Report from Coach Ed
What a fantastic day we had up at the University yesterday!
Congratulations to all the athletes who ran and thank you to all the parents who helped out, and a special big thanks to Coach Hayleigh who did it all herself as I was working at the finish line all day.
You can read the full results below
http://calgarytrackcouncil.com/2012/DOResults11.htmI was very happy about a lot of things. We had thirty athletes who competed, that is almost the entire group.
Almost everyone had PBs in the 60m which tells me you are all getting faster. Some people had huge improvements like Caitlin and Sean who improved by about a half second. That’s a lot in a race that only takes 8 or 9 seconds. Talk about the depth in our group: 1st in 14 yr old girls (Meghan), 2nd in 13 yr old girls (Emma) and 3rd in 12 year old girls (Hanna).
The relays were exciting because we had so many teams and I got to watch so many of you run. Our Midget Boys team (NathanK, Sean, Harrison, Lyle) came second to another team from the CALTAF PD group and our Midget Girls (Merel, Erica, Delainy, Caitlin) proved themselves real competitors in with the older girls and women. Our two Bantam Boys teams came second (EthanP, Liam, Matt, EthanN) and fourth (NathanC, Charles, Adeem, Jeremy). Our Bantam Girls teams came first (MIa, Grace, Lauren, Emma) in a great race with Calgary Olympic Track and sixth (Kiannah, Syd, Maddie, Hawaa). The fact that we can put six relay teams on the track confirms for me the depth of the group and the enthusiasm and commitment the athletes bring to the sport. Thanks so everyone who ran!
I didn’t ask too many of you run the 150m or 200m because they came right after the 4×200 relays, still I saw good early season speed from Cam and Mia, NathanC, Adeem, Harrison, Sean and Ben. Just like in the 60s almost everyone recorded PBs.
The 800s were highly entertaining! I watched all of you run through cross-country season and I’ve been looking forward to some racing on the track. The next meet, on January 8, has both a 600m and a 1000m in it so let’s think about what it will take to run one of those distances now. Sahad’s 2:29 was a PB which goes to show what a little (or in his case a lot) of hard work will do for you.
PBs? For those of you not up on all the track lingo PB stands for Personal Best and it means the fastest you’ve ever run. It is one of the ways we measure success in our group. We all see the races on the track and it’s obvious who wins those but as coaches we look beyond that to the effort and improvement shown by each individual athlete.
Not everyone had a PB on Saturday. Sometimes it just doesn’t happen and that’s OK. Some of you, especially those of you going into second year Midget, have the bar set pretty high already and PBs will take an extraordinary effort to achieve. Don’t worry, keep training, I assure you that for the beginning of the season we are in great shape.
I especially want to congratulate the athletes who are new to our group. You survived your first track meet; well done! Saturday was the first time I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching Sydney, Erica, Merel (great relay leg!), NathanC, Adeem, Charles, Jeremy, SImon, Liam, EthanP and last but not least EthanN (great finish in the 800!).
See you at practice tomorrow!
Coach Ed
