Friday, September 30, 2016

CVNP Meet

Cross Country Athletes & Parents:

Here’s what’s going on this week:

·         Lost & Found: we have missing items in our classrooms. Please stop by to claim your items! We’ll try bringing the lost items to the next couple of team dinners to be claimed. Any lost items, by the end of the season, will be donated to charity.

·         We are currently registering our team for the OHSAA Middle School Invitational (State Meet). We are planning on taking the top 20 boys & 20 girls on our team (who are interested in going). Please let us know if you’re interested in participating in this meet! The meet will be held in Lancaster, Ohio, on Saturday, October 22nd—athletes who will be competing at this meet will be practicing the week prior to this meet!

·         Parents, we still have a surplus of paper plates, plastic cups, plastic silverware, napkins, and drinks for the dinners. Just stop by my room (404) to pick up what you need!

Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Woodridge) Invitational

Parents:

·         This is the first time we’re going to this meet, so we’ll try to get out as much information as we can (and that we know).
·         The race looks like it will be held at Virginia Hills at the Pine Hollow entrance (5465 Quick Road, Peninsula, OH 44264).
·         There is NO parking alongside the road of this race—meet organizers are asking that parents arrive at the meet early at the high school (4440 Quick Road, Peninsula, OH 44264) in order to catch the shuttle for the 2-mile trek to the course.
·         There is a ‘Fun Run’ that is free and is roughly 800 meters. It will start at 11:30 a.m. and is open to anyone not yet in 7th grade.
·         T-shirts and concessions will be available.
·         Information can be found on baumspage.com (here’s the link: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/woodridge/2016/_j_%202016%20CVNP%20Program.pdf).

Athletes:
·         I wish I had shown you this video earlier this season, but, with our FINAL hard work-out week of the season, it’s appropriate. Are you the hardest-working team? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc5s1t_B4mw

·         The bus will leave Troy at 6:45 a.m. (be at Troy at 6:35 a.m.).
·         We should return by 1:15 p.m.
·         Starting lines will be first come-first served—try to get an alley in the middle!
·         Concessions/t-shirts will be available.
·         Course maps can be found on the link above.
·         This is our last meet where runners will be grouped in TEAM and OPEN races (the last two meets are OPEN Boys and OPEN Girls).
·         We’re allowed 10 TEAM runners for this race.
·         Here’s the race schedule:

Girls OPEN          9:30 a.m.
Boys OPEN          10:00 a.m.

Girls TEAM         10:30 a.m.
                Riley Mullen
                Emily Presley
                Alli Starr
                Isabell Nagel-Russell
                Allison Matavic
                Megan Drabik
                Helena Byers
                Hannah Nieschwitz
                Erin Boland
                Rebecca Wichman
               
                Boys TEAM         11:00 a.m.
                Jordan Matuszak
                Nick Schulz
                Matthew Kuban
                Matt Henry
                Noah Volle
                Howdy
                Ryan Morton
                Michael Knick
                Logan Hamilton

                Paul Osborn

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

End of Season News

The end of the season is quickly approaching and it is time to organize some upcoming activities:


END OF SEASON BOWLING PARTY

In the past we had the end of season bowling party the day of SWC's.  We had to change the date because Coach Walters' will be in UTAH for her niece's wedding.  She is very disappointed she is missing the biggest meet of the year (especially since this is her last season) but she did not want to miss out on the fun bowling party as well.

When: Saturday, October 8th from 4pm-6pm (Jack Wilhelm Meet)
Where:  Spevocks in Avon Lake
What: athletes will be able to bowl for 2 hours.  Plus have pizza and soda.  Families have the option of donating a dessert.
Cost:  $12

Please give Coach Walters $12 CASH in a sealed envelope with the athletes full name on the front.  The due date for the money will be Thursday, October 6th. 


STATES 
When: Saturday, October 22nd


If you are interested in going to states fill out the form below.  Your parent CANNOT fill out the form because you have to be logged in to your school Google Account to fill it out.  So, please be logged in BEFORE you click on the link below.

STATE LINK--MUST BE LOGGED INTO YOUR GOOGLE ACCOUNT TO ACCESS 

Please note-- Filling out this form DOES not secure a seat for you on the bus.  The TOP 20 runners will be selected from those that fill this out.  On top of that, your behavior throughout the entire season (especially BUS behavior, this is a 3 hour bus ride) will also be a factor in the selection of who gets to go to this meet.  This is an extra meet and is NOT required by the district.



End of Season Movie

Each year, Coach Walters makes an End of Season movie.  8th graders will be interviewed and pictures that have been taken during the season are added. Mr. Matuszak has taken a lot of pictures but if anyone else has taken pictures, please email them or put them on a flashdrive/memory card for Coach Walters.  Pictures are needed by Monday, October 3rd.  

Here are links to last year's videos:



SWC Shirts 
If you are interested in ordering a SWC shirt here is a LINK and directions on how to order the shirt.
I believe the deadline is MONDAY, OCTOBER 3!




  

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Fun Run Update

Cross Country Athletes & Parents:
There’s been a change to our ‘Fun Run’ today—sorry for the last-minute change—but here’s the schedule for today:

     4:20 - 8th grade girls
     4:40 - 8th grade boys
     5:00 - 7th grade girls
     5:20 - 7th grade boys

All athletes will be picked up from the high school! We will bus the team from Learwood to the high school after school today.

If you can stay to cheer on your team, that would be preferred! If you need to leave the meet early, we understand. However, we could use athletes to help guide competitors on the course. You do NOT have to sign out with Coach Walters today—it’s a home meet so you’re free to go whenever your transportation home is provided!

Also, the Southwestern Conference (SWC) is selling cross country shirts to help support the SWC Championship for Cross Country. If you’re interested in purchasing SWC apparel, here’s the link!


Thanks—Go Shoremen & Shoregals! 

Friday, September 23, 2016

Cross Country Athletes & Parents:

Here’s our weekly update:

·         Parents, we still have a surplus of paper plates, plastic cups, plastic silverware, napkins, and drinks for the dinners. Just stop by my room (404) to pick up what you need!
·         Lost & Found: we have missing items in our classrooms. Please stop by to claim your items! Any lost items, by the end of the season, will be donated to charity.
·         Just a heads-up…very soon we will need to know who is willing to go to the OHSAA Middle School Cross Country Championships. We’ll talk to the team about this but we need to know who can make this meet so we can take as many kids as we can, without leaving anybody out who would want to go! Just like last year, we’ll take the top 20 boys & top 20 girls who want to go.

·         Avon Lake Fun Run is set for Tuesday, September 27th. This is a dual-meet with Amherst, an informal 1.8 – mile run and a tradition for these two SWC schools! We will need volunteers (not many) to help run this race, so if you are willing to help out, please let us know! Here’s the schedule:

7th Girls     4:30
7th Boys     4:45
8th Girls     5:00
8th Boys     5:15
·         The end of the season is quickly approaching! With the end of our season soon upon us, the coaching staff is planning some fun activities that hopefully will promote team-building and an appreciation for the hard work put in this season! The next 3 weeks’ activities include:
Tuesday, September 27th                  Avon Lake ‘Fun Run’
Saturday, October 8th                       End-of-season Bowling Celebration AFTER Jack Wilhelm Invitational
Cloverleaf Week:

·         We will meet at Troy at 6:15 a.m.
·         We should return around noon.
·         Here’s the course map (NOTE: this is a change from last year…again!): http://www.baumspage.com/cc/cloverleaf/2015/MS%20Course%20Map.pdf
·         Normal breakfast still applies, with a light snack both before & after the race. Bring water for both before and after the race, and don’t forget your sports drink!
·         Results will be on baumspage.com!
·         Weather looks great! Temperatures will drop (finally), and it will be cool and dry for this meet.
·         Parents, this race usually charges an admission fee.
·         Concessions and t-shirts will be available.
·         This race is held at Cloverleaf High School (8525 Friendsville Road, Lodi, OH 44254).
·         Lane assignments (and participating schools) can be found here: http://www.baumspage.com/cc/cloverleaf/2016/2016%20Lane%20Assignments%20Middle%20School.pdf

·         Here’s the schedule:

9:00 a.m.         Girls Team
                        Riley, Emily, Alli, Allison, Isabell, Megan, & Emma West
9:20 a.m.         Girls Open
                        All other girls
9:45 a.m.         Boys Team
                        Jordan, Nick, Matthew, Andrew, Paul, Howdy, & Andy
10:05 a.m.       Boys Open

                        All other boys

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Avon Invitational

Cross Country Athletes & Parents:

Here’s our weekly update:

·         Great job at Tiffin last Saturday! The boys came in 11th place out of 48 total teams, and the girls came in 5th out of 47 total teams.
·         Our OPEN runners also scored extremely well—Boys’ OPEN came in 4th out of 33 teams and Girls’ OPEN came in 2nd out of 25 teams! Great job!
·         There will be no Friday Night Dinner this Friday. Our next dinner will be next Friday, September 23rd.
·         Apparel orders are now open! Please go to the following site to order apparel: http://alcc.logoshop.com/.
·         Athletes are encouraged to run one of the weekend days this weekend. Athletes can:

1.       Run 20 – 30 minutes on their own one day (rest the other day)
2.       Run a road race on their own (rest on their own)
3.       There is a road run on Sunday, September 18th, sponsored by the Avon Lake City Schools Foundation. Information regarding this race can be found here: http://www.hermescleveland.com/roadracing/events/backtoschool.asp

Avon Meet (ATHLETES):

  • The Avon Meet on Thursday is going to have a lot of great competition. This is a perfect opportunity to practice racing with our SWC competition!
  • We will be leaving Learwood at 3:15 p.m. and we should return around 7:30 p.m.
  • Weather looks great! Bring sweats, 2 bottles of water, a sports drink, a snack, and some money. They will be selling food & shirts at this race!
  • We’re including a course map and general meet information.
  • Results will be posted on baumspage.com for this meet. 

Schedule:

·         Boys Team – 5 p.m.
Jordan Matusak, Nick Schulz, Matt Henry, Matthew Kuban, Isaac Dotson, Ryan Morton, and Paul Osborn
·         Girls Team – 5:30 p.m.
Emily Presley, Riley Mullen, Alli Starr, Isabell Nagel-Russell, Allison Matavic, Megan Drabik, and Hannah Nieschwitz
·         Girls Open – 6 p.m.
All other girls!
·         Boys Open – 6:30 p.m.
All other girls!

Avon Meet (PARENTS):


  • The course will be held at 3701 Veterans Memorial Parkway Avon, OH 44011
  • Races start at the west end of the park (by fields #6 & #7)
  • We’re including a and general meet information.

Sunday, September 11, 2016

Cross Country Apparel

It is time to order apparel!  The store closes THIS Friday (9/16).  All orders will be shipped to Learwood by October 5th.

Here is the link to order





Thursday, September 8, 2016

Tiffin Week

Cross Country Athletes & Parents:

Here’s our weekly update:

  • We had an awesome meet last week! The boys’ team came in 4th out of 23 total teams at the A.L. Earlybird, and our girls’ team came in 2nd place out of 20 total teams. Great job!
  • Execution was phenomenal! We set up camp, broke it down, and supported each other throughout the entire meet! Our goal this week is to keep up this consistency, and to be there for our teammates!
  • Picture Day will be this Friday, September 9th! We will remind all athletes of this at practice. Please bring your shirt and shorts for our team and individual pictures.
  • Attention parents: we’ve got some extra supplies for future team dinners—I’m keeping everything in my classroom (we have napkins, a few pieces of plastic silverware, and paper plates). Parents, please feel free to go to my room to get what you need for the Friday Night Dinners! Everything is in the back of the room. There is extra water as well, I was planning on taking it out to practice this week, as it will be really hot. If we still have extra water after this week, we’ll bring it to Tiffin.
  • We have a bunch of missing items from practices/meets—shirts, shorts, pants, water bottles, and other various items. The kids have been great about picking everything up and keeping our campsite clean…but we still need to claim our own items. The CC Lost & Found is in my classroom (404), by the windowsill.
  • Injuries…please let us know! The trainer at the high school is very good, very nice, and…she’s very free. It doesn’t cost you anything to go see her. Although, Coach Arebaugh’s really good at diagnosing problems and he’s good at treating them (better than me). So let us know at the end of practice, or head up to the Athletic Office at the high school after school to see if Mrs. Reading can assist you! If she’s not in the trainer’s office she’ll be on the football field but she said you can meet her there too.

Tiffin Carnival Information (ATHLETES):

  • Okay, SWC Preview was about seeing what we’ve got and what everyone else has in our conference (Southwestern Conference). Avon Lake Earlybird was our first big meet, and our home meet. Tiffin Carnival is all about SIZE! It’s the biggest meet we’ll attend this year! We get to compete against schools we won’t see again for the rest of the year! The best advice for this week: enjoy it! You’ve just got to experience it.  
  • We will meet at Troy at 9:15 a.m. Saturday, and we should return between 5:30 – 6 p.m.
  • Eat a good breakfast for this one! You don’t have to wake up super early. Parents, kids should pack a good, healthy lunch as they will be eating their pre-race meal once we get to Tiffin. Food high in carbohydrates are preferred. Remember that food helps build up the necessary glycogen, which produces the energy needed in races. Pasta, whole wheat bread, bagels, cereal (Cheerios…but watch the bus floor because you’ll be the one cleaning it up), apples, bananas, grapes, orange juice (limited quantity), yogurt, 1 chocolate cookie…these are examples of good food to bring as part of your lunch, which is vitally important as that is your pre-race meal.
  • We want to eat our pre-race meal (lunch) 2-4 hours before our race. So we’ll let the team know when they should eat.
  • Bring a healthy snack home, along with enough to drink. You’ll need something before your race, something after (water AND sports drink). You can also bring money and buy some unhealthy food after your race.
  • Again, we’ll be stressing healthy eating/drinking this season. But it’s good to have one ‘cheat’ meal a week…maybe make the pizza you eat after the race that reward for a week of healthy eating. We have been talking to the team about eating an ‘unhealthy’ meal after their race on Saturday, but keeping it healthy Sunday – Friday.
  • Right now, the weather says there’s a chance of rain Saturday, with a high of 83 degrees. So…bring rain gear, hat, wrap your gear in your duffel bag in plastic (to keep it dry), and bring sandals to wear on the ride home! It’s a long ride home, and you’ll want your feet to be dry.
  • Results will be posted on baumspage.com.
  • I’ll be printing Tiffin Carnival Cheat Sheets this week.

Tiffin Carnival Information (PARENTS):

  • Information from Tiffin’s website can be found here: http://www.tiffin.k12.oh.us/Athletics/Cross-Country-Carnival/index.html
  • We will meet at Troy at 9:15 a.m. Saturday, and we should return between 5:30 – 6 p.m.
  • Make sure kids get a healthy breakfast and that they pack a healthy lunch (plus more food than normal…it’s going to be a long day).
  • There will be food and t-shirts available.
  • Watch the time…it is very hectic parking at this meet, since it’s so large. We try to get there a little early so kids can eat, and so we have enough time to find a place to set up camp. Plus, the buses have to wait to get into the park, so it takes time. I would leave earlier than what your GPS says so you’re not rushed!
  • The race is held at Hedges-Boyer Park (491 Coe Street, Tiffin, OH).
  • The meet managers encourage spectators to enter the park using the rear entrance off Summit Street and to park at the bottom of the park. You have to walk to the start/finish (pretty much the same place), but it’s worth it as you’ll end up sitting in your car if you try entering the top of the park (they stop traffic during races).
  • The map for this race looks like it’s a lot better than last year. I’ll print out copies for our team, and it looks like you can print one out from the website provided above (it’s the 2-mile course map).

The start is naturally a good place to be, then turn left, as the kids will run out, turn left, and come back. Then, if you can jog (or walk fast) to the softball field and/or woods, that’s another good place to be. Then find a good spot at the finish! There are a lot of people there so maybe get a little away from the finish…lining up along the last turn to the finish isn’t bad…the kids will be able to see and hear you there.

SCHEDULE:

  • Boys Team – 1:05 p.m.

Jordan Matusak
Nick Schulz
Matthew Kuban
Andrew Crooks
Matt Henry
Paul Osborn
Isaac Dotson

  • Girls Team – 1:50 p.m.

Riley Mullen
Emily Presley
Alli Starr
Isabell Nagel-Russell
Allison Matavic
Andrea Crimaldi
Megan Drabik

  • Boys Open – 2:15 p.m.

All other boys!

  • Girls Open – 2:40 p.m.


All other girls!

Friday, September 2, 2016

Early Bird Meet

We had an awesome start to our competition season last Saturday! Girls won the SWC Preview, and the boys lost a close one to Westlake. Girls, you’ll have to work hard to fend off Avon (they’re going to be really good). Guys, it’ll take everything you’ve got to best Westlake.
 
·         Just another reminder: bring water and a watch to practice every day! We are working on intervals on the track and don’t always have access to water! We also are working on pacing so athletes need to continue timing themselves on intervals, along with keeping track of normal workout times and making sure we are aware of the ‘normal’ time!
 
·         Please let us know if there are any issues with uniforms!
 
·         Parents, the cafeteria was SPOTLESS on Friday! Normally I am there to help pass out wet rags to the kids, but if I’m not around and you need help accessing rags/mops, just let one of us (or the custodians) know! Also, the custodial staff asked that the cafeteria be left exactly the way it was found—we don’t have to break everything down, nor do we have to stack the chairs. I thought we were supposed to, but they said just leave everything exactly the way we find it.
 
·         Athletes seem to be doing pretty well, injury-wise, besides the usual aches and pains. All athletes need to make sure they are stretching right after practice, at night and on Saturdays/Sundays. If there is consistent, long-lasting pain, let us know. I can even schedule a time to see the trainer at the high school if necessary. The trainers are really nice and it’s a free service to all Avon Lake athletes. Just email me to let me know.
 
·         I know everyone’s excited over the SWC Preview, but I thought I’d update the 3rd Annual Avon Lake Intra-Squad (Mock Meet) results:
 
Meet Champions             154         Goober Doober Goos   
Noah Volle, Andy Neipp, Brandon Nieding, Julianne d’Acunzo, Abby Okuma, Julia Khrenovsky, Alaina Okuma, Taylor Washington, Helena Byers
 
                Runners-Up                       159         Kirbs
               
                3rd Place                               165         Flashmaster 8
 
                4th Place                               171         Fast & Furious Flubbernuggets 2.0
 
                5th Place                               180         Team 6
               
                6th Place                               195         Doofusmeister 6
 
                7th Place                               196         Team 1
 
                8th Place                               207         Tiny Teenage Ninja Turtles (Times Two)
 
                9th Place                               219         No Names!
 
                10th Place                            251         Team Finesse
 
EARLY BIRD WEEK:
  • We will be meeting at TROY (not Learwood), on Saturday, September 5th, at 6:00 a.m. This is an early one again. Buses leave at 6:05 a.m. We should return between 10 – 10:15 a.m. at Troy. We will have athletes call to be picked up so parents do not have to wait!
  • We have been talking about HYDRATION for the past several weeks. Please keep hydrating prior to Saturday. The next week and a half looks very hot & humid, so we’ve got to prepare as much as possible!
  • All BOYS run at 8:00 a.m.
  • All GIRLS run at 8:30 a.m.
  • This race will determine who runs TEAM and OPEN at the Tiffin Carnival next Saturday! We will talk about that on Friday!
  • Bring uniform, apparel, running shoes AND spikes (if you have them). You will only wear your spikes for the race. Bring a cell phone, water, your weekly sports drink (just one), and a healthy snack!
  • Last week everyone experienced the ‘wet feet’ associated with running a race so early in the morning. Just a piece of advice, bring sandals to ride home in as you’ll want to dry out your soaking wet feet on the trip home.
  • Another reminder: if you wear compression shirts, shorts, or just regular shirts/shorts underneath your uniform, it has to be BLACK!
  •  Parents, if you are taking your child home from the meet please make sure to sign out with Coach Walters at the finish line. Only parents can sign out athletes from the meet!
  •  After the race, results will be posted online at www.baumspage.com. On that webpage, click on Cross Country. Then scroll down to Avon Lake Earlybird (9/3/16). Click there to find out results.   Please note: results may not be updated until later in the day that Saturday or perhaps even into the day on Sunday.
  •  Parents, course map this week is the same as last week. It’s best to view athletes running at the start line, at the mile mark (by the tennis courts), and then at the finish. If you really want to cheer kids on where they will totally hear you, the base of the hill is also a good spot (I usually go there…they need some cheerleaders there!). The downside is you might not get to see the finish. These locations are fairly close to each other so you should be able to walk to each location without difficulty! I have extra copies of the course map in my BIG maroon bag (you can’t miss it, it says: AVON LAKE TRACK & FIELD). Feel free to grab one on race day.
  • 6 ½ weeks until the SWC CHAMPIONSHIP!