Coaches:
Dale Schoenthaler (Sprints/Hurdles)
Esmie Lawrence-Calkins (Sprints)
Events:
Sprints: 60m, 100m, 200m, 300m, 400m, 4 x 100m Relay, 4 x 200m Relay, 4 x 400m Relay
Hurdles: 60mH, 80mH, 200mH, 300mH, 400mH
Practice Times / Locations:
Base training -
September-October: meet in the parking lot of Foothills Track outside the building located on the SE corner
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 5pm to 6:45pm
Indoor -
November- March: Olympic Oval / Jack Simpson Track at the University of Calgary
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday 5pm to 6:45pm
Outdoor -
April-August: Foothills Track at Foothills Athletic Park
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday 5pm to 6:45pm
*Weights - Foothills Athletic Park Weight room
Monday, Wednesday, Friday; 7pm-7:45pm
Program Philosophy:
The Spartans' Sprints and Hurdles program is open to athletes aged 14 and up who want to specialize in sprinting or hurdling events.
Practices begin with a 20 to 30 minutes warm up. The group then moves into its main practice which could be comprised of general conditioning, hill running, acceleration development, speed drills, sprinting, hurdling, block work, or speed endurance. Core stability and balance excercises are incorporated into the program, along with medicine ball work. High school athletes and older have weight programs that are customized to their ability and development.
The program begins its annual cycle with a base season in mid-September until the end of October, which is done on grass to minimize impact to the athletes' bodies. The focus at this time of year is general conditioning acquisition, which benefits athletes later on in the season with improved recovery in competing in multiple races. Circuits, hill running and tempo running comprise the main practice. Weight lifting is done minimally, if at all.
With the cooling weather, the Sprints and Hurdles group moves indoors to the University of Calgary in November where focus shifts to technique improvement, block starts, acceleration development and speed. Core and posture work is continued to assist with overall athletic balance and to encourage proper form. Weight lifting picks up at this stage to support strength acquisition for increased speed. Athletes compete indoors December through March with practices during this time geared toward competition.
After indoor provincials in March, athletes move back to a “mini-base season” for April and May with the incorporation of longer sprints and circuits to maintain a level of fitness for the outdoor season. Weight lifting continues throughout the remainder of the season. The outdoor competitions happen May to July, and again the focus of training during this time becomes competition. The Sprints and Hurdles group is off training for rest over the Christmas break, one week between indoor and outdoor season and from the last outdoor meet (end of July / early August) until mid-September.
Events descriptions:
This race covers one straightaway of the track. The winner is recognized as the “fastest runner on the track”. Each athlete must use starting blocks to begin the race. The starter uses a two-command start. “On your mark” is called to call athletes from their assembly lines and into the blocks. “Set” is called to order athletes to their starting position (hips up); athletes must remain still until the starting pistol is fired. The pistol indicates the start of the race, where athletes drive out of the blocks and sprint over the 100m distance. Athletes race in lanes and must remain in them for the duration of the race. A 60m race distance is run indoors due to the shorter track size (200m as compared with 400m for an outdoor track).
This race covers one half of the track's distance for outdoor and one lap of the track for indoor. The race begins as a staggered start to equalize the distance run on the curve of the track, as athletes remain in their lanes for the duration of the race. This race is run out of blocks and follows a two-command start. “On your mark” is called to call athletes from their assembly lines and into the blocks. “Set” is called to order athletes to their starting position (hips up); athletes must remain still until the starting pistol is fired. The pistol indicates the start of the race, where athletes drive out of the blocks and sprint over the 200m distance.
This sprint race is one full lap of the track. It begins as a staggered start to equalize the distance run on the two curves of the track. Athletes remain in their lanes for the duration of the race. This race is run out of blacks and follows a two-command start. “On your mark” is called to call athletes from their assembly lines and into the blocks. “Set” is called to order athletes to their starting position (hips up); athletes must remain still until the starting pistol is fired. The pistol indicates the start of the race, where athletes drive out of the blocks and sprint over the 400m distance.
This event requires each athlete to race while stepping over 10 barriers (hurdles). Women race over a 100m distance and men race over 110m. Hurdles are of varying heights and have varying weight placements in them depending upon the race's age category with younger athletes and master's athletes having lighter weights and shorter hurdles. The race is run in lanes and begins in blocks with a two-command pistol start. The objective is to complete the race as quickly as possible and runners are not penalized for hurdles they hit or knock down. Hitting or knocking over hurdles does slow down the athlete, thus it is important to run cleanly over the hurdles, yet not get too high up in the air, as this also adds time to the race.
Athletes typically run eight strides to the first hurdles and three strides between hurdles, with the fourth stride being over a hurdle. This means that they will maintain the same lead leg (first leg going over) and trail leg (second leg coming over) for each hurdle. Younger athletes and older master's athletes compete over an 80m hurdles distance with fewer hurdles and shorter distances between the hurdles, but similar rules to the 100mH and 110mH. A 60m hurdles race is run indoor to accommodate the 60m straightaway on a 200m indoor track.
400m Hurdles
This event requires each athlete to run one full lap of the track while efficiently clearing 10 hurdle barriers. This race is a two command start race with “on your mark” and “set” being called by the starter. The pistol fire indicates the start of the race. Athletes will often run a predetermined number of strides between hurdles to so that they know which leg will come up as their lead leg for each hurdle. The hurdles are typically three inches shorter than the hurdle used in the 100m or 110m hurdles race for the same age category. Athletes must stay in their lanes for the duration of the race. Because of this the hurdles will appear staggered for the race distance. 200m hurdle and 300m hurdle distances are raced by younger and older master's athletes to accommodate varying athletic development of these athletes.
4 x 100m Relay
The four-by-one hundred metre relay is a team track event run in lanes in which four runners each running 100m over one lap of the track. A relay baton is exchanged between each of the four runners in exchange zones within a 20m changeover area, marked with yellow lines on the track, and extending 10m on either side of the 100m 'corner' of the track.
The first line of the exchange zone indicates the earliest point at which the incoming runner can pass the baton to the outgoing runner. The second line indicates the last point at which the exchange may take place. A third line marked 10m back from the beginning of the exchange zone marks the earliest point at which the outgoing runner may begin running, giving up to 10m of acceleration space before entering the exchange zone. The first runner begins the race in starting blocks along the same stagger as for the 400m race. “On your mark” is called to call the first runners from their assembly lines and into the blocks. “Set” is called to order the athletes to their starting position (hips up); starting runners must remain still until the starting pistol is fired. The second, third and fourth runners do not run out of blocks and instead have a standing start into the acceleration and exchange zones.
Transfer of the baton in this race is typically blind, meaning that the runner receiving the baton remains facing forward and does not see the baton being passed. The pass may be completed overhand or underhand. An overhand pass is received by the outgoing runner from above its backward-stretched hand. An underhand pass is received by the outgoing runner from below its outstretched hand. An overhand pass is slower than an underhand pass, but less likely to be dropped. A dropped baton may results in the team being disqualified from the race. It is the incoming runner's responsibility to place the baton into the hand of the outgoing runner and not let go until the outgoing runner takes hold of it.
Strategy for the race involves putting your best block starter on the first leg, best curve runners on the first and third legs, and fastest runner on the fourth (anchor) leg. Runners on the first and third legs typically run on the inside of the lane with the baton in their right hand, while runners on the second and fourth legs run with the baton in their left hands, toward the outside of the lane in the exchange zone. This is to prevent incoming athletes from running over or into the outgoing athletes. Polished exchanges can compensate for a lack of running speed to some extent.
4 x 400m Relay
The four-by-four hundred metre relay is a team track event run in lanes in which four runners each running one lap (400m) of the track. The first 400m of the race is typically run in lanes, after which time the second leg runners may cut in to first (inner most) lane. Due to the extra 100m spent in lanes, the stagger of blocks at the beginning of the race is greater than of a flat 400m race.
The first runner begins the race in starting blocks along the same stagger as for the 400m race. “On your mark” is called to call the first runners from their assembly lines and into the blocks. “Set” is called to order the athletes to their starting position (hips up); starting runners must remain still until the starting pistol is fired. The second, third and fourth runners do not run out of blocks and instead have a standing start into the acceleration and exchange zones.
A relay baton is exchanged between each of the runners over the course of the race. Similar to the 4 x 100m relay the baton is exchanged between the runners within a 20m exchange zone. The 4 x 400m exchange zone is typically marked with blue lines. The first exchange is made within the staggered lane lines, as the runners are still running in lanes at this point. The remaining two exchanges are made within the exchange zone, but do not have to be in lanes, as the athletes have cut to the inside at this point. Athletes running the third and fourth legs line up first to eighth from the inside of the track to the outside according to the team's position in the race when the incoming runner reaches the front straightaway (last 100m of their leg). This is to prevent collisions in the exchange zone when athletes are no longer required to run in lanes.
Exchange of the baton is typically completed with an open overhand pass, in which the outgoing runner looks back to see the baton being passed to them. This is because of the increased likelihood of an incomplete or missed exchange due to the fatigue of the incoming runner as compared with a 4 x 100m relay race. Additionally, the longer distance in this rates often negates any speed benefit from a blind pass. A dropped baton may results in a team disqualification and incoming and outgoing athletes work together to complete the exchange.
