Phoenix,
Our first meet is in the books. It was great to get out and compete and give us an idea of what we need to do in training to get better every day. The highlight for me was everyone getting on the line to run a 4x4 at the end of the meet. Working hard as a team, and having fun, is what we need to be about.
This update is going to be a bit lengthy, so buckle up, but like tbh, it's solid. I don't have any Severance references today, so I apologize in advance for those who only came to look for Easter eggs hidden in the update.
We as coaches learned a lot about our team, and I hope you learned some things that will help you moving forward as well. We encourage you to become a student of your events, ask questions of your coaches with the intent to learn. We have very knowledgeable coaches with great experience. On the sprint/hurdle side with Brian, Marianne, Sahara, and Rachel, there is a ton of experience, and current talent in the case of BYU's Marianne. Sahara and Marianne have arranged their lives for this year to help you out, so tap in to their knowledge while you can (we have almost exactly 2 months remaining). Ask about their experiences and technical knowledge. Ask for them to critique your start or mechanics. Ask why they want your blocks set a certain way.
Our vault coaches have so much experience and knowledge, we're fortunate to have two coaches there to help more athletes, as well as throws, jumps, and distance. When they tell you a reason, ask them why. The other day Austin and I had an interesting chat about the
why of standing up gradually and hitting top speed later in a 100m race as opposed to hitting top speed early, all because he asked questions with the intent to learn and improve. When your field coaches tell you how to do an approach, if you don't know why that is, ask, with the goal to understand not undermine, to strategize not skepticize (I totally thought I made that word up, turns out it is
legit). When you seek to learn and understand, you'll be better able to implement the techniques and methods necessary to reach your full potential.
Practices
Even if you are not in the 8th period class, you still need to be scanning in on A days. That is how we remember who has been attending, and who we will enter into meets. We have over 130 kids who have attended a practice this year, so it's very difficult to remember who has been attending and when. Which is crazy because we should all just attend every day, with rare exception, so then it's easy to remember when you've missed.
Figure out your schedules so you can be at practice. Every day matters. On days when your motivation is low, that's when you need it most. That is when you create habits and develop discipline that will allow you to be successful.
I said this the other day, but I'll say it here too. Odds are every single one of you will have a PR or seasonal best at some point after our first meet. That's all well and good, but, truthfully, isn't that hard, especially the more inexperienced you are. The less experienced you are, the more significant your adaptations and fitness improvements are with less work. Even if the only time you cared about getting a PR was on race day, most would would see an improvement, albeit, far from what you would with true consistent effort and care.
Caring only on race day, or test day, is a sure way to feeling unsatisfied. What is important is working to reach your full potential for the season and beyond. It's not just about getting better, although we are always striving for improvement. It's about building daily habits that will allow you to reach your full potential as a track athlete and a person.
Take Brayden Scoresby, for instance. This is a kid who barely dipped under a 7 minute avg for 5k his sophomore year, and then ran about 5:30 in the mile that spring. His junior year he saw a big jump in the 5k, shaving off a cool 30s per mile and another 30s in the mile in Track. This year, he ran 5k at very nearly his sophomore MILE pace. Had he not developed a stress fracture he likely would have made it. Since healing up and recovering, he's gone under 4:50 in the mile already, and looks poised to have another big jump. While he was cooking a workout the other day, I remarked to some of his teammates, in my typical dry but joking tone, "do you guys remember when Scoresby was slow?" He's a far cry from who he used to be. Years ago, after his first race, I wouldn't have predicted how fast he'd become. But after seeing his work ethic, I'm no longer surprised. I can't remember who said it, but in response to my question, he said, "yeah but he's been crazy consistent." Even his teammates have noticed his consistency. And now he's generating interest from programs like Snow College.
If the only time he cared about having a PR was on race day, then he'd still be "slow", but slightly faster (slow is all relative, and I said it as a means of comparison between where he was, and where he is now. 7 minute avg for 5k isn't "slow", but compared to how fast he is now, it is.) But Brayden didn't care only on race day. He cared every day and gave his best effort day in and day out and as a result has seen more improvement than nearly anyone I've ever coached. If there is someone who is tapping into their potential, it's Brayden, and he will continue to see a lot of improvement. He became a student of the sport, he is passionate, and he is a fantastic teammate who joys in the success of those around him.
And what's fascinating is that this is only part of Brayden's story. There is a lot more to it, both in the past and future.
This week/meet hosting
This week we will be hosting a meet over the span of two days, the Super Meet. On Wednesday the girls will compete while the boys "work" the meet. On Thursday, the roles will reverse. I say "work" because everyone will have a job and will be responsible in helping us put on a great day for competition.
As has been explained since the beginning of the year, everyone is expected to help at each of the track meets that we host, from start to finish. We will scan in at the start, and then out at the end. Those leaving early will not get credit for the day. With over 120 kids on the team, I cannot be fielding all the exceptions and reasons for missing for each athlete. The expectation is that you are there the entire time so arrange your schedule to be there both days.
Your goal in your various jobs is to make this experience as great as possible for the competitors and spectators. That means doing your job as best you can, both quickly and correctly. If we need hurdles moved, you'd do it without waiting to be asked.
Each of you will have an assigned job. I will post that job list in the various groupme chats and in canvas. Descriptions of those jobs are on there as well.
Thank you for all you're doing. Let's continue to strive to hit our full potential day in and day out.
Coach Jacobson
