Athletics Season

The athletics season is here and Mrs Robertson has collated some pics, clips and sites to motivate you and support your understanding of this great track event - relays, before you compete next week.

A great site

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/07/23/sports/olympics/the-fastest-baton-to-the-finish-line.html?_r=0

A great site to visit to understand relay running

Track Running

This photo shows how the track circumference increases if you are running in the outside lane and explains why the runners running in the outside lane start ahead of the runner in lane one.

An Example of Track Relay Racing

Because we all have to run the same distance the competitors on the outside lane have a head start. If this didn't happen the competitors in the ouside lane would end up running further because the oval increases in distance as lanes increase outwards. It is important to stay in your own lane.

Well done to our runners

Thank you to the families who supported our runners today. To our runners, well done. It has been very satisfying to see your progress. I hope you have enjoyed the training and it sparks an ongoing joy for running.

The course map for Wednesday

Here is map for Wednesday. Remember to ignore the loops that appear on the map, as we explained in todays briefing they are only relevant to the year 7 and 8 levels that will be competing.

• You need to work hard to get a good start. The first bend will be open you quickly. 
• Remember you are a race car not a road car - you don't have to stay on your side of the road, you can use as much of the track or as little of the track to take the shortest, safest line around a bend. BUT STAY WITHIN THE MARKED COURSE.
• Keep your head up as you run so you can see and plan where you are going. Your feet will always be there and you don't need to check that they are still working.
• Remember ditches with puddles are a great place to pass other people. This is because other competitors will slow their pace down and naturally revert to tip toe running to avoid puddles. Lets face it you're going to get dirty so you might as well get dirty going fast. Eat up lots tomorrow night, pasta, rice and potatoes. I am looking forward to hearing about how dirty you managed to get :)

http://www.primarysportscanterbury.org.nz/

Your shoes are going to get dirty and your feet are likely to be cold and wet at the end. You need to pack on Tuesday night a towel to dry your feet, another pair of socks. Mmm, fresh dry socks, they feel wonderful after a run. Gumboots will be fantastic to pack so you can wear them if you get to walk around the track before your run. Remember, did Pete cry when his shoes got dirty? Goodness no, he kept on walking and singing his song. You're going to keep on running and sing your own song :)

Your BIG run on Wednesday

Make sure you are now resting. You should be like a stretched rubber band ready to fling into action on Wednesday. You have done well to come this far. Remember everything we talked about in the strategy meeting. Tie your shoes on firmly. It will be a muddy track and your shoes might slip off. We are proud of you. Go out and run your best on Wednesday.

Keep going, you can do it.

Never give up. You might fall on Wednesday and it's how you choose to respond that makes the difference

Running During the School Holidays

You have all set different goals to strive for in the St Albans School Cross Country.

Because term one finished late this year and the cross country is set for week 2 after the holidays you need to maintain and drive your training during the holidays.

I have been away already in Arrowtown, Queenstown and Cromwell and I managed to fit in some running while I was there. Thankfully I had fine weather and dry tracks to run on. The grounds are very wet in Christchurch and I suggest you find firm ground to train on.

By the end of the holidays you need to be able to run for 15-20 minutes at a good strong pace. If you are achieving this already try and increase your distance. Run, run, run

Training Ideas

• Organise to run with friends. 
• Ask Mum, Dad or someone older to bike next to you while you run
• Stimulate yourself and spark that motivation by researching and reading about John Walker, Rod Dixon and Allison Roe...
• Skipping is a great way to improve your fitness for running
• Organise some relays with friends and family. Competition encourages sprinting and it's good fun, gets the lungs working and it will help with that dramatic sprint finish on competition day.
• Go to a park and lay out a circuit. Old water bottles filled with sand make excellent markers and can help you layout a course.
• Map my run is a great site that allows you to map your run and help you to know the disatance that you have covered http://www.mapmyrun.com/nz/

Running Reviews

If you have ran an interesting route lately? Please write about it, edit it and share it by sending it to me - Mrs. Robertson. I can be found in Room 7 or you can e-mail me through dahl.robertson@stalbans.school.nz

Running the Godley Heads Track

 Godley Heads Running Review

A fine weekend morning is a great time to run the Godley Heads track. The Department of Conservation have poured a lot of energy into resurfacing the track since the main earthquakes caused damage to the area. This run offers the runner a refreshing and changing view, as well as varying gradients and declines. Take care on the steep declines because it can be easy to topple over and skinned knees are not very comfortable when you still have a couple of kilometres to run. Overall this run is a great challenge.

By; Mrs.Robertson

Cross Country Training Has Started

Hello to all year 5 and year 6 children wanting to improve on their result from last years school cross country.
Mrs Robertson is meeting with runners every Wednesday lunch time until the end of the term. We want to inspire you to train over the Easter school holidays so you start term 2 with a good fitness base to compete in the 2014 St Albans School cross country. You might go on to represent our school at the zones or post a personal best. 

Check that your running shoes are a good fit, trim your toenails while avoiding over trimming and cutting into the corners of your nails. Remember to cut toenails straight across to eliminate painful ingrown toenails.

The goal of the cross country training is to build your fitness so you can maintain a good pace over a long distance. All sport is good for young people but during a ball sport you get to have little breaks when the ball is out of play or a small issue or penalty is taken. It is important to be realistic about your distance training to begin with to avoid disappoint. Frustration from high personal expectations causes many experienced runners a lot of disappointment. 

Lets get training, build your fitness, set goals and have some fun :)