Bozeman High cross country practice started monday at the old fairgrounds loop, except the loop now cuts through a subdivision where sagebrush stood in november. coach dale harrigan pointed out the new cul-de-sac with his clipboard like it was a defensive scheme. the seniors nodded. the freshmen looked for trail markers that don’t exist yet.

“we used to do fartleks past the vet clinic and turn around at the irrigation ditch,” said senior kai rasmussen, adjusting his watch. “now the ditch is a bioswale and the vet clinic has a drive-thru.” the team ran single file past a backhoe idling beside a stacked-stone entrance sign that reads the meadows at gallatin. a dump truck yielded. the runners did not.

assistant coach marnie voss carried a first aid kit and a printed map from 2019. she showed the girls where the new stormwater pond will be by october. “good for hill repeats,” she said. the pond does not exist yet. neither does the hill. the dirt pile might work.

parents leaned on subarus in the parking lot that used to be a hay field. they talked about shoe prices and physical therapy copays and the family in billings who drives up for meets. a kid from the new development asked if the course was marked. a kid from the west side laughed. they ran the same interval together.

harrigan blew the whistle at the place where the old fence line crosses the new sidewalk. “that’s the halfway mark,” he said. “or it will be when they pour the curb.” the watch beeped. the team turned around. the backhoe operator waved.