5 reasons why I coach middle school runners
This post is by Jeff McCloud, head coach for the Elizabethtown Middle School track and field and cross country teams.
Two years ago, I had this crazy idea to apply to be the head coach of the Elizabethtown Middle School’s cross country team. Having completed three half marathons and returned to running after a 25-year hiatus from high school cross country and track, I thought I had the background and knowledge to help middle schoolers begin to enjoy running. My son was also in 8th grade at the time, and he was willing for me to step out of the Dad role and be his coach. Then, in the spring of 2015, I got involved with coaching the middle school track team and this year became the head coach.
Let me be honest. I did not enjoy my experience in junior high 30-some years ago. I remember how I acted, and how the rest of the kids in my school acted. And it’s not inaccurate to say I was a little apprehensive about coaching that age group. With two seasons of cross country under my belt, and my second track season ending this week, coaching young runners and athletes has quickly become a more rewarding experience than I ever expected. Here are 5 reasons why.
Kids respond when you set expectations high
In junior high, I played basketball, and I remember that the coach ran honest-to-goodness practices where we were learning plays and how to compete and win games. Yes, there were plenty of times when we young players had to practice some of the basics — do they still put blinders on kids so they can practice dribbling without looking down at the ball? — but that’s how it goes. So from Day 1, I designed cross country practice that isn’t half baked. A typical practice, after warming up, stretching and doing drills, might be running 3 miles, two laps of striders on the track and then a round of ab work and plyometric exercises. While many of the kids might be new to running, I expect them to do the entire workout and not walk. And they do, largely without complaining (although it wouldn’t be running if someone didn’t gripe about having to do hill repeats again!).
Everyone runs — and everyone improves
Cross country and track are unique sports in that everyone runs – just like everyone lines up for a 5K. No one is cut from the team, and no one sits on the bench. Some people are slower than others, and that’s OK because it’s as much about individual improvement as it is about winning. Last year, at my first optional practice for cross country, I had everyone jog two laps as part of their warmup. One 7th-grade boy couldn’t make it around the first turn on the track before walking. I admit that I thought, “What did I get myself into?” But darned if he didn’t stick with it, and by the end of the season wasn’t just finishing the 2-mile races – his time dropped from 19:28 to 17:15. He also came out for track and was running the 1600 and the workouts, all without stopping to walk. He didn’t win a race during cross country season or during track, but you have to call him a winner.
Good sportsmanship rules the day
At my very first meet as a coach, an incident occurred that threw me for a loop. I was unaware that it happened until my athletic director stopped me after practice and told me about it. A number of the girls from my team cheered on the last-place runner from other school’s middle school boys team. They encouraged him and even broke a rule and ran with him as he finished the race. Word of this reached the superintendent at the opposing school, who my AD said, was in tears about it. A few weeks later, the superintendent from my school district sent me a handwritten note after she heard the story from parents in the other district. She had nothing but praise for the girls. The girls also received a Do the Right Thing Award from the Elizabethtown Area Communities That Care organization.
Coaches learn lessons, too
As a coach, I want to win as much as anyone else. During my first cross country season, the boys’ team was on target to have an 11-6 season after having a losing season the year before. Then, an hour before the start of the next-to-last meet of the season, I learned that the No. 2 runner on my team had broken his toe in gym class that day, and he was out for the rest of the season. To say I was disappointed is an understatement, but what could I do? I told all the boys that without their No. 2 runner everyone was going to have to step it up and run their best. The team lost that day, but every single boy ran a PR. As their coach, I could not have asked for anything more. That was a huge lesson for me. By the way, the boys ended up with an 11-10 record – still a winning season and better than the year before.
Winning feels good
Everyone wants to win. There’s no doubt about that, and it feels good. When you have talented kids who respond to your training and work hard, they end up winning meets. During my first cross country season, the girls team won the Gerber Invitational by one point, and girls and boys won trophies and medals. The girls had an undefeated season last fall, and they are coming off a 5-1 track season that just ended. It’s a great feeling to know that these are the building blocks for great teams in the future.