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Welcome to the 2013 cross country season! I am looking forward to seeing whatwe can accomplish this fall. After an amazing run in 2012, our team will face newchallenges this year. Hopefully everyone is prepared to do her best after aproductive summer of running.Please read the following information and be familiar with the team rules andpolicies.Overall PhilosophyCross Country is a terrific sport for self-motivated individuals. I would like ourteam to demonstrate dedication, perseverance, self-reliance and initiative thisseason. This is your team! I will give you the basic foundation of proper training,but you have to do the work required to be successful. Running is too difficult asport to be successful without having a passion for it. Embrace the challengingnature of the sport-it is what separates cross country running from just aboutevery other activity. We will strive to be outstanding in everything we do.Shortcuts are for other people to take, while we will seek to take the mostchallenging path possible. As Coach Herb Brooks said in the movie “Miracle”,“Common men (or women) go nowhere.” You get the idea. Be uncommon andstand out from the crowd.Contact Information for Coach Wehrle:Phone: 938-6162 (home); 938-5151 x7001 (work); 952-5889 (cell)Email: cargeowehrle@comcast.net (home); gwehrle@punxsy.k12.pa.us (work)Please make sure your parents have my contact information as well.

Attendance GuidelinesTeam members must be at every practice and every meet unless they areexcused. There are many things that may come up that prevent you from attendingpractice, but here are a few of the more common ones that have occurred in the past:*Absences will be excused for regular doctor, dentist, orthodontist appointments, etc.*School activities, such as band, field trips, etc., are excused.*If you are sick and do not come to school, you are excused from practice. If you leaveschool early due to the nurse sending you home, you are also excused from practice.If you need to be excused early from practice for a valid reason, please let me know inadvance. I take attendance daily and expect to be notified of any circumstances whichmay cause you to miss practice. Communication is the key. I should never be “in thedark” regarding your whereabouts at any given practice.***In general, I cannot repeatedly excuse you from practice to go to work. I stronglyrecommend you consider not working at all during the season. Going to school, practiceand work will make for a pretty long day, and dedicated athletes need their rest. Let meknow in advance if you have a conflict, and we can try to make the situation work foreveryone involved. Remember that most coaches do not excuse athletes from practicein order for them to attend a job.Practice will be held everyday regardless of weather. If for some reason we need tocancel practice or be let out early I will make every effort to notify you in advance. I willnotify you in advance of any Saturday morning practices, which may be held on occasionif the need arises. It is possible that we may schedule a day off from practice during theschool week and then have a Saturday practice, as sometimes this makes more sensefrom a training standpoint. Many other sports teams practice six days a week, so youneed to be prepared to do so as well. If we do only have five practices scheduled for aweek, you will be asked to run one additional day on your own.Consequences For Unexcused Absences*First unexcused absence from practice*Second unexcused absence from practice*Third unexcused absence from practiceWarning1 Meet SuspensionDismissal from the team*First unexcused absence from a meet*Second unexcused absence from a meet1 Meet SuspensionDismissal from teamBeing late to practice on a habitual basis and/or leaving early may result in a meetsuspension, depending on the frequency and reasons associated with missing practicetime. Participating in a competition is a privilege, not a right. If you have sporadicattendance, regardless of the reason(s), do not expect to participate in all the meets.Always keep me informed of your situation and we should have no problems. I amassuming you want to be at every practice in order to help yourself and the team.

Injury PolicyUnfortunately, injuries do sometimes occur in cross country. While I hope wewon’t have to deal with any significant injuries this season, here is my generalpolicy for injuries:1. Injuries can be prevented in some cases by wearing proper footwear. You willneed to practice in genuine running shoes. I recommend you have two pairs ofrunning shoes that have very few “miles” on them to get you through the season.See me if you need any more information about running shoes.2. Notify me immediately if you have any pain during running. I will most likelyrefer you to our athletic trainer, Mr. Albright. It will then be your responsibility toinform me of what course of action is recommended by Mr. Albright.3. If you are told not to run, we can try to do supplemental exercises likebicycling and swimming, depending on the availability of the equipment. Justbecause you are injured and unable to run does not mean you are excused fromattending practice. I will let you know what to do about practice if you are unableto run for a short period of time.4. If you cannot practice fully, you will not be able to compete in a meet.Obviously this will be handled on a case-by-case basis, but you need todemonstrate your fitness and ability to run pain-free in practice before you cancompete.5. Athletes who do not take care of themselves physically are more likely tobreak down with an injury. Every runner on this team should get at least 8 hoursof uninterrupted, quality sleep per day. Your diet should be significantly healthierthan the general population, and you should not be participating in organizedsoccer or basketball leagues during the cross country season.6. You were all given a summer running program to follow. If you completed thesummer running program as instructed you will be much less likely to incur aninjury than someone who hasn’t run all summer.7. I will always try to err on the side of caution regarding injuries. Keep meinformed!

Equipment Needs For Cross CountryCross country is a very simple and basic sport. Little equipment is required ascompared to many other high school sports. However, there are several itemsthat you must have and bring to practice on a daily basis.Proper Running Shoes are a must. With the mileage that we will be running,having running shoes that are specifically designed for distance running is anecessity. A pair of quality training shoes will last an athlete about one seasonbefore they will need to be replaced. Running with shoes that are broken downmay increase the risk of injury. I encourage you to visit The Gingerbread ManRunning Store in Indiana, Pa., as they will help you select the best shoe for yourneeds. Racing Spikes are also highly recommended. A quality pair of RacingSpikes will cost around 50 and will last for several seasons if cared for properly.A Running Watch is an absolute necessity. Runners are responsible for bringinga running watch to each practice. Relying on others or the coach to time yourruns shows a lack of responsibility. Running watches can be purchased for not alot of money at WalMart or similar stores.Water bottle (optional) You may want to bring your own water/Gatoradeproduct to drink at practice. In general, the only time you need to drink fluid isbefore and after we run, not during. The most important thing you can do torecover fully from our practices is to drink a carbohydrate/protein liquid (likechocolate milk) within 30 minutes of running. If you refuel soon after running,your muscles are much more receptive to what you are giving them. Moreinformation about the “refueling window” will be given out/discussed.I also recommend you check the weather on a daily basis and be prepared forexcessive heat, cold, rain, etc. You should have cold-weather gear such as hats,gloves, tights, long sleeves, etc., for when the need arises. Always be preparedfor whatever the day may bring. Being uncomfortable during a run will take awayfrom your performance, and make it less enjoyable.

Earning a Varsity LetterFor the 2013 season, you must earn a point total that will be 10% of the totalnumber of runners we compete against throughout the season. Last year, varsityrunners who made the state meet competed against 1305 runners. Varsityrunners who didn’t compete at state and junior varsity runners still competedagainst almost 1000 runners, provided they did not miss any significant time dueto injury. Using this example, varsity runners who qualified for states would haveneeded 130 (10% of 1305) points to earn a letter. In addition to this method ofearning points, you can also help achieve a varsity letter through the followingmeans:All seniors with at least two seasons of participation on the cross country teamwill be eligible to receive a letter, regardless of their point total. The two seasonsincludes your senior season.Seasonal bests-Ten points will be awarded for every seasonal best you achieveduring the 2013 season*A varsity letter will only be awarded to runners who finish the season in goodstanding. If you do not complete the season you will not receive a letter. Thehead coach has the final say for awarding a letter should special circumstancesarise.

Academic/Discipline PolicyTraditionally, the girls cross country team has done very well as a wholeacademically. Not everyone needs to be on the honor roll, but failing subjects isnot acceptable, either. Please be disciplined about getting all your schoolworkcompleted and turned in on time. No one on this team should become ineligibledue to grades, as this reflects poorly on the team and leaves them unable tocount on you. If you are declared ineligible by the athletic office, you will beunable to practice with the team for a week (school policy), and you will beunable to participate in any competitions the week you become eligible (teampolicy). Most of you will not run professionally, so make sure you are getting thekind of grades you need in order to pursue your life’s work, whatever that maybe.Discipline at school should be a non-issue for this team as well. I expect you todo what you are asked to do by your teachers and treat all students and staff withcourtesy and respect. You should get to school on time and do what is requiredof you, no matter how trivial and unimportant it may seem. Be a leader at school,not a follower. Always do the right thing, even if no one else will know. Anydiscipline issues brought to my attention may result in consequences that maynecessitate your being unable to participate in meets.In addition, girls who run cross country should be motivated to do well in physicaleducation classes. Slacking off or showing a negative attitude in physicaleducation class reflects poorly on yourself and your team. Runners are athletes,even if you don’t think of yourself as one. Stand out from the rest of the classand leave your mark, no matter what the activity.Team website/facebook groupYou are responsible for checking the website on a regular basis andcontributing as needed. This is supposed to be your team. The website addressis www.punxsyxc.com. It will also be linked on the school website. Please tellyour parents about the website and make sure they can access it. We also havea team facebook page and a twitter account. Both are linked on the website.Please frequent the team facebook page and become a twitter follower. Parentsare welcome to follow the team on twitter if they wish.