Newsletter for the Week of August 28, 2017
Greetings! 

As we start our new week of practice please make sure you read about the lapathon below! We will be playing music and having fun. We will need a few parents to help volunteer during the practice on Thursday also. All athletes are encouraged to participate, and donations will be excepted even if you have to miss. We will be giving a grand prize for the athletes that raise the most funds and a t-shirt for each donation of $40.00 or more. Each athlete is asked to participate

 
With Labor day weekend approaching we will still have practice on our regular days, we realize many will travel so come if you can but no problem if you miss. Uniforms will only be available by contacting Coach Elaine.

The kids love the jelly bean / Jolly Ranchers after practice. We need 2 parents every day to give these out. It is very quick and you get the biggest smiles of the day! Please Volunteer for a few minutes after practice!!
 
Please click our " Shop Stormwear " link on our website to visit our online store. We do not ship items to you, you can pick them up at practice.
A Note From Coach Jeremy
JeremyHello Team!
 

What a week of training! You finished the 3 rd week with the culmination of a fantastic time trial. Do yourself a favor and check the results from the time trial last year and compare your time with this year. There were more 1-minute pr’s than I can recall! In a 1.24-mile run, you guys turned out amazing pr’s from last year. In fact, I think I saw that everyone pr’d that raced both years. 

 
So how did you do it? Literally, I want you to think about that? Amazing team! I asked coach Mark how he thought week 3 was and he said it was a brutal week. He followed up with a question: are we going to back down next week? My answer was easy, NO WAY!! Now’s the time to keep the pedal down.
 
Let me get back to that question, and then we’ll get to this week. How did you do it, how did you all have such big pr’s? You guys did it because you are putting in the effort. You are listening to the workouts, and executing. And then we have an amazing group of coaches helping you push your limits. Remember the way to get faster is to execute the purpose of the workout. Let’s recap the weekly workout purposes: on Mondays, you should be running a consistent pace for the whole time, pushing a little, but not making this the big workout of the week. Tuesday we run hills and repeats. We are building both strength and speed and this is the night to put more effort in. You will get faster from these workouts. Thursday is another hard-hitting day which is typically focused on longer tempo running to increase your ability to handle running faster, farther. Tuesdays and Thursdays are interchangeable. Saturdays, until races start, will continue to have different workout types with the goal again of running faster, farther.
 
This week we will increase the distance, increase the speed, and make some more gains. The big event this week is the lapathon on Thursday night at Central Park. Our team is made up of volunteers and is probably the lowest cost sport you can find. Having a little extra money helps to keep tents and banners nice, and websites and text alerts running smoothly. So athletes, talk with a neighbor, friend or grandparent and see if they’d be willing to sponsor you. And really shock them and ask if you can do some work to earn it. Maybe pull some weeds, do some dishes, clean the house… you’ll get a lot more satisfaction if you work a little for it! And, there are prizes…
 
With that said, it’s going to be really hot this week and at 6pm, it will still be hot!! As a result, you have to prepare every day. Drink plenty of water, eat plenty of food, drink an electrolyte drink before coming to practice, and be ready to suffer a little more. There are two ways you can make the most of training in the heat: first, you have to keep your eyes opened, literally. This seems pretty basic but here’s what happens, if you let your eyes start to be droopy, your mind will follow and then your body will follow. So, keep your eyes wide open and keep your mind engaged in the workout. You’d be surprised what you can do when your mind is engaged!! The second key is to smile! Literally, smile in the face of the oppressive heat. Love the heat. We will have races that are hotter than others and you need to learn to mentally love it. If you just survive, then you’ll lose the fight and the heat will overcome you. Both keys have one thing in common: your mind! 
 
The mind can conquer many doubts, pains, and desires to stop. Realize that proper nutrition will help to prolong the negative effects of the elements. There are many options out there, and many that will claim to be natural. Most of these claims are financially based, not scientifically based. Again, for the health of your family, don’t trust a label. Do some research before making your purchase of nutritional supplements. That goes from your basic vitamins to electrolyte drinks. If you want to try the best, look no further than Shaklee. Check out my webpage to get some more information: http://jkstepan.myshaklee.com/us/en/about.html If you have questions, I’m just an email away.
 
We are 2 weeks from our first race, the VYC Invitational Pre-Season meet! The season is about to shift into high gear so don’t relax now!! Let’s have another great week!
 
See you out there!
Coach Jeremy
Practice Schedule
Monday - August 28 @ 6:00 pm  - West Creek Park   
Tuesday - August 29 @ 6:00 pm  - College of the Canyons Just past Baseball Diamonds
Thursday - August 31 @ 6:00 pm - Central Park near the Basketball Courts. 
Saturday - August 26 @ 8:00  am Central Park near the Basketball Courts 
Lap-a-Thon
This year our lap-a-thon will be this week on Thursday September 7 at Central Park, please arrive at 5:30 to get your tag.

The Lap-a-thon is a fund raising event used to support our program and our national athletes. The kids will run laps at Central park while we play music for 40 minutes or so. We will also bring a special treat for them. The kids are encourages to seek donations either of 2 ways a per lap amount such as $3 or $4 dollars per lap or a flat donation of $5 or $10. All kids who raise at least $40.00 will receive a special Lap-a-thon T-shirt. The kids will also be entered into a raffle on a 1 ticket per dollar raised and other prizes will be awarded at the end of season banquet.

Please click here to download the  Lap-a-thon form and start raising funds.
 
The deadline to turn in funds will be Oct 12.
Cross Country Sign Ups Closing This Week!
We are still accepting Sign Ups for the 2017 Cross Country Season. Please get your applications in asap!!

The cost is $150.00 per athlete for the first 2 athletes per family and $90.00 for each athlete after that. Uniform not included, purchase only if needed.
There is a price list in the packet on page 2.
Our calendar is still in the process of being updated, so it will be posted soon.

 
(Athletes that have competed in the 2016 cross country or 2017 Track seasons we do not need conference paperwork, we move it forward, so click the returning athlete packet.)
 
Cross Country Information
 
Practice times are 6:00 - 7:15 PM evenings, 8:00 - 9:30 AM on Saturdays
 
Volunteers  are a must, and we would like to ask you to help out as much as you can. If your interested in coaching please contact  Jeremy Stepan  via email by clicking his name. All coaches and volunteers who have direct contact with the athletes must pass a background screening check. If you are interested, there is a link for the screening in the right-hand column.
 
Practice parent volunteers are need to help with merchandise and Jelly Bean distribution at all practices. It only takes a few minutes!!