Mailbag 011

This is obviously a complex answer and is different for every school and coach. The biggest factors in building a program at my school were commitment from me and ownership from the kids. No one came to summer practices until I started showing up. I didn't take attendance, I was just there and it was optional. We also have them track their miles over the summer and if they reach their goal, they get a free shirt. I have seen the biggest performance improvement come from a good summer base. It takes one or two kids doing it, making state, then it catches on like wildfire. Other kids believe they can do it too. There are other factors such as overnight trips to meets, high standards and accountability, recruiting, a clear vision and a core group (or dirty dozen as Pat Tyson calls it) of runners to lead by example. Take that group of kids who “get it” and if you can get results out of them, others will be attracted and momentum will build. Hope this helps. It takes time and patience. It took four years to qualify our first team to state.

Coach,

I don'tknow it al, however we've had a fairly successful program for a number of years andhere are a few tips.  I view the success of our program in a number of ways, the lasting relationships built with former athletes,the high levle of participation,the pride in the program and performance at both the state levle and the national level.  Some ideas-

1)  I'd start by
stressing citizenship, academics first, and school involvement.  In other words, I'd work on the relationship
with the faculty, staff, and administration to a make the team one the school
takes ownership of.  I'd make sure that
the whole school knows I am a “campus person” . 
Grades, involvement in a variety of areas, and citizenship are important. 

2)  I'd be as
communicative as possible with the families involved.  E-mails, web-sites, parent meetings, sharing
of ideas, rules and policies.  Make the
program as transparent as possible.  Get
the parents behind you and you are golden. 

3)  I'd place
sportsmanship at a premium.  Rivalries
would be all positive.  We, at _____ High
School, would be humble champions and gracious when defeated. 

4)  I'd set the
example by being a coach that only speaks positively of all thing relative to
XC.  I would talk nice about the poorest
of teachers on campus, have kind words for the school and administration.  I’d support football and soccer, kill the most
picky and cranky parent with kindness, 
tell my kids that the biggest hot dog of a runner or the most showy of
teams simply needs to do things their own way.

5) I'd find a way to get alumni involved once we get
some.  Alumni runs, alumni gear, alumni
as asst. coaches. 

6)  I'd treat all
kids equally.  My slowest of runner would
get the same uniform as my fast guy.  The
least dedicated could still go first in line at the pre-race meal.  One who goes from 27:30 down to 27:00 flat
one week would get recognized just like a kid that cuts :30 seconds off of a
17:00 5K.  This cannot be understated – I’d
treat every kid equally.    

7)  I'd value
youth.  My varsity would get attention,
but my next year's varsity would get equal attention, as would my potential
varsity 3 years down the road.  We’d
have, and we do at my school, Big Dogs and Soon to be Big Dogs. 

8)  I'd should the
kids, without telling them how much I love them and how dedicated I am to
them.  I'd be first at practice and last
to leave.  I'd send them an e-mail or a
letter on occasion, I'd remember their hobbies, and their parents' names. I'd
ask to be invited to their graduation, their wedding, and their daughter's
confirmation. 

9)  I'd have a
philosophy of training. Written out. 

10)  I'd keep track
of every kid's time, for every meet, every year.  I’d try and memorize some of them so the kids
knew I cared about their performance. 
With the times I’d then compare them from year to year.  I’d post it where all could see.   

11)  I'd wear a
smile.  When we win, when we lose, my
demeanor would be the same.    

12)  I would not
let poor performances get me down.  To
this day they still sting but I’d get over them quick and not let other know
how much it hurts.

13)  I'd think long
range. I’d plan, endlessly I’d plan.  I’d
be taking notes for next year’s workouts right now.   

I4)  I'd work them
hard. 

15) I’d work them often. 

16)  I'd keep learning.  I’d read, go to clinics, talk to coaches, and
watch good programs, good coaches, and good kids. 

17)  I'd be willing
to change.  I'd be flexible. 

18)  I'd be
understanding.   I'd listen. I'd
understand that not everyone want out of athletics the same thing.  Not everyone has it in them to set the world
on fire. 

19)  I do social things with them, I'd take them camping, to a camp (Jay's) or just have Wednesday night bowling. 

20)  I'd work
endlessly, but balance that with my teaching, my family, and my life.   I’d never waiver.

Focus on making it special to be a part of the team…focus on the “prestige” factor.   Don't worry about small numbers now- focus on a core group that are dedicated.   Let them know they matter by establishing team rules that reinforce dedication to the program itself.   Take attendance daily and do a “3 strike and you are off the team” policy.  You have nothing to lose by being strict about the rules and engagement of the kids into your policies- it lets the small amount of kids you have know you care about them and respect what they are doing…it will take a few years, but your program will build respect, improve, and attract dedicated kids.  To funnel younger kids into your program have a daycamp over summer for middle school and younger kids- focus on the fun factor and scale everything back, but have your High School kids be the counselors.   Focus on team building activities, this will help you see “who really cares” on the High School side- you will get your captains that way.  Additionally, you are giving your counselors a skill set to be leaders in your program.   Plus the High School kids will automatically be your best recruiters…the middle school and younger kids will view them as leaders, recognize them when they get to the high school, and see you as the face of the program.   You wouldn't believe how far it goes for the 9th graders to see a friendly face when they get to the high school- this will help you get the foundation of the team.  The camp doesn't have to be hard core, but give the kids a taste of the 5k HS distance, do a time trial for the campers at the end of the camp week- everyone gets a shirt that does all 5 days of camp and have a pizza party and give out prizes at the end.   The camp can be a 5 day venture…about 3 hours each day- but a very scaled back version of what you do at the HS level…the key is introduce some of the terminology with types of activities…aerobic, anarobic(sic), tempo, interval, hills, fartlek, and various strength exercises.   I am a head high school coach for track, xc, and indoor track.   5 years ago we had to beg to get 5 girls on the line for races and the guys team really didnt take the sport seriously.  So we felt we had “nothing to lose” by revamping the program.   Start with encouraging a short set of rules and reward the kids with “athlete of the week” (free socks) and shirts for kids that run a certain mileage (“250 mile club”) that is doable but attainable for the level of the program.   In our conference now we finish consistantly in the top 18 or better out of 50 teams on both the girls and boys sides.   We still are learning how to improve the program, but we now have a “tight knit” group of 28 boys and 27 girls- they understand the expectations set before them.   We set the bar high and they want to reach it.   Utilize the resources at the high school if you are a teacher there- we have shop teachers and kids build us a “wall of fame” plaque where we add the 250 mile club members after each summer.  I hope this rambling didn't run too long, the main thing, it keep working at it and your program will improve- but DON'T lower your expectations…when kids see you care and want kids to improve it will attract what you want.   Team first mentality is how to get kids to buy in.

Thank you coaches for all of the feedback! I will definitely revisit many of these recommendations as I plan for the remainder of this year and into next year. I will also take Nick's advice and borrow many of these ideas when I take the helm of my own cross country program, whenever that is. You are all a great service to the greater cross country good and specifically the kids whose lives you touch. Thanks again for all of your input.

Well, in little Socorro, NM, we did build a program from nothing.  

We are now in our 4th season as a school sport and we have had 3 different girls win the individual district title thus far and as a team we have collected one district championship and one runner-up from the boys team and 2 runner up finishes for the girls.  From that first year when I only had 2 girls running and my boys were not able to qualify as a team for the state championships, we finished last year as the 7th and 8th best class 3A teams in NM.  Good thing we don't run 4A with coach Kedge and his Academy Chargers!

This season we have our first 4 year runners and our girls team outnumbers the boys with a 19 – 15 advantage.

From this experience, I feel that bringing in as much fun as possible has been crucial to getting kids to join.  Running long distances is something most kids would not associate with fun but if you can get them to come out because of the fun, that's half the battle.  Remember, this is high school.  Go to running camps in the summer, go camping on Saturday nights after a race during the season (and run the next morning out in some mountains), attend spike nights at local running stores, surprise the team with ice cream sandwiches after a tough practice, have pasta parties, movie nights, give out runner of the week t shirts, volunteer at a local road race or triathlon, host a fun race like a handicap run or a doughnut mile….

The other half would be turning them into dedicated performance runners as opposed to participatory athletes.  On my team we have both and I feel that there is room on the team for anyone that comes out but even my slowest and most out of shape runners have goals.  They turn those goals in and we remind ourselves about those goals often and we celebrate checking those goals off the list as they are achieved.  Then we make new goals.  So, in a sense, everyone is a performance runner on the team.  Ownership. 

This week is our Homecoming week and because the type of kid that runs XC is usually higher achieving in the classroom as well, we have lots of kids that make up student council and they are busy making floats for the parade, hosting activities throughout the week for the school, and getting ready for the dance.  I truly hate this week because of all the distractions but it seems that this year the only kids I am trying to convince that yes, they can make it to practice and still work on parade floats are the freshman.  The older kids, although just as involved and even more so, are there everyday.  They have now bought into the program.  

Hope this helps some.

Coach Montoya