Dakota Ridge XC Track and Field

Track and Field has begun..... Yes...we are up and going for our Indoor Track and Field season...really the first of its kind in our school history. On November 30th at Colorado School of Mines we had five enterprising student-athletes take part in our first club Indoor competition of the year.    We are super excited to see this level of interest and excitement for our sport. To have the effort to improve that we have seen already for Track and Field has been really impressive and has not gone unnoticed. Coach Gysin has been working extremely hard to bring about a new culture of Track and Field in our school.  So far so good as we have seen some great effort already by the student -athletes who have been coming to practice. With Cross Country 2017 in the rearview mirror and Track and Field 2018 now ahead of us, we can start to look at what are the big questions to consider going forward. Dimy Dobrev What impact will Indoor season have on Outdoor Seaso...

We will never get this opportunity again... And  Why Aaron Leblanc will be the reason we win.  Dreams... That what I see when I look at this picture of Aaron. A guy dreaming about getting faster and being better, and succeeding. No matter what happens over the next year, Aaron Leblanc will be a guiding light on a path that has potential to be the greatest in school history. Having already showed up the final weeks of the season because all he wanted to do was get better...he is showing us the way. Aaron is in it for all the right reasons and his heart and passion is an example of the type we all will need in order to be great.  Although, different contexts and narrative we have the makings of something very special on both sides, guys and girls in 2018.... While the high aspirations of our guys team will certainly continue to dominate conversations we cannot forget the context and narrative on the girls side. Losing five seniors and losing incoming girls...

Program scores for 2017-2018 Jeffco League Championship: Program score is adding the team placing from the 4 races (Varsity Girls, Varsity Boys, JV Girls, JV Boys) together to identify which Jeffco Program was best at the League meet in 2017-2018. 1) Dakota Ridge   6 (1, 1, 2, 2) 2)Arvada West    7 (1,1, 2, 3) 3) Ralston Valley 14 4) Lakewood 17 5) Chatfield 18 6) Columbine 22 7) Bear Creek 28 8) Pomona 32 Historically over the last 20 years more often than not we have been the best Cross Country program in Jefferson County based on this scoring. Last year we lost it to Arvada West.  It was once again an exceptional effort on our part to bring back that title. The effort from everyone on the team was fantastic. I cannot say enough how proud I am of the effort over the last week and half. It showed that we took this race seriously despite the varied and multiple distractions we had over the twelve days leading into the race. Unfortunate for our kid...

October There are two stretches of time during the year where everything you work for is put to the test. From mid April to May 20th or so in Track and Field and October in Cross Country. We perpetually train year round and it is these times during the year when that work pays off. We are now square in October and as we look ahead to this month, we need to pull all of our work together to deliver great performances throughout the month. Our season theme has been going from Good to Great. I have my thoughts on what constitutes "great" and I will share that in a minute. First some thoughts about  individual preparation; In order to achieve a high level of performance this month, student-athlete needs to make quality decisions everyday. This includes managing time to ensure a lower stress level and getting rest for a championship performance. Sleep is more vital now then ever. Washing hands and staying away from sickness has increased importance. Getting homework f...

Alamosa Trip.... We go to Alamosa for the Sand Dunes and a fabulous race put on by really great people. We spend a couple hours the day before the race at the Sand Dunes, enjoying one of Colorado's true gems. We run, hang out and have a great experience spending time together in a somewhat unique atmosphere. It is always the hope that the weekend is a team building moment that helps give us life for the bulk of the season ahead. Adams State and Alamosa High School put on a tremendous meet in a gorgeous setting and the environment is in and of itself a draw for us. The weekend had its share of stresses with left leaning busses, missed exits and our young team finding their way together. Together learning about grace and forgiveness and humility. Together learning what it takes to truly care about one another. This trip was about taking steps to greatness. Stress creates greatness. The race itself was a good display of our talent and passion for the sport. As coaches we co...

What the Crucible  Of Starting A School Year Has Taught Us....  (and some Alamosa info) Starting a school year has become a crucible.  A test of everyone's will, time management and emotional stability. I believe we have rode the wave of it into shore, washed up...and now can begin the real good work of becoming great.  (That is a lot of metaphor.)  Our opening weeks have been filled with everything you can think of and we lived it all together so there is no need to go over all of the happenings since we began on August 14th. What we do need to look at is what we have learned having gone through it. Here are some thoughts... Young, dumb and in love. ---Mat Kearney  The most obvious brutal fact about our situation is that we are young. There is a ton of information and learning that needs to reach everyone and we are absolutely in love with the sport right now. It has been awhile since we have found the need to hold b...

There is a bunch of need to know information this week to get us ready for the upcoming season. PART  1:   The following is a rundown of everything you need to do to begin next week.... 1. In order to participate in Cross Country you must have a physical and signed paperwork stating you are cleared by a doctor to participate. 2. You must fill out the necessary school registration Athletic Participation Card and Emergency Card which can be found online in three places...Click on the highlighted yellow links above...If that proves difficult and for overkill I included the other places to find these pertinent items. http://dakotaridge.jeffcopublicschools.org/ http://www.dakotaridgexctf.com/home.html 3. You must pay the $175.00 CHSAA fee to Dakota Ridge. ALL OF THE ABOVE IS DUE AUGUST 14th!!!!! GEAR: A solid pair of running shoes is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED head to Runners Roost Lakewood on  southwest corner of Wadsworth and Alameda next to the King Soopers to ...