While many runners came into the high school cross country season in shape after a summer of training, many others did not.

Assessing individual strengths and weaknesses is the job of the coach and it becomes all the more crucial heading into the last month of the season.

Conference meets will be held in the second week of October, followed by regional meets and the state meet at Leavitt High School in Turner. For those lucky enough to qualify, the New England meet is being held at Twin Brooks in Cumberland this year on Nov. 10.

Coaches begin tapering their runners, or cutting back on their training, generally by the week of conference meets. This can mean different training regimens for different runners on the same team.

"The whole peaking thing is different for the kids who don't have as many miles to cut," Mt. Blue coach Kelley Cullenberg said. "It's kind of a guessing game."

Cullenberg leaves little to chance, though. She plans the season by working backward from the New England meet to preseason practices.

"If I need to make adjustments, then it's a simple adjustment," she said.

Cullenberg has runners, like senior Eric Marceau, who put in as many as 55 miles a week, while others are in the 20-25 range. Some trained all summer, while others did nothing. Often the runners themselves have a good idea where they're at.

"If a kid is in their prime and getting ready to run a lifetime best they know it," Cullenberg said. "It's an unmatched feeling."

Cullenberg said the mental aspect of training is more important than the physical, and time is spent on that aspect of training, particularly in preseason. Monmouth coach Rick Amero agrees.

"The biggest challenge with a lot of our runners is confidence," Amero said. "A lot of times kids get very comfortable with the role they're in.

"We're doing a lot of convincing. You can go a long way if you believe what you can do and you're willing to work at it."

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The Festival of Champions, scheduled for Saturday at Troy Middle school in Belfast, will features 52 high school and more than 1,000 runners. The competition for boys and girls is divided into six races -- for freshmen, faster and slower runners based on estimated times -- and scored all together.

"It's unbelievably organized," Monmouth coach Rick Amero said. "It gives us a chance to see where we're at in the regular season and what we need to work on."

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Madison coach Bob Hagopian has one of his larger girls squads this season with 11 runners. And the Bulldogs should be among the favorites for the Mountain Valley conference race, scheduled for Oct. 13 at the University of Maine at Augusta.

Hagopian said he's cut back on mileage in practice this season and concentrated more on speed work.

"I'm trying something different this year just to see what happens," he said. "I think it's working pretty good."

Freshmen Sarah Kirkwood and Krysta Moulton have been key additions to a team that includes seniors Danielle Hebert and Ali Smith and sophomore Gabby Savage.

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The Lewiston boys and the Cape Elizabeth girls top the Maine high school cross country coaches poll this week. The Mt. Blue boys and ranked eighth and the Maranacook girls sixth. Although not among the top 10, the Mt. Blue girls also received some votes.

Mt. Blue coach Kelley Cullenberg cautions against reading too much into the polls. She recalled her girls team in 2001 was ranked first all year and finished third in the state meet.

"I think it's a wonderful tool," Cullenberg said. "But the poll isn't a Bible. Some coaches don't always do their homework before they vote."

Gary Hawkins -- 621-5638

ghawkins@centralmaine.com