The 3rd Annual More Cowbell Invitational is scheduled this Thursday at Star Valley View Golf Course as SVHS Cross-Country will host up to 17 teams to officially open their season.

Named for the famous Saturday Night Live skit in which guest-host Christopher Walker portrays rock legend Bruce Dickinson as Blue Oyster Cult records their hit “Don’t Fear the Reaper,”  Walken insists that he’s “gotta have more cowbell!” It is Walken’s character that is the trophy for the event which comes in the form of a giant cutout.

“This race is just something a little different,” replied head coach Ty Draney. “We do a predict-your-time and there’s an award for that. And we do a Queen and King of the Hill. There’s a t-shirt for that. We try and prove that working hard and having fun aren’t mutually exclusive.”

Beyond the fun background for the runners, the event is also a well-organized and challenging course which has helped it explode in popularity among regional schools in just the third year.

There will be two race sections for the teams. The Crimson Girls race will begin at 4 p.m. followed by the Crimson Boys. This will then be followed by the Gold Girls race and then the Gold Boys race. The Star Valley runners will be competing in the Gold races.

“We want teams to be able to run together and the numbers kind of exploded so that’s why we are doing the two sections,” Draney said.

• Smoky Conditions

With the growth of the Willow Creek Fire burning south of Smoot, the status of the skies will be part of the event. The Air Quality Index (AQI) is used for cross-country events. A number of 50 and under is considered Green. From 51-100 it is Moderate and could be an issue for sensitive athletes. Orange is from 101-150 and anything above 150 is considered unhealthy.

“ We will be monitoring the smoke, Draney continued. “Hopefully the fire cooperates. It’s an air quality issue. Most events shut it down at a reading of 150. Right now [Monday] its 60. We have not reached that threshold even through this past weekend. It was around 120 this past Saturday. However, if we hit that 150 threshold, the meet would be canceled.”

This is also the only chance for fans to watch the Star Valley runners locally as their season will take them on the road for the remainder of the schedule. The Cardinal Classic in Soda Springs on September 6 will be followed by the Idaho Falls Invite on September 12. Runners will also be in Tillamook, Oregon on September 20 with others running in Rexburg, Idaho on September 25.

The 4A West Regionals will take place in Casper on October 17 with the state meet in Cheyenne on October 25.

Even coming off a three-peat in Wyoming’s 4A on the boys side, Draney says this has been an impressive summer for the SVHS runners.

“We’re excited with where we’re at,” he concluded. “I have a hard time believing we’ve ever had a better summer in terms of the miles put in. We’re super excited. We’ll know a lot more on Thursday. We’ll have some concrete data to compare.”