During Family Weekend, Dickinson College opened a new 5k cross country course to serve as a tribute to Don Nichter, head cross country and track & field coach, according to the Dickinson College website.

Nichter explained that the new course is favorable for the runners. “The new 5K course provides a soft runner surface free of traffic concerns [which is] a tremendous benefit for our distance runners to be able to train in a safe and challenging running environment.” 

Joel Quattrone, director of athletics explained that the renovation of the course has allowed the team to use it as a home course and gave a space for the team to compete at Dickinson. “We have always wanted a course that would permit us to have competitive events at home, and also provide a great training facility for our student-athletes,” Quattrone said. Nitchter added that the course is a “wonderful asset for our overall program and we already looking forward to hosting […] many events in the future.” 

Quattrone explained that the goal of the project was to have the entire course on Dickinson’s property. He said, “the old course wasn’t long enough, and also connected to a Carlisle borough park. In addition, the surface, in many spots, was comprised of larger stones, which was not runner-friendly.” Quattrone explained that the project took about two months to complete. 

Elaina Clancy ’22 said that “In the past, we have relied on a neighboring high school, Big Spring, to graciously allow us to use their facilities. We never really had a clearly defined course to call our own.” Clancy also explained that the course was funded through alumni donations. “Beyond use for the cross country team, it is also a wonderful addition to the campus for clubs and other groups to use for recreation or their own fundraising 5ks,” Clancy said. 

Ethan Burg ’20, a runner on the cross country team said “it gives us plenty of trail space to run safely on the road and away from traffic, which is important come later in the season as it gets dark out earlier.” 

“I’m grateful that money was donated for the course because it is an asset to the team for training and hosting meets,” Matt Loalbo ’20 said.