Braves,
In the update from last week I talked about how successful
our week was, and I asked each of you to do it again this week so we can stack
good weeks on top of each other. This week of practice was as good or better
than last week, as was the meet. Our challenge will be to do the same thing
this week, even with a short week.
As I said in the email that I sent out on Friday, Thursday’s
practice was one of the best that I have been around at Bountiful High. There
was intensity and support, drive and excellent effort. For the most part, that
carried over to the meet on Saturday which had some great performances, PRs and
seasonal bests, and most of our team got better. There were many kids that came
up and did more than the 3 events we asked, some even did five. That effort now
is going to help you be successful this May. At the end of the day we had 4
relay teams. Almost every other relay team at the meet was from out of state,
and had hotel rooms in town so they were going to be stuck until the end
anyway. Our group of kids chose to stay until the end of a long day so they
could run with each other and get better.
It is that type of energy and commitment that we need to
bring each day and week so we can create the culture and program that will be
successful this year and over time. The difference from this indoor season from
last (our first official indoor team at BHS) is enormous. We are floored with
how much better the commitment has been, how much better the energy is, the
support from teammates is, and the list could continue. Each of you has a part
in making our team better. Ultimately when our team improves, you will also be
better; when you become better, then our team improves. The term “better” in
this context doesn’t just mean in time, height, or distance, but as a person,
friend, teammate, student, and even the experience that your teammates have. The
question that is left to be asked by each of us is, are we adding to the
positivity, energy, and commitment of this team? Are we part of the solution,
or part of the problem? There is no middle ground, either we are making the
team better (again, in terms of the experience of our teammates have, and our
culture) or are we inhibiting our improvement. Being part of the solution has
nothing to do with your physical abilities. You can be the slowest runner but
still be contributing to our team in huge ways, or a state champion athlete and
still be hurting our team if you don’t contribute to building the culture.
Again, we want each of you to be contributing members. We
need each of you. So this week, let’s ask ourselves what we can do to help our
team. We are lucky to have a great group of kids, but none of us are perfect.
No matter where we are or what we have done we can all find at least one thing
we can do better to help our team and culture continue to grow. The growth from
last year is enormous, which shows us that this group is special, and capable
of even more. Let’s be better this week, and stack another successful week on
top of the last two.
This week we will not practice on Monday as there is no
school. Get a run in and ice any nagging injuries you may have. There is no
school Tuesday, but we have received permission to practice at 8 AM on Tuesday morning.
We will meet on the third floor. Throwers will meet at 9. We will make it a
good practice that will be worth your time, but it won’t be super long, so you
can have the day to spend as you wish.
The meet this week is at Weber State. The field events are
done on Friday night, with everything else done on Saturday. The registration
and organization is similar to USU, except the bull pen is more like BYU. Pay
at the meet at but check in the bull pen like BYU. Weber hires legitimate officials
to run the meet so they shouldn’t take as long as USU, who couldn’t figure out
how to efficiently start the races. I don’t know how long the meet will go, but
it couldn’t be longer than USU right? J
More information will be given on this meet during the week.
The pictures from USU meet are online so you can go look at
them.
Thank you for all you are doing. We are lucky to have such a
solid group of young women and men to work with. Let’s continue to get better.
Coach Jacobson
