Monday, January 06, 2014

Coming up this week...


The distance events state meet contenders in the Northern Section (posted below) and Southern Section, an update to the all-time Podium team lists for the CA state XC meet (Girls on Tuesday and Boys on Wednesday) and more athlete and coach interviews.  If you have any other ideas or something else you would like to see on this site, feel free to add your suggestion in the comment section below.

2014 Northern Section Distance Races State Meet Contenders

Only the winners advance from the Northern Section to the state meet unless they qualify by surpassing the 2014 At-Large Time Standards.  Additions?  Changes?  Comments?

Girls 800m.
The favorite:  Alexa Flagg West Valley
Threats:  Jenna Hinkle West Valley, Keely Johnson Pleasant Valley
Wildcards:  Sofia Evanoff Winters, Keely Johnston Pleasant Valley, Michaela Dyson Tulelake, Natalie Ulloa Enterprise

Boys 800m.
The favorite:  David Neill Yreka
Threats:  Jacob Graber Chicom Chris Morzenti Mt. Shasta
Wildcards: Clayton Bunn Yreka, Landon Woollard Shasta

Girls 1600m.
The favorite:  Jenna Storms West Valley
Threats:  Hanna Davis Shasta, Belle Moran Redding Christian
Wildcards: Natalie Ullua Enterprise, Jenna Hinkle West Valley, Alexa Flagg West Valley

Boys 1600m.
The favorite:  Clayton Bunn Yreka
Threats:  Matt Jochim Yreka, Landon Woollard Shasta
Wildcards: Joshua Bland Shasta, Ben Harper Trinity, Chris Morzenti Mt. Shasta, Andrew Lopez Live Oak, Damon Young Durham

Girls 3200m.
The favorite:  Jenna Storms West Valley,
Threat:  Natalie Ulloa Enterprise, Hannah Davis Shasta
Wildcards:  Belle Moran Redding Christian, Helen Mino Faulkner University Prep, Andrea Bader Foothill

Boys 3200m.
The favorite:  Clayton Bunn Yreka
Threats:  Matt Jochim Yreka, Landon Woollard Shasta, Rogelio Silva Corning, Austin Murch Central Valley
Wildcards:  Justin McGlone Paradise, Ben Harper Trinity, Andris Molina Chico, , Josh Bland Shasta

Sunday, January 05, 2014

Runners aid runners

Sprints coach needed

Stuart Hall and Convent High Schools in San Francisco are looking for a sprints coach for the 2014 track and field season.  We're a small Catholic school in the city with separate girls (Convent) and boys (Stuart Hall) campuses, but one track team that practices and competes together.  The team is typically about 70 kids (girls and boys combined) with 20-30 dedicated sprinters.  The position pays by stipend depending on the time commitment.  Anyone interested should contact head coach Mike Buckley at michael.buckley@sacredsf.org.

Saturday, January 04, 2014

Can Running Save the NCAA?

Great article mentioned by Pattisue Plumer at today's Coaches Roundtable.

Here is the link:
http://www.runnersworld.com/general-interest/can-running-save-the-ncaa?page=single

The 6th Annual NorCal Distance Coaches' Collaborative Roundtable

Taking place today.  Great conversation so far!

A Runner's Mind (located in Burlingame and San Francisco)
presents
The 6th Annual NorCal Distance Coaches' Collaborative Roundtable

Roster of Attending Coaches
1. Chris Puppione – Healdsburg High School
2. Albert Caruana – Crystal Springs Uplands School
3. Jason Oswalt – Amador Valley High School
4. Tim Hunter – San Ramon Valley High School
5. Andrew Hutchinson – Crystal Springs Uplands School
6. Doug Chase – Scotts Valley High School
7. Jeff Gardiner – Lick-Wilmerding High School
8. Craig Stern – Albany High School
9. Gus Ibarra – North Monterey County High School
10. Tim Fitzpatrick – Marin Catholic High School
11. David Bayliss – Acalanes High School
12. Matt Wilkinson – Justin Siena High School
13. Patrick McCrystle – Bellarmine College Preparatory School
14. Don Williams – Cornerstone Christian School
15. Siri Sudweeks – Liberty High School
16. Vince Sturgis – College Park High School
17. Josh Small – Valley Christian High School
18. Pierre Chan – Mercy High School (Burlingame)
19. Greg Fogg – Maria Carrillo High School
20. Jim Scattini – Santa Catalina High School
21. Linda Gill – The Branson School
22. Peter Brewer – Northgate High School
23. Ruth Seabrook – Northgate High School
24. Francisco Cornejo – Palma High School
25. John Hotchkiss – Mission San Jose High School
26. Scott Chisam – The Harker School
27. Roberta Chisam – St. Francis High School
28. Bob Darling – The Bay School of San Francisco
29. Geoffrey Henderson – George Washington High School
30. PattiSue Plumer – Gunn High School
31. Bill Gregg – Davis Senior High School
32. Dave Hill – California High School
33. Lee Webb – James Logan High School
34. Marty Beene – Alameda High School
35. Harold Kuphaldt – Bella Vista High School

Location:  Crystal Springs Uplands School
400 Uplands Drive
Hillsborough CA 94010

Date:  Saturday, January 4th, 2014
• Session I: 9am-12pm
• Lunch: 12pm-1pm
• Session II: 1pm-3pm

Roundtable Leaders
Chris Puppione – Clinic Co-Director
o Healdsburg High School
o USATF Level III National Coach
Albert Caruana – Clinic Co-Director
o Crystal Springs Uplands School
o USATF Level II National Coach
Jason Oswalt – Clinic Co-Director
o Amador Valley High School
o USATF Level II National Coach

Roundtable Features
• Everyone is a clinician, everyone is a student.
• Roundtable topics selected by attendees in advance via email..
• All attendees receive “A Packet of Nuggets”—a compilation of coaching gems from each attending coach.
• Attendees will also receive a collection of training programs submitted by the other coaches in attendance.
• Cost for the roundtable discussion is FREE.
• Event is open to the first 30 coaches to register.

Contact Chris Puppione (coachpup@gmail.com) to register for the event, as well as to receive further information. This event is for HIGH SCHOOL COACHES ONLY.

Please contact Chris ASAP as spots are filling up fast. Some of the best coaches in California will be at this Roundtable. Don't miss out.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE ROUNDTABLE. KEEP READING!

December 7, 2013

Dear Coaches,

Now that cross country season is almost in the books and the track and field season looms on the not-so-distant horizon, we would like to invite you to join us for a clinic unlike any other in the state of California.

On January 4th, 2014, we will be hosting The NorCal Distance Coaches Collaborative Roundtable in Hillsborough at Crystal Springs Uplands School. The event is scheduled to kick-off at 9am and will be attended by many of the finest coaches from our part of the state. This clinic is unique in format and conception.

Many of us have attended clinics over the years, and although we have been lucky enough to hear some great speakers, the part most of us look forward to is the aftermath—sitting around with your peers, swapping stories, discussing training ideas, asking questions, all while enjoying some good food and drink.

We have decided to get rid of the lectures and ditch the conventional while getting straight to the good stuff—some high-energy shop talk with some of our sport’s finest coaches in a relaxed environment full of friends and soon-to-be friends.  At this event, the attendees will choose the topics. Whether you want to rehash the last cross country season or talk about the track season ahead, you tell us and we will put it on the agenda.

1. Limited to the first 40 coaches to sign-up via email, this roundtable discussion is completely based on the contributions of all attendees. Here is how it works:

2. Coaches are asked to email Chris Puppione (coachpup@gmail.com) to sign-up for the event.

3. Upon receipt of your email, Chris will ask you to submit the following for the clinic by December 22, 2013:
a. Topics and ideas you would like to discuss or gain knowledge about at the clinic (training, recruiting, nutrition, state of the sport, etc.)
i. This is an absolute necessity, as these suggestions will function as our agenda for the day.
b. A 1-3 page installment (or “nugget of knowledge”) describing something you do with your athletes that you feel is key to your program’s success (i.e. a particular workout, coaching philosophy, mental training, etc.)
i. All coaches are expected to contribute with this—consider it as Part I of your entrance fee!
ii. These “nuggets” will be compiled and all attendees will receive the full collection of notes at the clinic in both print and digital formats.
c. A copy of your training plan and notes from the past cross country season or the upcoming track season.
i. This is Part II of your entrance fee, and coaches are to submit these so that they may be shared with other attendees for review, critique, and to foster discussion of training methods.
ii. These training programs will be sent out to all attendees in digital format, and you are asked to print them out prior to the roundtable and make notes on them for discussion purposes.
iii. By submitting your training ideas or plans in advance, you can have your season’s training discussed by some of our sport’s greatest coaches, so don’t miss out on this opportunity.
d. All submitted information must be sent in either MS Word or MS Excel docs so that they can be easily formatted for compilation.

4. A running tally of coaches who commit to attending the roundtable will be maintained on Albert’s website (www.crosscountryexpress.com) so everyone can prepare any specific questions that they may have for their fellow coaches.

5. Prior to the event, Chris and Albert will release a schedule that will outline the topics for the day so that each coach attending may come prepared to participate and contribute.

6. THERE ARE NO LECTURERS AT THIS EVENT. We are not presenting a seminar—this is an opportunity to expand the discussion and for everyone to be a student and a teacher.

7. Attending coaches are encouraged to bring any information they wish to discuss or share to the event. We will have overhead projectors, LCD projectors, as well as AV equipment—bring it all.

8. Also, we would like all coaches in attendance to bring their laptop computers with them, as we will be using internet connections to access information during discussion periods. Please be sure to have your flash drive or memory stick with you so you can steal/borrow info from other coaches.

9. Sign-in on January 4th will begin at 8:30am with the roundtable beginning promptly at 9am. We will section the day into topics picked by our attendees,

10. Break for lunch at noon, and then reconvene for further discussion starting at 1pm. The roundtable ends when either you go home or they kick us out of the building at 3pm.

11. While this is an open discussion, we have designated the following coaches as leaders for the event:
a. Chris Puppione, Healdsburg High School
b. Albert Caruana, Crystal Springs Uplands School
c. Jason Oswalt, Amador Valley High School

12. These coaches will act as guides for the discussion, keeping the roundtable focused while moving the group through the agenda and moderating input from all coaches. They will offer their insights as well, but they are not clinicians or panelists.

13. On the day of the event, all attending coaches will receive the following:
a. “A Packet of Nuggets”—a compilation of coaching gems from all attendees
b. A collection of all attendees training programs
c. Great conversation with amazing colleagues

It is our belief that this collaborative roundtable will be of great benefit for all coaches—rookies and veterans alike. Please join us for this amazing event by emailing your registration to Chris Puppione (coachpup@gmail.com).

Be a part of the excitement—be a part of the conversation. Join us January 4, 2014 at Crystal Springs Uplands School in Hillsborough, CA for The 6th Annual NorCal Distance Coaches’ Collaborative Roundtable.

Yours in running,

Chris Puppione
Albert Caruana
Jason Oswalt

Wednesday, January 01, 2014

2014 Northern California Track and Field Distance Preview

The Defending Champion
Just like the 2013 track and field season, the defending girls' 1600m. champion currently resides in the SCCAL, CCS and NorCal.  Anna Maxwell outlasted 2012 champion Nikki Hiltz to claim the 2013 state meet 1600m. in a time of 4:47.33.  She recorded a lifetime personal best time of 4:42.57 at the CCS final along with other superb marks during her spectacular season which included 2:09.34 in the 800m. and 10:10.51 in the 3200m.  She just completed her best cross country season to that which culminated in a 5th place finish at the national Footlocker meet in San Diego.  Maxwell committed to the University of Washington in the fall and will look to be the first state 1600m. repeat champion since Christine Babcock of Woodbridge won three straight state titles in a row in 2006-2008.

The "Rookie"
Marin Academy junior Trevor Reinhart finished in 9th place at the CA state XC meet as a freshman.  He had an even better sophomore season sweeping the league, section and state meet races.  Following each season, Reinhart participated in lacrosse in the spring and was part of victorious section winning team as a freshman.  This past season, Reinhart won the league XC title for the 2nd straight season and stormed to a record setting 14:44 time at the section meet on the Hayward HS course.  He finished in 2nd place at the state meet behind Flintridge Prep runner Alan Yoho.  Reinhart punched his ticket to the Footlocker national meet with a 5th place finish at the West Regional race.  He completed his XC season with a 12th place finish at the national meet.  That San Diego trip may have been the final impetus for Reinhart to turn his attention to track in the spring.  He is still undecided on his event of focus but judging from his superb kick in XC, Reinhart will be a main state meet contender in any of the 3 distance events.

The chase for a sub 9:00 3200m.
Last season, John Lawson of Sir Francis Drake dipped under the 9:00 mark at the Arcadia Invitational running 8:58.19.  He was the only NorCal runner to surpass the usually elusive mark in the 8 lap event.  In the past 10 track and field seasons, here are 17 NorCal runners that own a 3200m. PR that starts with an 8 (biggest surprise to have broken 9:00?).
2013-John Lawson Sir Francis Drake 8:58.19
2012-None
2011-Trevor Halsted Davis 8:51.96, Luis Luna Piner 8:55.43, Ben Eversole Castro Valley 8:59.07, Chris Kigar El Camino 8:59.22, Dominic D'Acquisto Enterprise 8:59.58, Kevin Bishop Monta Vista 8:59.82
2010-Weston Strum Pioneer 8:56.42, Kurt Ruegg Napa 8:57.86, Erik Olson Novato 8:59.01, Reesey Byers Santa Rosa 8:59.89
2009-Erik Olson Novato 8:55.06, Garrett Rowe Mt. View 8:55.71, Dan Mitchell Del Campo 8:56.56
2008-German Fernandez Riverbank 8:34.23
2007-Brendan Gregg Davis 8:59.48
2006-Ben Sitler St. Francis 8:53.47
2005-None
2004-Yosef Ghebray James Logan 8:52.42

So the question now is who are the NorCal runners aiming to join the above elite company.  Here are the fastest returning 3200m. runners and their personal records:
Aidan Goltra Campolindo (NCS) 9:10.26
Blair Hurlock De La Salle (NCS) 9:11.47
George Miao Rocklin (SJS) 9:15.92
Steven Sum Saratoga (CCS) 9:18.97
Chris Foster Los Gatos (CCS) 9:21.86
Edward Chance Del Campo (SJS) 9:21.92
Paul Zeiss Granite Bay (SJS) 9:22.66
Gabe Arias-Sheridan St. Joseph Notre Dame (NCS) 9:22.77
Jose Pina Lincoln (CCS) 9:24.08
Steven Grolle Sonora (SJS) 9:24.97
Abdul Hamid Sheldon (SJS) 9:25.84
Ryan Anderson Maria Carrillo (NCS) 9:26.07
Cooper Sloan Homestead (CCS) 9:26.09
Logan Marshall Half Moon Bay (CCS) 9:26.83
Corey Gonzales Harker (CCS) 9:28.26
Who from the above list will dip under 9:00?  Who else will join the chase that is not listed?

The Underrated
According to one online dictionary, the definition of underrate is to underestimate the extent, value, or importance of (someone or something).  In the just posted All-NorCal XC teams, the debate for female NorCal runner of the year came down to Fiona O'Keeffe and Anna Maxwell.  Two terrific runners who each had a season for the ages.  Lost in the shuffle was one runner who had a quite a season for herself and in most other seasons, she would have ended up as the NorCal runner of the year.  Gunn HS runner Sarah Robinson became the 6th girl to break 17 minutes on the famed Crystal Springs course, she won at Stanford and CCS, finished 4th at the state meet and wrapped up her season with an 11th place finish at NXN.  During the last track season, Robinson recorded PRs of 2:14.44, 4:48.37 and 10:26.65.  At the CA state track and field meet, Robinson finished in 3rd place in the 1600m. and 5th place in the 3200m. recording PRs in both races.  She will be a force to be reckoned with during this coming season.

The 2014 "At-Large" Standards:  You can check out all the "At-Large" standards here.  Just as a reminder, the state meet qualifiers from each section is as follows:  CCS (3), NCS (3), SJS (3), NS (1), OAK (1) and SF (1).  The 2013 at-lark mark is noted in parentheses so you can compare the mark from the previous season.

Boys ("toughest" to "easiest")
1:52.98 (1:52.92)
9:08.64 (9:09.03)
4:14.24 (4:16.38)

Girls ("toughest" to "easiest")
10:35.79 (10:39.88)
2:11.80 (2:12.10)
4:55.15 (4:59.51)

More will be posted later including the underrated, the chase for sub 9 and more.

Before we peak ahead to the upcoming Track and Field season, let's quickly review the just completed Cross Country season.  We can safely say that it was a mighty successful one for many Northern California teams and individuals.  NorCal won 5 state team championships (Campolindo girls-Div III, Yreka boys-Div IV, San Lorenzo Valley girls-Div IV, St. Joseph Notre Dame boys-Div V and Branson girls-Div V) and four individual state championships (Fiona O'Keeffee Davis-Div I, Aidan Goltra Campolindo-Div III, Anna Maxwell San Lorenzo Valley-Div IV and Julia Maxwell Branson-Div V).  In total, 34 runners made the podium at the state meet (top 10 finishes) along with 2 more teams (Davis girls and Marin Academy boys with their top 3 finishes).  The Davis girls qualified for NXN with their 2nd place Division I finish and became the third NorCal girls team to qualify for that national meet after their SJS rival St. Francis Sacramento girls qualified the previous season and the Carondelet girls in 2006.  Trivia Alert:  Who can name the only NorCal boys team to qualify for that race?  Aidan Goltra and Sarah Robinson (Gunn) both qualified as individuals and finished 23rd and 11th respectively.  Anna Maxwell and Sarah Robinson became the 5th and 6th girls to dip under the 17 minute mark at the famed Crystal Springs course.  Blair Hurlock of De La Salle broke the all-time Hayward HS course record with a spectacular run at the NCS MOC meet.  St. Joseph Notre Dame ran their best race of the season on the same day and just narrowly missed setting the new team time mark.  Hurlock, along with Trevor Reinhart and Anna Maxwell all qualified to the Footlocker National meet and all walked away with top 12 finishes.  Fiona O'Keeffe set the Willow Hills course record on two consecutive weekends and went on to win the state cross country meet in a new sophomore course record time.  She also led the Davis girls at NXN with a 4th place finish time that surpassed the previous course record time.

Happy New Year!

Prove it from Strava on Vimeo.
Every mile tells a story. Of hope, endurance, passion and desire. Stories of muscles wanting to quit. Minds refusing to head. Stories of bravery. Stories of triumph. Pain and pleasure. Proving your efforts. Proving your commitments. Proves you are crazy. Proves to others and yourself. That you are out here doing exactly what you love to do.

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Bob Padecky: Career in sports reaches finish line

St. Ignatius in search of track coach (distance assistant)

"St Ignatius College Prepin San Francisco, CA (CCS) is seeking a High School Assistant for the Track Distance Program. The SI program is a successful and competitive program in the WCAL and Central Coast Section. An applicant should be willing to work with the existing coach and have a willingness to learn and contribute to help the program continue to move forward. High school practices Monday through Friday and some Saturdays. This is a paid position. Interested candidates should email their resume and letter of interest to distance coach Nicholas Alvarado at NAlvarado@siprep.org."

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