For all the folks who didn't come to Huntsville who would like to question legitimacy, I hope you find the description below useful. I will admit, I never thought I'd see Ritzenhein's record go down in my life time... but when you see Newbury Park run what they did for a 3 mile early season and then expand it out to 5k weeks later in a championship environment in peak form, It was not out of the ordinary.
From the race website...
Course Construction
Building on the foundations of the old municipal golf course, the City of Huntsville began construction of the Championship Cross Country Course in 2018. Bostick Landscape Architects led the design process with contributions from a cohort of cross-country coaches from the NCAA, USATF, and NFHS levels. The City of Huntsville has a record of constructing world class athletic venues to accommodate regional and national championships, recently displayed in the 2019 opening for the $3.7 million Sand Volleyball Complex at John Hunt Park and the $22 million 2017 renovation of the Huntsville Aquatic Center.
Facility Features
Found in the 428-acre athletic facility of John Hunt Park, the Championship Cross Country Course balances groves of trees and sculpted ponds with an open viewing experience for spectators and recreational community members. The course itself is composed of Bermuda grass and trimmed to optimal competition height during cross country season, and is flanked by signs for 5k, 6k, 8k, and 10k routes. Looping around the course is 2.1 mile of an 8-foot wide rubber path for all-weather recreational use. The spectator experience is unparalleled, featuring unimpeded hillside viewing areas throughout the competition venue. Adjoining the starting area are team tent and vendor areas, with nearby restroom facilities. To ensure that measurements remain stable through seasons and various competition markings, Geodetic Survey GPS signaling datums are used throughout the course. At the finish and key timing locations along the routes, electrical and fiber sources are permanently incorporated into the venue. Since its opening in September 2019, the John Hunt Championship Cross Country facility has hosted major competitions including the 2021 South Regional Championship (NCAA Division I) and the 2020 Gulf South Conference Championships (NCAA Division II), along with the ACAA State Championships since 2019.
Course Detail
The starting line is 100m wide. From the start, the course is straight for 650m, with the first 250m being 1% downgrade, flattening out for 100m then up at 1% for 300m to the first turn. The course does not narrow to 10m in width until 650m. The first turn is a gradual sweeping right with a downhill grade of 3%, and flattens as you cross the 1K mark. The course remains flat for the next 400m and then takes a sweeping right turn around a pond towards the 1 Mile mark. The next 400+m are flat with slight bends until a left turn takes you uphill at a 2% grade over a 150m stretch. just past the 2K mark is a left over a slight downhill into a sweeping right turn. The next stretch of 400m begins with a 2% uphill grade for 100m. The course then takes a wide 180-degree left turn before straightening prior to the 3K mark. The next 300m are straight and flat as it crosses the 2 Mile mark and leads to a 2% downhill grade for 100m. A sweeping right turn covering 75m leads to a 250m stretch at 6% uphill grade. Upon cresting the hill the grade goes downward at a 2% grade for 250m, then flat for 25m before crossing the 4K mark, where it doglegs left. The course stays straight for 250m and then makes a 150m long sweeping right turn over a 1% uphill grade before straightening out and declining at 3% over 200m. This stretch continues flat for 150m until the 4750m mark, where it makes a gradual right turn over 100m, with the final 150m being straight to the finish line.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jWXGuXCApMZ-8ODHOD8ehm2sG-q52cn5bkIruauPQ20/edit