Skip To Main Content

MHS Hosts Annual #R4RYK Cross Country Festival

Post RSS Feeds
A group of young women in athletic wear and medals stand behind a banner with sponsors' logos, while two adults stand in front of them, with a water tower visible in the cloudy background.
MHS Hosts Annual #R4RYK Cross Country Festival
J.D. Peak
The Moore High School cross-country program will host the annual #R4RYK Cross Country Festival at 8 a.m., Sept. 12, at its field course located behind the First Moore Baptist Church in Moore. The race serves as a meet for MPS and surrounding cross-country teams, with this being the first of two home meets.
 
The #R4RYK meet began as a way to honor and remember MHS cross-country runners Rachel Freeman, Yuridia Martinez and Kolby Crum, who tragically passed after being struck and killed on Feb. 3, 2020, during their after-school practice runs. Many runners write #R4RYK on their arms or legs to remind them that they Run for Rachel, Yuridia and Kolby.   
 
MHS Cross-Country coach Dustin Mettler has made several efforts to grow the race since joining MHS in 2024. He said it has grown from 10 to 26 teams in only two years. This year, he reached out to metro-area K-12 schools and colleges and saw participant numbers explode. The event's current numbers include over 30 teams and 1,122 runners.
 
The race is now open to elementary, junior high and college students. If an elementary athlete is interested in running the race, the cost is $10 per runner, payable by cash or check at registration.
 
Registration for the event ends at 5 p.m., Sept. 11. The cost for spectators to enter is $5 per car and all proceeds go back to MHS Cross Country for expenses and the Memorial Scholarship.
 
This year’s list of colleges attending the race includes the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, Murray State, Northwestern Oklahoma State University, Seminole State and Redlands Community College.
 
The #R4RYK event consists of two college races, two high school varsity races, two high school junior varsity races, two junior high races and one elementary race. College men will run an 8K, college women and high school athletes will run a 5K, junior high will run two miles and elementary athletes will run one mile.
 
The top 10 race finishers will receive a T-shirt, and the top 20 will get a medal. All elementary participants will receive a medal. 

To get colleges interested in this race is really a big deal. It means a lot; this will benefit both colleges and high school athletes. They'll be able to get recruited and watch a college race all in one day. 

- Dustin Mettler, MHS Cross-Country Coach
A large hashtag and letters are painted in red and blue on a dry, grassy field in the foreground, with a water tower and a soccer goal visible in the distance under a cloudy blue sky.
On the list of K-12 teams participating are MHS, MHS's junior high team, Edmond Memorial High School, Northwest Classen High School, Durant High School, Altus High School, Altus Junior High School, John W. Rex Charter Junior High School, Belle Isle Enterprise High School, Belle Isle Middle School, Norman North Middle School, Noble High School, Curtis Inge Middle School, Mount St. Mary High School, Bishop McGuinness High School, Bishop McGuinness' junior high team, Blanchard High School, OKC Knights Homeschool high school team, OKC Knights Homeschool junior high team, Calumet High School, Calumet Elementary School, Del City Middle School, Cache High School, Millwood High School, John Marshall Middle School, OKC Storm Athletics high school team, Southeast High School, Southmoore High School, SHS's junior high team, Sapulpa High School, MacArthur High School, Terra Verde School's junior high team, Westmoore High School junior varsity, WHS' junior high team, Piedmont High School and Middle School of Piedmont.
 
Mettler said First Moore Baptist Church partnered with MHS in 2018 to provide land on their campus to host cross-country meets. This partnership has provided MHS runners with a safe, nearby space to compete. The course has seen many changes throughout the years but was most recently restructured last year after a portion of the course was rained out. 
 
Mettler has also focused on making the #R4RYK Cross-Country Festival not just a race, but a celebration. This year, a live DJ will be present, and Red Coyote, DJ Wolfe's Icy Delights, Kettle Popstars, Big Lenny's BBQ, Surf Bar, Okie Bean, Some Like It Tot and Fizz RX are race vendors.
 
“I hope everyone has a great time and enjoys the environment. It's important to our cross-country community because it is a celebration of the lives of Rachel, Yuridia and Kolby.
 
"We use a portion of the proceeds of our cross-country meet to put into the Memorial Scholarship that is dedicated to them," said Mettler.
A grassy track with %22FINISH LINE%22 painted on it stretches towards a distant horizon, flanked by blue banners advertising %22MOORE LIONS TRACK & FIELD%22 under a cloudy sky.
A blue feather flag with %221 Mile In Memory Kolby Crum%22 printed on it stands in a grassy field with trees in the background under a clear blue sky.
A medal with a lion emblem and a blue ribbon is held in a hand, with a blurred outdoor background of grass and a traffic cone.
A large hashtag and letters are painted in red and blue on a dry, grassy field in the foreground, with a water tower and a soccer goal visible in the distance under a cloudy blue sky.
A male runner in a blue singlet and red shorts runs toward the camera with his fingers in his ears and tongue out, while spectators and cheerleaders stand in the background. This picture was taken by Moore Monthly
A group of young women in athletic wear stand in a grassy field holding up t-shirts and wearing medals, with tents and a clear blue sky in the background.
A person in a blue shirt holds a sign that says %22IN HONOR OF #R4RYK%22 with a green Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon logo, while blurred figures and trees are visible in the background.
A group of young male cross-country runners stand proudly with their medals in front of a banner, while a water tower and a distant field are visible in the background.
A group of young athletes in t-shirts and shorts stand on a grassy field with two adults, under a clear blue sky.
A large red banner welcoming people to the #R4RYK Cross-Country Festival stretches across the foreground against a backdrop of green trees and a cloudy blue sky.