Thank you for joining Potomac Valley Track Club's Young Flyers youth track & field program

Thank you for joining Potomac Valley Track Club's Young Flyers youth track & field program!

Our next session is Sunday, October 15, from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM at Thomas Jefferson Community Center, 3501 2nd Street South, Arlington VA 22204.

TJ is one block south of Arlington Boulevard (Route 50) and one block east of Glebe Road (Route 120). Parking is ample and free. Enter thru the main entrance, Door #12, next to the playground.

Directions: Arlington Blvd. (US 50), south on Irving Street (1/4 mile east of Glebe Road), west on 2nd Street South, entrance on right thru Door #12

Each week, I shall send you a message about the program on the upcoming Sunday.

Please tell your friends who have young athletes that we welcome new participants. They can sign up on-line or on paper on any Sunday afternoon. See www.pvtc.org/youth for full information.

We thank our dedicated coaches: Jim Darr, Anders Halvorsen, Desta Beriso Morkama, Betsy Peace, Feru Dadi Wake, and Jay Jacob Wind

Here is our daily schedule:

o 2:40-2:45 PM: Administrators and parent volunteers arrive to set up check-in -- please help us unload the coach's van outside Door #12

o 2:45-2:55 PM: Athletes and parents arrive, enter thru Door #12, and pick up your name tag in the lobby outside the gym

o 3:00-3:20 PM: Introductions, circle time - stretching and strengthening exercises and my prepared lecture on Planning your Competitive Season

o 3:20-4:00 PM: Break into groups:

oo Sprint (50 / 100 meters) for athletes in K, 1st, or 2nd grade, or older athletes who specialize in the short distances

oo Middle distance (200 / 400 meters) for athletes in 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade

oo Long distance (800 meters, one mile) for athletes in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade, or younger athletes who specialize in the long distances (for example, they have run 5Ks)

oo Race Walk for all ages

o 4:00-4:30 PM: Re-group for water and break into groups:

oo Hurdles

oo Short Distance / Sprint

oo Long distance

oo Race walk

oo Shot put, turbo-javelin, Frisbee discus practice

o 4:30-4:55 PM: Regroup into four-person 4x200 meter relay teams

o 4:55-5:00 PM: Regroup to enjoy post-workout refreshments

Each week, families brings post-workout refreshments, for example, 50 juice boxes, 50 pieces of fruit, 50 energy bars. We have plenty of bottled water from last week.

Trader Joe's, 1109 North Highland Street, Arlington VA, sponsored our first practice, and we recommend shopping at your neighborhood Trader Joe's.

For our workout on October 15, our refreshments are thanks to these families:

Parents of Alexandra Wippenbeck

Athletes:

o Sunday will be chilly but sunny. Please wear a warm shirt, jacket, and gloves so we can go outdoors if not too cold

o For indoor track, please wear light clothing and running shoes (not spikes, not court shoes or street shoes)

o On nice days, we run some of the time outdoors, so prepare for the weather -- jacket, hat, gloves, sunglasses, sunscreen if you're sensitive

o Please bring a filled water bottle with your name written on it.

On the four Sundays in November and the first Sunday in December, we welcome any of the parents to present a prepared five-minute lecture on any topic that will help our young athletes. In past years, our parents have lectured on fascinating topics:

o Posture and Balance

o The Limits of Human Performance

o The progression from young athlete to high school to college to national championships to International Competition to the Olympic Games

o Allergies and how to avoid allergens when running

At all our workouts, we welcome parents to run with their young athletes. Think of it as Suzuki running!

Coach Desta and I shall be absent on November 5 to run New York City Marathon. On that Sunday, other coaches will be in charge.

On a personal note, Coach Desta and I run or volunteer at races every weekend. This Sunday morning, we run Home Run 10K in Rockville MD. Feel free to ask us how we finished.

We look forward to coaching your young athletes this season. Welcome aboard!

BTW, every Sunday, we promote membership in Potomac Valley Track Club -- see www.pvtc.org/join -- or take a membership flyer. It's a club for All Ages, All Paces, All Ways.

Next year, PVTC conducts 2018 USATF Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships in Landover MD on March 16-18, 2018. We invite you to run for our team!

-- Thank you
-- Jay Jacob Wind, secretary
-- Potomac Valley Track Club
-- www.pvtc.org/youth
-- 703-927-4833