Exit Interview & TRACK STARTING! (Week 1 for all 400-3200 crews)

Exit Interview: As we've concluded our XC season, we would like to have each athlete take a couple minutes and fill out the following Exit Interview. You can either print one out and fill it out, or visit a coach (Holt or Decker) and pick up a copy. After thinking about the ideas and filling out the interview, come talk to a coach (Holt, Decker, Beattie) for a few minutes about your season. Please fill this out and talk to a coach by Tuesday!

Winter Track Info (Distance Crew): It's time to get rolling again! Here is the most important thing to think about right now - The work you put in now will determine how you race in the Spring. No doubt, if you follow our program and start your build up and follow the program as close as possible, you are going to race well. If you don't... well, that's when the track times (and XC times next year) aren't as great as they should be and we wonder why - then we remember it's because work wasn't done laying a strong foundation. We are very excited for a great track season. We have no doubt amazing things are going to happen for those that put the work in this winter. So let's get ready to start back up on Monday. Now, we aren't sure if we will be able to meet together yet. We will update you as soon as we know. But if we can't meet as a team, please commit yourself to a time that works for you and start following the program this week. For now, we will keep using the XC text reminders for updates on stuff (since we are only working with distance runners in track for now), but we will transition to using the track blog for updates and stuff starting next week (pvtrack.blogspot.com). 

Workouts: Did we mention we are excited for track?! Last year we had some great workouts as we modified our program a little. This year, we are building on those changes and taking advantage of the extra few weeks we have now before the holidays to get everyone even more prepared for great races and PRs (if you do the work). So take a look at the first 5 weeks of the workouts. They are updated (with more to come) and you'll notice some great opportunities to be prepped for an amazing season. Obviously we will be starting with Week 1 workouts this coming Monday. Again, maybe we will be able to meet this week (if so, be ready to run together after school), and maybe we won't be able to meet as a team yet (in that case, commit to a time and get out and go each day).

Final Thing: Take a look at this video. It's a great short interview with one of the best coaches (from the best program) in the nation. He hits some key topics: buy in (from athlete and family), building a program, discipline, progression, selflessness, and more, that are all key concepts to building a great team. We have a pretty great team ourselves, and one of the reasons is we have great student athletes and parents who have honestly thought about these topics and decided to buy in. Now is a great time to evaluate your level of buying in... and this winter and the work you put in will prove it one way or another.

Nov 9 - 14 (Week 24) and Border Wars Qualifier Recap *UPDATED*

*UPDATE*

***********So this new round of Covid mandates has brought a cancellation of the Border Wars (bumma) and postponing our ability to meet as a team for a couple weeks. As such, we are going to move into the Transition Phase of our season right now. What this means: the Transition Phase is when we move from one season to the next. In the past we have called this our two week's off, but we no longer use that terminology. Why? Because "off" has the connotation of not doing anything for those two weeks - which is the exact opposite of what we need to be doing. So what does Transition mean? It means getting out and doing something everyday for the next two weeks: biking, lifting, going to the gym, x-training, swimming, rowing, easy-short runs (20-30 mins, but just singles, no doubles). You need to be doing something each day. Don't just go home and sit there all afternoon. These will all be done on your own - no team led practice. So it is up to you to stay active. We have had an amazing season with so much growth. Let's keep it going by continuing down the path of growth (in a smart way - which means be active, but also let yourself recover mentally and physically by cutting things down). A warning... Don't try and get ahead by continuing to push super hard these two weeks. ALL OF US - INCLUDING YOU - NEED TO HAVE TIME TO RECOVER. Pushing hard in these next two weeks is asking for injuries later. This also means we will have to push back our awards until after these two weeks as well. A positive to this: we will be able to move into our track training earlier and be more prepared for a great track season!***********

Thanks for a great trip up north everyone. It was great to see many of you run well. We got there and home safely (many thanks to our drivers and chaperones!). And we were able to continue to put our fitness to the test against some of the best in the state.

Purpose of the Week's Workouts: This week's workouts - Make sure you check out the schedule of workouts for the week to see when you should be at practice. We are two weeks out from our final competition of the season - the Border Wars. We will treat these two weeks very similar to our final two weeks before State. Our biggest goal - have each of you prepped to run as fast as possible.

<<<PLEASE WEAR BRIGHT or WHITE TO ALL AM RUNS>>>

This Week's Schedule: 

Mon - am - 6:15a (Level 3-4, optional for Level 2, no Fresh, Sophs take Mon and/or Wed am off); afternoon - 3:00p (everyone - no team meeting)

Tue - am - 6:15a weights and run (Level 2-4, optional Level 1); afternoon - 3:00p (everyone)

Wed - am - 6:15a (Level 3-4, optional for Level 2, no Fresh) yoga at 6:40 all invited; afternoon - 3:00p 

Thur - am - 6:15a weights and run (Level 2-4, optional Level 1); afternoon - 3:00p (everyone)

Fri - am - 6:15a (everyone); afternoon - after school (Level 3-4, optional Level 2, no Level 1)

Sat - group or individual run

Border Wars Utah Qualifier: 

Great job to everyone who took the opportunity to participate. It was a fun environment to run XC in fall conditions on a fast grass full 5K course. Results can be round at here. Congrats to those who qualified for the Championship Races held at Staheli Farm on Nov 21st (the Varsity girls and Scottie) and an extra shout out to Katie and Kate for stepping up to the challenge and running their very first Varsity race and not only running very well, but helping the team qualify. The rest of the team can/should sign up for the Varsity/JV races on the 21st.

Upcoming Events:

Border Wars: Nov. 21st at Staheli Farm. We can begin registration, but let's wait to discuss things a little on Monday before we register. Registration link here. 

PVXC Dream Mile: Nov. 23rd at PVHS Is probably going to be moved. We will discuss it on Monday (as a result, we may have some changes in our practice schedule this week as well... info will be sent out with updates)

Team Banquet: we will be having an awards night, but we are very limited in what we can do. Hopefully plans will come together soon.

PVXC Thought of the Week: 
"Everyday in practice was a competition. So when the game comes - there's nothing that I hadn't already practiced; it's a routine."

-Michael Jordan

Jordan was a notriously intense practicer. Take this in comparison to Allen Iverson who once ranted about practice being "just practice". Both were tremendous basketball players; however, one is labeled as one of the greatest ever, while the other is often met with questions of "how great could he have been?". Guess which one is which. Although our practices aren't a competition every single day, each does have a purpose. And when you identify that (or those) purpose(s), you can get the very most of of each practice. Some practices are meant to develop you aerobically, others help you run fast as certain paces. Some parts of a practice help you to stay healthy and strong (drills, SAMS, weights, etc), others help you develop form and speed (wickets, Beast and Feast). How well do you do at identifying the purpose of each practice and getting the most out of it? Are you on track to be one of the greats by getting the most out of yourself that you possibly can, or are you going to be looked back upon with questions of "how great could they have been if they had only quit messing around in practice and did what they were supposed to do?"

Nov 2 - 7 (Week 23) and Autumn Classic Recap

It's been impressive to see everyone coming back out and refocusing after a long XC season. It's paying off already for many of you with a great race at the Autumn Classic. And it will pay off for all of you (and for our team) in the long run as we keep pushing through these next few weeks.

Purpose of the Week's Workouts: This week's workouts - Make sure you check out the schedule of workouts for the week to see when you should be at practice. This week we will hit some hills and some more race pace work as we prep to race this weekend and in a couple weeks at the Border Wards.

<<<PLEASE WEAR BRIGHT or WHITE TO ALL AM RUNS>>>

This Week's Schedule: 

Mon - am - 6:15a (Level 3-4, optional for Level 2, no Fresh, Sophs take Mon and/or Wed am off); afternoon - 3:00p (everyone - no team meeting)

Tue - am - 6:15a weights and run (Level 2-4, optional Level 1); afternoon - 3:00p (everyone)

Wed - am - 6:15a (Level 3-4, optional for Level 2, no Fresh) yoga at 6:40 all invited; afternoon - 3:00p 

Thur - am - 6:15a weights and run (Level 2-4, optional Level 1); afternoon - 3:00p (everyone)

Fri - am - 6:15a (Level 2-4, no level 1s); afternoon - PreRace shakeout up in Utah Country.

Sat -  Race in Spanish Fork (info below)

Autumn Classic: 

A great evening for racing with many great races. Many big PRs and 2 mile debuts. We used this event to enter times for the Hoka Postal Nationals. Our girls Varsity crew ended up with the 10th ranked ave time in the nation and were the Utah leaders. Our Freshmen girls were the 6th ranked 9th grade squad in the nation. The Freshmen boys and Sophomore boys were both the 9th ranked national team of their respective grades. And the Varsity boys finished the competition as the 43rd ranked team in the nation and #6 in Utah.

Upcoming Events:

Border Wars Utah Qualifier: Nov. 7th in Spanish Fork. We are pretty sure everything has come together (thanks for helping get this all planned in a very short time). Driver parents, you will get info sent home tomorrow and athletes/parents an itinerary for trip will also come home tomorrow. Please start paying for the trip; it will be $55 to pay for gas and hotels (you will be responsible for your own food). DO NOT PAY TO THE HIGH SCHOOL! This is a club trip, so pay by cash or Venmo to Coach Holt @Dave-Holt77 ***ITINERARY***

Border Wars: Nov. 21st at Staheli Farm

PVXC Dream Mile: Nov. 23rd at PVHS

Team Banquet: we will be having an awards night. Date hasn't been set yet, nor do we have all the details. We will need to host at an outdoor venue for social distancing. It is likely, that we will have an ice cream social at a park where everyone can space out. So things will be a little different this year, but what's new? Updates coming soon.

PVXC Thought of the Week: 
"Honest question: Excluding your running, do you make your team a better team? Everyone is capable of this, but you need to make it a goal."

-Hansons Running Project

Every single one of us are at a different point in our running ability. Some are All-Staters headed to college, some are brand new and just figuring things out... and then everything in between. But to make a great team, it doesn't matter how good of a runner you are. What matters is how good of a teammate you are. So what have you done to make the team better this year? Were there areas that you struggled as a teammate that you could do better at with some refocusing? These last few weeks are a great time to improve yourself as a teammate and help make this program go to another level because of your leadership and contribution.