2005 between Diego Mercado and A.J. Acosta, and the course record-setting run by Sarah Baxter in 2012 are just a few individuals that sent crowds in a frenzy.

Four-time Mt. SAC sweepstakes champion Jordan Hasay remembers the atmosphere well.

“Knowing how competitive and historic the meet is, it is truly an honor to be a four-time champion,” Hasay recalled. “It was the first meet of my career as a high school freshman that really had the feel of a championship atmosphere.”


Photo By: Margot Kelly

While running for Mission Prep Catholic High School, Hasay captured the third-fastest time ever run on the course (16:27) in 2008, just behind Amber Trotter (16:16) and Sarah Baxter (16:00). At the time, Hasay was the only runner, male or female, to capture four Mt. SAC titles in her career, until Sarah Baxter accomplished the feat a few years later. A 15-time All American at Oregon, Hasay now runs professionally for the Nike Oregon Project.

“My mom always used to film my races in high school and she would run around to get parts of the course,” Hasay said.

“One year on the film you can see me coming up reservoir and my high school coach is running up the other side. He got about halfway up but then you see him get all flustered and head back down because I was already at the top! Haha. Guess I was too fast for him!”

While the elite group of runners continue to stun crowds over the years, the atmosphere of continuous elite races (starting every seven minutes), enthusiastic crowds, and advanced technology have provided a venue to create true fans of the sport at every level, an accomplishment that Todd is especially proud of.

“Once all the greats go home and all the media go home, we’re still banging out races for the girl who is trying to run 19:59,” Todd said.

“On Saturday when everybody has gone home, we’re still kicking ass, giving out medals and broadcasting all those average kids so they leave going, ‘cross country is awesome!’ so they become fans.”

Today, the Mt. SAC Cross Country Invitational hosts 25,000 runners in 115 races beginning Friday, on the same path that the first barefoot runners toed the line 67 years ago.

Every runner, elite or average, will have their time on the big screen.