What a great meet we had this weekend at Newbury Park. Our 10U team members were flying around the track! We had lots of PRs, and everyone is getting noticeably faster and stronger in practice. I also saw lot of good encouragment.

I’m especially thankful for the good attitudes and 100% effort our 10U runners have been giving at practice and the meets! Coaching the team is a highlight of my week. Keep encouraging your athletes to do their best and cheer on their teammates.

We expect to have ribbons from the meets for PRs only. I’m excited that our team is focusing on runners improving their personal best times. More to come on this, as I get further details.

WE LOVE TO RUN!

A few administrative notes and reminders:

-For upcoming meets, if your athlete is running the 4×100 relay, please try to be on site by 7:45am. It can be a scramble to put the teams together. If you’re not onsite in time, we may have rearrange teams and your athlete may lose their spot…Thanks to everyone for staying flexible. We’ve had several athletes step up when we needed another runner to field a complete team.

–We will have NOT have practice or a meet during spring break: April 3rd-8th, BUT it would be great opportunity to get in some running with friends or family members!

-Thanks for everyone’s flexibility as we transitioned to paperless meet sign-ups. This seems to be working well, and we are incorporating “lessons learned.” Big shout-out to Coach Ryan N. (from 12U) for setting this up!

-A gentle reminder that parents are NOT allowed on the infield during any practice or meets.
This includes both team and specialty practice days. Siblings and friends (unless they are also Tigres athletes) are not allowed on the field even after practice is over.

-I can’t overstate how thankful I am to our AMAZING assistant coaches. We have a great coaching team (all parents) who love the 10U athletes and encourage them to give their best.

-Finally, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns. We want to do everything we can to help our 10U Tigres learn, grow, and succeed

Stay Strong 10U,

Coach Stephen –

805-822-9341 (call/text), or 10u@venturatigres.org

10U, What do we Love???
We love to run!!!
(We also love Dum-Dums)

What a great week of practices! This week a “shoe-throwing” good time was had by all! Our athletes have been working hard in both sprints and distance, and we’ve seen them getting faster and stronger. More importantly, we’ve seen lots of team spirit and encouragement.

Our first regular meet of the season is this Saturday, March 11
as Ventura Tigres host the Heritage Valley Blazers at Buena High School.
Meet starts at 8:30 am. Check-in at 7:45 am.
Rain or Shine (Be ready for rain!)

We will have our orange Tigres canopies set up in the stands. This is a great place to stage and keep your food/extra gear. This meet will have all the events and another team, so expect it to go significantly longer than our practice meet. Please bring healthy food/snacks to keep your athlete fueled up! The canopies will offer shade and/or protection from rain, so please feel free to use them.

Please remember that we want to be good sports to our fellow Tigres and our visiting team, the Blazers! I’m sure we’ll catch many of you high-fiving your competitors (after the race!) We want all athletes to try their best!

Please text/call me (805-822-9341) if you need to sign-up or modify any events for the meet.

A special thank you to all our parents for their support of Tigres! Without you, our meets would not be possible (and none of our athletes would make it to practice!) Thanks for all you do! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly throughout the season, if you have any questions or concerns!

Brrrrrrr…….this afternoon our athletes braved the sub 55 degree temperatures as our Socal winter continues on for a brisk practice!
We continue to be inspired by the enthusiasm and good attitudes we see on the field. Keep up the good work, 10U.

We have been gently reminded that my good friend, Coach Jim (12U Coach), brings Dum-Dum lollipops as a special treat to some practices, so stay tuned and keep coming to practice 🙂

With a meet coming up, please remember that we’re all on the same team and continue to be encouraging to all of our teammates! One of the best parts about running is that you can improve individually with practice and hard work. When you improve in event that becomes a Personal Record (PR). You’ll begin to hear us talk about PRs in practice, since every athlete has the opportunity to improve throughout the season!

We are now less than 60 hours away from our practice meet. Please try to get enough sleep and eat healthy/hearty meals, so you can be at your best. It is forecasted to be in the 40s at 7:45am when we arrive to warm-up for the meet. Remember to dress in layers, since it should warm up to the 50s as the day goes on. Please bring your water bottles to take on the field. You’ll also want to bring food/snacks/etc., but these need to stay in the stands and off the field.
Finally, remember, that this is our practice meet and there may be delays as we are all learning together. Your patience is appreciated and please reach out to me or any of the coaches with questions.

As a reminder, athletes sign-up for their events at practice. This year, we have paperless sign-ups using Coach Ryan’s web-based app. Thanks to all the parents who have reached out to me for sign-ups when their athletes were unable to sign-up at practice. Please reach out to me via email or text by tomorrow (Thursday) if you need to sign up or modify any of your sign-ups.

Stay strong, 10U….”WE LOVE TO RUN!”

If you have any questions, please email 10U@venturatigres.org or call/text 805-822-9341
-Coach Stephen

Thank you to Coach Dave and all the coaches for stepping up to fill-in, while I was away for work last week! I received lots of good feedback, regarding practicing relays!
Great practice for all the athletes that came out today. Keep working on your form during those warm-up drills and don’t be afraid to ask a coach if you need help. My arms are a bit sore this evening after our crab-walking-sharks-and-minnows variation.

This Saturday is our practice meet here at Buena, please make sure your athletes sign up for the events they are interested in by this Wednesday at practice. I will be around after practice if anyone has questions. This year, we’ve transitioned away from paper sign-ups and are getting the App to our coaches (Thank you, Coach Ryan for setting this up!!!). If you’re unable to make it, please reach out to me via email or text (contact info below) by Thursday, so ewe can ensure our athletes get into the events they want.

AND…
We are so excited for Saturday’s practice meet, where our athletes can finally compete (even if it is against only Tigres). The team has been working hard in practice, and Saturday is the first chance to see the payoff!
A few quick logistical things:
Please have athletes meet in the end zone near the gate at 7:45 sharp. Please do your best to be on time, as we will cover important information for the athletes.
Please be sure to wear your uniform and bring extra warm clothes. If you have not had a chance to pick up a uniform, they will be available Saturday morning before 7:45. However, there will only be a tiny window on Saturday morning, so please do your best to be on time.
Please bring sunscreen (maybe wishful thinking?) and water. No food or drinks (other than water) are allowed on the field.
For parents and athletes, the purpose of this meet is to “practice” for our regular season meets. Athletes will be exposed to listening for event calls, warming up for events, and the staging process. Many of the new Tigres might feel a bit nervous about not having competed in a track meet – it’s OK. After Saturday, they’ll be experts! Our coaches will be actively involved to help everyone.
For parents, this meet is to train our volunteers in their positions so the meet runs smoothly when we host another team. Things will NOT run smoothly; there will be delays and possibly a lot of standing around, feeling unneeded. Please be patient! Once we have a real meet, we’ll look like a finely tuned machine (fingers crossed).
The events our 10U team will be allowed to compete in are a subset of a typical meet. Our athlete’s options are:
4×100 (relay)
1600
400
100
4×400
Long Jump
For the practice meet, athletes can compete in 2 running events and the Long Jump. They aren’t required to do 2 running events but can not do more than 2 running events. The exception to this is the 4×400, which is always free.
A significant area of focus for our team is sportsmanship. We are asking our athletes to work on congratulating competitors by shaking hands after races, saying thank you to volunteers, being helpful teammates, etc. Please watch for your athletes showing sportsmanship and reinforce this at home.
We can’t wait to get our season started on Saturday!!!
If you have any questions, please email 10U@venturatigres.org or call/text 805-822-9341
Coach Stephen

P.S. Coaches note: We have a very strong Coaches to athlete Ratio (this is a GREAT thing, thank you!) For this meet we’ll have one coach that is dedicated to help in the staging area for relays AND one coach that stays in Long Jump, while our 10U athletes are jumping.
P.P.S. I also want to take this opportunity to thank all our VOLUNTEER coaches for their dedication, enthusiasm and investment of time at the practices. YOU are the reason our athletes are doing so well, Thank you!

10U and Families!

Wow! We had a great practice! With only1 practice this week, athletes are encouraged to come to speciality practice tomorrow and go for a run over the weekend.

Please keep dressing in layers as we wrap up our Socal winter and eagerly await the time change.

We had a lot of good effort from 10U today on the track! Be sure to keep eating healthy meals as we are burning the calories. Also remember to stay hydrated throughout the day. We handed out the athletes code of conduct and goal sheet, which is a great tool for athletes to use as the think about the upcoming season. These can be turned in next week or the following week to any coach.

Due to the Presidents’ Day Holiday, we will NOT have practice next Monday.
Our next 10U Team Practice will be Wednesday, Feb 22.

Unfortunately, I have to be out of town for work next week(go Navy), but our awesome coaching staff (including Coach Dave!) will be on field to carry the baton.

Thanks for making 10U great!
We LOVE to run!!

-Coach Stephen

10U@venturatigres.org

Hi Families,

I mistakenly told everyone, “See you on Monday!” It’s just so exciting to be on the field running together!

***Unfortunately, due to the VUSD holiday on the 13th, our next team practice is on Wednesday the 15th. There is NO PRACTICE on Monday the 13th.***

The good news is that specialties will start next week! The available options are listed on the Tigres website under practice schedule and also listed below for your convenience. Remember, your athlete can come to both specialty days or none, it depends completely on their schedule and desire to try some of the events (i.e. shot put, long jump, and high jump) that they will not experience during our team workouts.

Thank you to all our 10U athletes for coming out today to kick-off our season.
We saw a lot of good effort and attitudes out there this afternoon.
“We LOVE to run!”

Please encourage your athletes to go for a run or two, especially with no practice on Monday. It’s amazing how our bodies are designed to get stronger when we put in the effort. You can run almost anywhere, and running with family or friends makes it even better!

Please reach out with any questions!

A big thank you to all the assistant coaches for their support…we couldn’t do it with out you.

Coach Stephen
10U@venturatigres.org

Monday – NO PRACTICE NEXT WEEK

Tuesday Choice A Choice B Choice C Choice D
4:30 – 5:15 Hurdles Strength/Plyos High Jump Relay
5:15 – 6:00 Hurdles Strength/Plyos High Jump Relay

Wednesday (practices focused on intensity)
4:30 – 6:00 Team Workout Warrior

Thursday Choice A Choice B Choice C Choice D Distance
4:30 – 5:15 High Jump Long Jump Relay Shot Put Recovery Run
5:15 – 6:00 High Jump Long Jump Speed Development Shot Put

Hello 10U Families!

I’m so excited that tomorrow (Wednesday) is our first 10U practice at 4:30pm!
Don’t forget to bring a water bottle!

Please be a bit patient tomorrow as we all step into a new season with Tigres for 2023!
We will have a little more discussion than normal, as we are all getting to know each other and learn or re-learn our warm-ups and drills.
Don’t forget to bring a water bottle!

But we’ll definitely have time to RUN!
Don’t forget to bring a water bottle!

Tomorrow sunset is at 5:34 pm and temperatures will be in low 60’s and high 50’s during practice. Perfect running weather, but it’s a good idea to have a sweatshirt or light jacket for your athlete to wear.

Your other coaches and I can’t wait to get out there and get running with you all!

Below is some information for the upcoming season.

Goals for the season:
-Safety
-Fun and an appreciation for the benefits of sports and exercise
-Good Sportsmanship
-Developing your athlete’s abilities and helping them to achieve their goals

Questions and information:
The most efficient way to communicate with me is through email on the website. I am also available for questions after practice. I will email regularly, especially once the meets begin in March. You can text me as well.


Practice:
10U will have team practices on Mondays and Wednesdays from 4:30-6:00 at the Buena High School track.
Parents are welcomed and encouraged to stay and watch, but only athletes and coaches are allowed on the field. Please be on time for pickup; a coach must stay with your athlete until you arrive. Until the time change, please try to come a bit early for pick-up as we may be ending practice early.

Athletes will work with specialty coaches on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
There are two 45 minutes sessions. I will normally be there on Tuesdays and for the first session on Thursdays, but this is a great time to work with our AWESOME speciality coaches.

Preparation for practice:
Please have your athlete dressed and ready to go. They will need a bag to carry their belongings:
Sweatshirt and bottoms
Small towel (dish towel size)
Water bottle (NO food/Gatorade on the track – water only)
Spikes (if they choose to use them) – I’m not encouraging these for 10U.
Good Running Shoes

A lot of athletes will have similar gear, which means many have the same water bottles, bags, and sweatshirts. PLEASE label everything!!

Attendance:
We understand that other sports, illnesses, and injuries may conflict with practice. You do not need to email me if your athlete does not attend practice; but I would appreciate knowing if they are injured and if they are not going to attend a meet. Please do not send them to practice if they are injured.

Meets:
10U athletes can participate in all of the events except hurtles:

Field – Long Jump, High Jump, and Shot Put
Relay – 4X100 and 4X400
Distance – 3200, 1600, and 800
Sprints – 100, 200, and 400

10U Athletes can participate in 4 events at each meet with a maximum of 3 running events. The 4X100 counts toward their running event total, but the 4X400 is free 🙂
Some athletes know what events they are interested in, while others are still deciding. We will encourage them to try everything until they decide which events they like the most. Event sign-ups will be on Mondays and Wednesdays by my bag on the field.

Setting up the relay teams for the 4X100 and the 4X400 takes time. Once your athlete selects the relay, they commit to three other team athletes. Relay teams will be created based on times and attendance. Sometimes, we cannot build a full relay team due to numbers, but we will do our best to ensure it is a fair process.

I will send out more information regarding meets as the dates come closer. However, for future planning, the meet schedule on the website is accurate.

We look forward to greeting former and new athletes tomorrow!!

See you soon,
Stephen Isbell 805-822-9341
10U@venturatigres.org

Hello 10U Tigres!

We had a great meet on Saturday and I am so proud of all of the athletes!

Saturday concluded the season for all of our JV athletes; however, we look forward to seeing them all at the end of season picnic on May 15^th to celebrate a great season!

Our varsity athletes will have practice Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday this week from 4:30-5:30.  The practice is shortened due to the smaller number of athletes.

Below is a list of the 10U athletes that qualified for the Varsity meet this upcoming Saturday, April 30^th at Moorpark:

Brooklyn Moore (4×100)

Kaya Jackson (4×100)

Serenity Perry (4×100, high jump)

Tatum Hathaway (4×100, high jump)

Eva Azer (1600, 400, 4×400)

Maren Kuebler (1600)

Violet DeLeon (100, long jump)

Annabelle Nation (4×400)

Kori DeLeon (4×400)

Allie Swartzentruber (4×400)

Alistair Hood (4×100)

Bronson Mitchell (4×100)

Giankarlo Vega (4×100)

Liam Mitchell (4×100, 400, (4×400)

Hiro Ramos (1600)

Noah Torres (1600, 800)

James Quagliata (1600)

Jonathan Geske (400, 100, long jump)

Jude Stepp (400, 800)

Declan Feeney (4×400, high jump)

Ridhaan Chharlotre (4×400)

Sawyer Conlon (4×400)

Look forward to seeing the varsity athletes at practice tomorrow.

Jim

805-368-6999

Hello 10u families,

Tomorrow is our last meet of the season. We still have several runners who are not signed up for any events. If your child is planning on participating and you have not signed them up yet, please email me tonight.

Also, if your child is running in the 4 x 100, please arrive no later than 8:15 AM. We put the teams together by that time and if your child is not there, they may not get onto a team.

Tomorrow’s meet is the largest of the year. We are expecting over 700 participants and can run longer so please plan accordingly (extra water, food etc.)

Looking forward to a great meet!

See you in the morning,

Jim

I can’t believe we are nearing the end of the season. Most athletes have at least 2 meets left: the first being our last regular meet this Saturday 4/16 and the second being the Conference JV Finals West at Buena on Saturday 4/23. Athletes may have also qualified for the varsity finals which will be held on Saturday, 4/30.

Below is a description of the JV finals and the Varsity finals meets so as to help with any confusion regarding the events.

JV finals: April 23 at Buena High School
The JV finals are open to all athletes. In order to participate in an event in the JV finals the athlete needs to:

1) have participated in that event at least once during the regular season (except for relays, an athlete need not have competed in a relay during the regular season to compete in a relay at conference finals).

2) have NOT qualified for that event in the Varsity Finals. If an athlete qualifies for an event at the Varsity Finals, they can NOT participate in that event at the JV finals.  Also, the same event limit applies at the Varsity Finals (maximum of 4 events, a maximum of 3 running events, and 4×400 is excluded from the total).

Varsity Finals April 30 at Moorpark
The Varsity Finals are for the athletes that run the fastest, jump the farthest and highest and put the shot the furthest. For each event in each age/gender group the top athletes in the conference qualify for the championships. For sprints and field events the top 9 athletes qualify. For the distance events (800, 1600, and 3200) the top 12 athletes qualify. If there is a tie for the last slot they then look at the athletes’ next best mark.
Athletic.net keeps track of the top athletes for the conference.  The link for athletic.net is:
https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/Division/Top.aspx?DivID=129725

Each club gets to send 1 relay team per age/gender group for each relay (4×100 and 4×400). A relay team member need not have run on any relay or competed with the other members of any relay prior to the Varsity Finals meet.

There is no event limit at the Varsity Finals; an athlete can compete in all of the events for which they qualify.  If an athlete is unavailable/doesn’t want to participate in the Varsity Finals, the athletes spot will not be filled by the next fastest athlete.

Co-Conference Championships May 14:
Qualification at co-conference is based on the results from the Varsity Finals. For laned events and field events the top 5 athletes from VCYTC and the top 4 SCYTFC qualify. For non-laned running events the top 8 from each conference qualify. If an athlete is not available to participate, they will take the next best athlete.
The location of the co-conference championships is still not certain. It looks like it will be at Rio Mesa High School.

Hope this helps. We have had a great season so far and lets finish strong.

Thank You

Coach Jim