St. Paul's Track & Field - Boys

Team Policies

Track & Field is different from other sports in that while being team-oriented, it is broken down into each individual’s own ability in their respective events and his or her desire to improve. The desire to win is in all of us. However, the will to win is nothing without the will to prepare. The willingness to prepare in order to accomplish your goals is what separates true athletes from people who just wear uniforms and are on the team.

 * Be on time.

* Give great effort.

* Have a positive attitude.

Practice Requirements: We will practice every school day during the season unless otherwise notified. The practice start time is 3:50 with training sessions typically lasting until 5:15. All team members are expected to be present and on time for every session. Exceptions need to be cleared with the head coach in advance. Bad weather may move practice inside but unless notified we will practice! 

Practices are not optional. In order to build a championship caliber team we must be prepared:

• Unexcused absence = Missing a practice without notifying the head coach IN ADVANCE. With the exception of extenuating circumstances the consequence for an unexcused absence is meet suspension. In addition to meet suspension, athlete will also have to arrange with their event coach to make-up the workout missed.
• Excused absence = Missing practice for a valid reason and notifying the head coach IN ADVANCE. If you are sick and have to leave school let the head coach know, this can be done by a phone message, e-mail or in person, but not through a teammate or friend.  If you are absent from school please call and leave a message with the head coach before 2:00 PM.

Other notes on practice requirements / policies:

• Being late to practice without an acceptable excuse can result in a meet suspension. Athletes need to make an effort to inform the head coach in advance. If for some extenuating circumstance you are unable to let the coach know in advance bring a bring a note from your instructor. Detention is not an excuse for being late. Schedule detentions for the morning.
• Poor attitude and / or effort at practice will not be tolerated. If your effort or attitude is poor you may be dismissed from practice. Being dismissed from practice more than once during the season will result in a meet suspension.
• Repeat occurrences of being late to practice, missing practice, poor attitude and / or effort will not be tolerated and can result in dismissal from the team.
• If an athlete misses practices for a valid reason during any given competition week they must schedule a make-up training session with the head coach. If no attempt is made to schedule a make-up session then the athlete may not be allowed to compete in the upcoming competition.

Competitions:

Indoor season is usually 2 or 3 meets because of availability of indoor track facilities. Meets are run on weekends. In addition we normally run at least 1 or 2 time trials generally during the week.

Our outdoor season usually has 9 - 11 meets beginning in March. Several of these are on the weekends and may involve spring break vacation. The state qualifying meet is the last weekend in April and the state championship will typically be held the first weekend of May.

Meet Participation:

Some meets have unlimited entries but all larger meets have restrictions on the number of entrants in events, generally two or three per event. We attempt to get everyone involved in meets according to how they are practicing and how they will look against the competition of the various meets. We run against some of the best teams in the Southeast, so some of the meets will be very selective. We also host and enter J.V. and smaller varsity meets. This allows a good opportunity to give team members an opportunity to see how they are progressing. When it comes to the larger meets we enter the strongest team possible into the competition.

Letterman requirements:

1. To letter you have to be on the varsity team.  Varsity team members are those that compete in invitational competitions.

2. The following performance standards will be used by the coaching staff to determine letter winners:

3. In borderline cases the coaching staff will also take into consideration such factors as reliability, work ethic, attitude, and whether you scored in a varsity meet.

Post season awards:

Post-season awards are selected by the coaching staff. Pictures for the wall for state championships are usually of the team’s letter winners. The qualification for lettering can also be affected by the event of a state championship. Coaches’ discretion will be used.

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Track & Field Behavioral Agreement:

I agree to abide by the following rules for the length of the school year. I understand this is designed to help me become a better student-athlete. I also understand that failure to comply with any of these rules could jeopardize my status on the track & field team:

 1)     I agree to abide by the school rules, policies and procedures at all times.

2)     I agree to avoid situations away from school that could cause embarrassment to the track & field team.

3)     I agree to avoid any behavior that compromises our immediate and long term goals: Sectional Champions / State Champions.

4)     I agree to take seriously my commitment to academics and classroom conduct.

5)     I agree to treat fellow teammates, coaches, teachers, administrators, classmates and referees with respect.

* Failure to comply with any of these rules or to create any situations that is not in the best interest of the track & field program can result in your dismissal from the team.

Student-Athlete Signature:

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