With every sports team comes quirky traditions, and the Leesville track team is no exception. Every season, the track team holds The Cheerwine mile: 4 laps, 4 cans of Cheerwine.
The Cheerwine mile is as straightforward as it sounds: The participants drink Cheerwine and run a mile as fast as they can.
Nick Barefoot, previous Cheerwine mile winner, said, “Sean Nicol [cross country captain when first Cheerwine mile occurred] was talking about doing a running event that’s not a normal running event like the beer mile, but we’re in high school so it’s not legal. And most runners like Cheerwine, so we just organized the mile one day after cross country practice”.
The rules to the mile are simple — one can must be consumed before every lap. Before running the lap, the can must be overturned on top of the runners head to prove it’s empty.Throwing up results in immediate disqualification, and no tampering with other competitor’s soda.
The first Cheerwine mile was organized in 2014 with only cross country LRHS boys partaking. Since then, the participant list has expanded to also include any track team member.
Brock Johnston, a participant, said, “It’s really fun seeing everyone out there trying their best. People are so competitive about it, but everyone struggles with it so it’s pretty funny to watch.”
While the task of trying to complete a Cheerwine mile might seem daunting, Jamal Mohamad has participated in several miles. He said, “[The best part is] finishing. Definitely the accomplishment of finishing.”
To find out more about the cheerwine mile, follow the twitter account CheerwineMile here. So, who’s up for the challenge?
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