Well, I'm learning what it's like to be the head coach of my own team. Yes, it's middle school track, but there is so much legwork that has to take place on a daily basis. I spend my planning periods calling coaches and sports supply stores. Making new contacts and building a coaching network for a program that has been non-existent is so hard. Athletic Directors and Coaches are so hard to track down. I also have a lot more classroom distractions with deliveries, notes from the office, etc. I feel like I'm doing the athletic director's job and my job. I am pretty sure that there are some things that I shouldn't have to handle during the school day. But, I'd rather see the task done myself than to wait for someone else to get it done. The other thing is making sure I have a practice plan for everyday...just like my classroom. I am enjoying the experience thoroughly. Mostly, I love being in charge and running my own show.
After tryouts (and weedouts) we are down to a solid squad of 13. I figured that I wouldn't have many kids in this first year because they aren't used to a coach like me. Going in, I knew that if I could just get a core group that would work everyday and push themselves, we would be fine. We went to a practice meet on March 3rd at Oxford Middle School. I didn't really know what to expect because none of my kids have ever been in a track meet. We did very well at the practice meet though. We won the 3200m and the 300m hurdles. We placed 2nd and 3rd in a few events as well. I was most proud of my 4x400 relay team because we came from 4th place to 2nd place on the last leg. Our performance encouraged the kids because they knew that Oxford has one of the best middle school programs in the state. Our performance there will catapult us through the rest of the season. We have 5 meets scheduled for the rest of the season. I'm optimistic that we can definitely win some meets and perform very well. The next update will come soon!
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