The Student news source for West Shore Junior/Senior High School

The Roar

The Student news source for West Shore Junior/Senior High School

The Roar

The Student news source for West Shore Junior/Senior High School

The Roar

Track-season training under way

With cross country recently ended and track season just around the corner, several runners are training on their own in order to prepare for the first track practice Jan. 17.

“After training hard throughout the cross country season, every runner is supposed to take a well-deserved 10- to 14-day break to recover before track training begins,” said top varsity runner Jacob Smite. “I’m mostly planning on doing high mileage with longer workouts and some cross training like swimming and biking in order to keep my endurance up.”

The track athletes are in for a change with Sue Gregory stepping up as the new head coach. Many of the athletes are cross country runners who have gotten used to having Jason Whitworth and Jim Finch as their head coaches for years. Gregory has been asked to take over the position because Whitworth and Finch have other commitments.

“I haven’t heard too much about Coach Gregory and her coaching since in the past years she has only worked with the sprinters, but she seems like she has the right mindset of a good coach and wants us all to do our best and have success throughout the season,” varsity captain Kate Crowley said.

Gregory has organized conditioning sessions for new athletes and ones motivated to get ahead. The conditioning will start Monday and continue until the season officially begins. Gregory plans to focus on lifting weights to assist in strengthening the sprinters and throwers.

The long-distance runners will work on building endurance by running a good amount of mileage. Form running will also be incorporated into the practices as it is essential to proper running technique.

“It always feels good to be part of a team, so I’m more than ready to get back in the routine of things for track season,” Smithe said. “In the past, there have only been a few at conditioning each year, but I already know people are running themselves, so I think we might have a better turnout this year. Overall, I don’t take track too seriously since cross country is my main sport. It is basically just to keep in shape. But my main goal for the season is to hit 4:40s in the mile.”

More to Discover