2009
The goal of Assumption Track and Field is to provide girls with an opportunity to participate on a team that is both fun, competitive, and fulfilling. We emphasize team unity and stress the development of important personal qualities that we believe help our girls become better athletes and better people.
Every girl on our team is important, and we work hard to make Track a worthwhile experience for each girl. Our team is organized in such a way as to allow us to meet a wide variety of needs, from general fitness and conditioning to developing girls into National class competitors. Generally speaking, if your goal is to simply be on a team, then Assumption Track has a place for you, and if your goal is to perform on the highest possible level in this sport – maybe even become a Regional or State Champion – then we have a place for you as well.
1. How do I join the Track team? Joining the Track team is a matter of showing up, getting your name on the roster and starting practice. Track is a no cut sport, so there are no try-outs. Before you can practice with us, however, you must have a completed physical and parent permission form on file with the Athletics office (physicals are good for one calendar year). We will eventually close our roster about one week after the postseason concludes for the various Winter Sports teams (this deadline also applies to girls who’ve expressed an interest in track, but have not turned in their physical forms).
2. How many days a
week do we practice? Track works
differently than most other sports in that we ask girls to commit to a specific
practice schedule. Here’s how our system
works:
a) Upon joining the track team, you must first decide on an “event area”. The basic distinction is to decide whether you want to be a distance runner or do something else (i.e. sprinter, hurdler, jumper or thrower). Note that you can always switch groups later on if you change your mind.
b) After deciding on an event area, you must then decide whether to join our Competitive Training Group (Group A) or our General Participation Group (Group B). These groups are discussed in more detail later on. Once you’ve made this decision, your practice schedule is as follows:
· Distance Runners in Group A practice Monday through Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday
· Sprinters, Hurdlers, Jumpers and Throwers in Group A practice Monday through Friday
· All Girls in Group B practice Monday through Thursday
3. How long is
practice? Although there may be
exceptions, a typical practice lasts between 1½ to 2 hours. We begin right after school and are typically
done no later than 5:00-5:15 p.m.
4. What if I work or do some other Spring (club) sport or activity? We expect every girl on our team to regularly attend practice at least 4 days a week (5-6 days if she is in Group A). We understand that things can occur which pull you from practice every once in a while, but regular weekday absences over an extended period of time are not acceptable. We will also not allow girls on the team to regularly skip weekday practices or miss weekday meets in order to do Spring Field Hockey, Club Soccer, work at part-time jobs, etc. Your weekday (i.e. Monday through Thursday or Monday through Friday) commitment must be to the Track team first, and then to these other areas.
Note that this expectation does not extend to weekend activities unless you are a distance runner who would like to participate in Group A. That is, you can definitely run track if your other activities occur on weekends and you’re a sprinter, hurdler, jumper or thrower, or distance runner in Group B. If you’re a Group B distance runner, then we’ll also consider (on a case by case basis) allowing you to substitute a weekend practice for a regularly missed weekday practice. We’re also willing to consider (on a case by case basis) allowing girls to leave a bit early from practice as long as this kind of thing is infrequent.
5. What if I cannot
attend practice on a specific day?
If you cannot attend a specific practice, then you must speak directly
with a coach. Skipping practice can
certainly get you in trouble, but not nearly as much trouble as skipping
practice and saying nothing.
6. What about those two practice groups you mentioned above? Each girl on the team must decide whether to join our Group A or Group B. As mentioned already, the primary difference between these groups is their practice schedule commitment. Here’s a more detailed description of each group.
Competitive Training Group (Group A): girls in Group A will be expected to regularly attend practice between 5 and 6 days a week. If you are a distance runner, then you’ll practice 6 days a week (i.e. Monday through Thursday, Saturday and Sunday). If you’re a sprinter, hurdler, jumper or thrower, then you’ll practice 5 days a week (i.e. Monday through Friday).
There are several benefits associated with joining Group A. First, practicing more days per week allows you to perform on a higher level. If you want to be the best you can be, then Group A is how to get there. Second, Group A girls are at least eligible to attend our better meets such as the overnight or travel meets that our team attends each year. Third, it is only the girls in Group A who are eligible to earn a Varsity letter. If a girl in Group A meets our Varsity lettering standards, then she will earn a Varsity letter at the end of the season. If a girl in Group A does not meet our Varsity lettering standards, then she will still receive a JV certificate.
General Participation Group (Group B): girls in Group B are expected to regularly attend practice Monday through Thursday. The primary benefit associated with joining Group B is that this group allows a girl to do Track without sacrificing weekend activities and events. This group is for girls interested in general participation, staying in shape, etc.; girls who are not interested in earning a Varsity letter. That is, girls in Group B will only receive a JV certificate (including Seniors).
7. Can I do track and still run the Mini? The basic answer is this. It’s not a good idea to mix a competitive HS track season with road races. Road races like the Mini are something we greatly discourage, but are willing to consider allowing on a case by case basis. No one may compete in a road race during the season, however, unless she gets explicit permission from her coach. Understand that even if you get permission to run a race like the Mini, your season could basically end at that point – to allow for adequate recovery time.
8. Do I have to run in meets, or can I just practice with the team and that’s it? Everyone on the team must compete in a minimum of 4 meets, no one is ever allowed to just practice and never compete. The vast majority of our girls will compete in 5-6 meets between March 23 and May 8. When deciding upon meet entries, we always try to enter girls in meets and events that we believe are appropriate for their ability level, development, and interests, while meeting the needs of the team. Experienced girls with greater ability will run in more competitive meets, and less experienced girls who are at a more developmental stage will compete in meets that are more developmental in nature. This year, we’ll also compete in more dual meets (smaller meets that only include 2-3 teams) and in more Frosh-Soph (and hopefully JV) races.
9. Do you have any contact info? Once the season begins, we’ll provide the names and contact info for all the coaches, but the contact info for (Head) Coach Barry Haworth is given below. You can also access plenty of information at our team website, http://track.ahsdistance.org.
Phone: email for phone info
Email (the best way to
contact me): bmhaworth
[at]
or
bmhaworth [at] gmail [dot] com
2009 Assumption Track and Field Schedule
Day Date Meet Location Time
Sat Jan 24 Wildcat
Classic Univ of
Sun Feb 8
Sat Mar 14
Day Date Meet Location Time (field/run)
vs Fern Creek, Male, Eastern Fern Creek HS 4:30
pm
Fri April 3 Challenge
of Champions (Open)
Sat April 4 Challenge
of Champions (Elite)
Fri April 10 Male
Invitational Male
HS 4:30 pm
Fri April 17 Best
in the
Fri April 24 Eastern
Relays Univ of
Sat April 25 Eastern
Relays Univ of
Wed April 29 Academy
Meet (Senior Night, 4pm)* Assumption
SRTC 4:30/5:00 pm
Tues May 5 Area
3 Meet of Champions* Fern
Creek HS 5:00 pm
TBA wk of May 10** Regional
Championship* Fern
Creek HS TBA
Sat May 23 State
Championship Univ of
*
meets where we have hosting duties (i.e. responsible for helping put on the
meet at least in part)
**
the Regional meet is expected to be held somewhere
between Tues, May 12, and Fri, May 15
Note
1:
bold-face = meets where we can and most likely will enter a large number
of girls
Note
2:
underline = “major meet” for our team, where training will focus specifically
on certain girls performing very well
Note
3: there
are 3 mandatory meetings. Chapel meetings are team meetings that are mandatory
for all team members. The Parent meeting
is an informational meeting - optional for team members, but mandatory for
parents.