Practice Guidelines:
Practice will begin at 3:00 pm with a team gathering and should end
by 5:30 pm Mondays through Fridays.
Saturday practices will be called at the head or event coach’s discretion and the team will be informed
of a Saturday practice time in advance.
You are expected to be on time and prepared to go at 3:00 pm.
Roll will be taken.
If you are unable to attend practice, you must inform a
coach ahead of time.
If you will be missing practice because of a medical appointment (doctor, dentist, optometrist), a
note from your
parents explaining the circumstance and including a number in which
I can reach your parents will be required.
Coach Wannamaker will determine if a missed practice is excused or unexcused.
If a student athlete misses excessive practices for reasons
unexcused by the head coach, that athlete will be held out of
competitions or, if too many practices are missed, removed from the
team! If you skip practice, you cannot achieve your goals.
Clothing:
Be prepared for practice daily.
Have proper clothes, shoes, and gear.
Practices will be held outside in all types of weather conditions.
For cold weather you will want gloves, stocking hats, sweats, ear
bands, etc.
These can be purchased inexpensively at area discount stores.
Shirts must be worn at all times on campus unless otherwise noted by a coach.
Shoes:
Having proper shoes is also vital to your physical
well-being. PROTECT
YOUR FEET! A good
training shoe is highly encouraged for everyone.
This will be a cushioned shoe with support that will help
prevent leg and foot injuries.
Specialty shoes for different events are encouraged for
competitions. See your
event coach for suggestions when shopping for these specialty shoes.
A couple of area stores do offer discount for South track & field athletes.
See Coach Wannamaker for details.
Workouts:
Students are expected to finish their workouts.
The workouts are assigned to you are designed to make you better athletes, to get you into better
shape, and to help you learn to challenge your limits.
Not all workouts will be easy…..in fact, very few will be.
We want you to have fun and enjoy your time and participation, but I would be doing you a disservice if
we did not try to help you to get better.
The coaching staff is very knowledgeable in the events areas and the workouts will be designed to
develop each athlete to their fullest potential.
You will get out of your
workouts what you put into your workouts.
Multiple Event Athletes:
Some of our athletes will choose to do multiple events and may have to work with two or more coaches in
order to do this.
It is crucial that you communicate with your event coaches and develop a practice schedule to maximize
your time and effort.
Multiple event athletes will be encouraged and every effort on the coaching staff’s part will be made
to accomplish this.
Injuries:
Whether we like it or not, injuries can and will occur during the
season. Small injuries can become major obstacles if not taken
care of promptly.
Precautions to prevent injury will be taken, but injuries will still happen during the season.
Whether your injury is as small as a blister or as severe as a broken bone, a coach needs to know right
away.
We have a qualified training working with the school and athletes will be referred to him for diagnosis
and/or treatment options. If you believe you have an injury, see the trainer ASAP for diagnosis.
As an athlete, you need to know the difference between a pain and an
injury. Athletes can compete and practice through pain.
An injury may prevent an athlete from competing or practicing.
If you are injured, make sure you take care of it
and do any rehabilitation needed.
If a doctor or trainer tells you to reduce practice reps, please
have him/her put it in writing and give me a copy.
Please have them list acceptable activities, unacceptable activities, and amount of time off listed on
this note.
If a doctor or trainer indicates that an athlete should not participate, Coach Wannamaker needs to know
this in writing.
An athlete in this situation will not be allowed to resume training and activities unless a physician’s
or trainer’s clearance is presented to Coach Wannamaker.
Competition/Meet Guidelines:
The reason that we work hard and try to improve is so we can
represent ourselves well at track & field meets.
It is not expected that you win or place in every event at
every meet. However, it is expected that you will put forth
your best effort when competing in a meet. Success should not be
measured by wins and losses, but
by improvement made as the season progresses.
Members of the SM South Track and Field Team will be expected to
represent their school and themselves so as to draw respect and
admiration of those they compete against.
You will be expected to display appropriate behavior and good sportsmanship.
Unsportsmanlike conduct or poor behavior will result in
punishment, ranging from extra conditioning to community service to removal from the team.
Transportation:
The school will provide transportation to and from all track & field meets.
All athletes are expected to ride the bus from the South to the location of the meet.
Exceptions
will only be made in rare, extenuating instances.
DO NOT EXPECT TO DRIVE
YOURSELF TO A MEET.
If you choose to drive yourself and not ride a bus, you will be scratched from the competition and you
will be disciplined later as well.
I
expect all track athletes to remain at the track meet until the
conclusion. TEAM =
Together Everyone Achieves More.
It is helpful if you stay to cheer on teammates and maybe even run a victory lap when we win meet
championships.
You will only be allowed to go home early if you are released to your parents.
You
MAY NOT go home with a friend or a friend’s parents.
Parents must come tell
a coach personally that they are taking a student athlete home and
sign the student out with that coach.
Warming up:
As part of normal training, each athlete will learn how to properly warm-up.
This will help prevent injury and prepare each athlete for any activity.
It is expected that each athlete warm-up at all track meets in the same manner as at practice.
If you do not warm up properly, injuries will occur easier and more often.
Uniform and clothing:
Each member of the team will be issued a uniform consisting of a
singlet (jersey) and shorts.
As per National Federation rules, you must compete in the school issued uniform during meets.
If you wear something else, you can be disqualified from the event.
The booster club will sell sweats (tops & bottoms) and it is
suggested that you consider purchasing a set.
These should be worn to meets at times when you are not competing.
When at the competitions, it is highly recommended that each athlete
keep their bodies covered with either sweats, warm-ups, or other
clothing when not competing.
As a general rule of thumb, your arms and legs should remain covered when not competing to promote
proper muscle warmth.
Cold muscles lead to injuries.
Sun bathing and tanning can be done at other times.
It is more important that we properly prepare for our events at the meet.
Some athletes will choose to wear shirts and/or leg tights under
their uniforms for various reasons.
This is OK as long as a few guidelines are met.
The National Federation and State uniform rules are very picky.
All clothing worn underneath the uniform (ie. Under Armor,
tights, shirts) must be
ONE
solid color.
At SM South the standard color will be
BLACK (this is due to the ease of finding the color and the
affordability and choices that can found). The clothing cannot
have contrasting seam colors.
If the fabric is black, the seams must also be black.
No more than ONE manufacturer’s logo can be visible
on a garment when an athlete is standing in an upright position.
Under Armor garments are sometime guilty of breaking this guideline.
Please talk to Coach Wannamaker if you have
ANY questions at all.
We are required to follow these rules if we want to compete in
the post season, so it is not a choice.
Be prepared for any type of weather condition.
Even if it is warm in the morning, weather can and will change quickly in Kansas.
Pack more than you need.
Always have extra, warm clothing (sweats, hats, gloves, raingear, etc.) with you.
Event Assignments, Scratches, & Substitutions:
Members of the track & field team will be expected to compete in the events they are assigned prior
to the meet.
Athletes will not be asked to compete in events that they are not prepared for.
Athletes cannot scratch
themselves from an event, unless instructed to do so by a coach.
If an athlete scratches themselves out of an event without permission to do so, they may be suspended
from further competition in that meet and possibly further meets.
Occasionally, as injuries occur, an athlete may be asked to step in
and compete for an injured teammate.
This can and will happen with relay teams on occasion. This decision is not taken lightly by the
coaching staff.
The coaching staff will explore all options prior to a final decision.
If an athlete is asked to compete in the place an injured
teammate, that athlete is expected to accept that request and give their best effort for the good of the team.
Other Athlete Responsibilities:
At all meets, each athlete is expected to find out their performance marks and record them with a coach
or manager.
The coaching staff wants to keep accurate records and at some meets, especially JV meets, it is crucial
that each athlete asks event judges or timers for their best marks.
All student athletes will be expected to remember that they
represent more than themselves when they compete.
They also represent
Letter
Requirements:
To earn a varsity letter in Track and Field at SM South High School,
you must be a member in good standing*
on the team at the time of team banquet
AND
-Score team points in an event at the following Varsity meets:
Sunflower
League Meet, Regional Meet, or State Meet OR
-Set a Varsity school record
OR
-Contribute successfully at the Varsity level throughout the season
(contribute to the team’s success by placing or scoring in your
Events on a regular basis)
OR
-Complete your Senior season on the team in good standing.
The head coach and the coaching staff reserve the right to consider
and/or waive any or all of the requirements on an individual basis.
Just competing in some varsity meets will not merit a Varsity Letter Award.
*A member in good standing is
an athlete that is academically eligible and has not had any
discipline issues. Athletes who do not finish the season,
voluntarily or involuntarily, are not considered members in good standing.
Grades and Academics:
Remember, we are here as students first, athletes second.
Maintain your grades.
Coaches will be checking on your grades routinely and you will turning in your Gold
Cards weekly if required to do so.
Academic eligibility requirements are a school and district policy.
If you are failing 2 or more classes you are ineligible for competitions!
If you are taking a reduced schedule of classes (less than 7) you
must be passing 5 classes to be eligible.
Please stay on top of your schoolwork.
If you need to work with a teacher after school, talk with Coach Wannamaker.
We want and need you to be a student first.
Communicate with your teachers before missing a class for a meet.
That is your responsibility as a student-athlete.
You are a student first!