Murrieta Valley, Cont.

On the boys side I have a smaller group of returning talent with some very promising returnees. We have never had quite the depth on our boys' teams as the girls', but our boys are highly motivated and loaded with heart. Once the line-up solidifies, this group can be very tough as well.

Getting our program off the ground

I was fortunate in my early years of coaching to have acquired an assistant coach who ran for legendary coach, DR. Joe Vigil, at Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado. He introduced me to his training philosophies and then as luck would have it, over the next year and a half, Dr. Vigil gave 3 different clinics in southern California that I attended. My assistant ran for Dr. Vigil in the 70's when he was still refining his training techniques so much of what we were doing had a learning curve for both of us. Eventually, we were able to establish a training program that works best for our environment and have molded it around a central philosophy. My assistant has since retired and I have a new crop of assistants who are now learning our training. It took at least 5 years before I really began to understand most of what we do and why it works, but developing a successful formula has allowed me to spend more time compiling data on my athletes. This has shed new light for me on what works and what does not and most importantly, why that is. I believe in continued coaching education. In 11 years now of coaching I have attended over 30 clinics and instructed at 8.

What really helped get things going was a relatively small group of dedicated and motivated athletes who wanted more of themselves and their team. Once they committed to the training regimen and had great success within months, others jumped on board. Soon we had a group of kids that was learning the value of hard work and being a team. Now it often seems like this is automatic, but in truth it is all do to the great kids I have who cast their egos aside and encourage each other to excel. They deserve the credit for keeping the tradition alive and well.

What makes our program so special?

At the heart of our program is a great group of athletes and dedicated coaches. We have a true family atmosphere (with all the pitfalls at times) and we all enjoy being around each other. From a training standpoint I think we are very balanced. I have had many athletes go on to run at the collegiate level in a variety of programs and each has achieved success and been able to make the transition without any major problems (some never even ran varsity for us). Our kids can handle volume and speed and are not overworked during their time with us. We see ourselves as just a piece of their development rather than the end goal. We have season to season and year to year goals, but we never keep our focus off the long term development. We have a solid training environment with mostly agreeable weather and we make the most out of it.