Tentative roster online, and local deals on running shoes

* The team roster from our first two signups is on the web site, linked here:

http://ctktrack.org/2013_roster.pdf

This is an excellent time to find the name(s) of the athletes in your life and make sure I have keyed in their parish, grade, and gender correctly.

4th and 5th grade boys! You especially need to get some friends to join the team. The girls are going to flatten you at relays this year.

* There's additional information about discounts from local shoe stores on the front page of the web site:

http://ctktrack.org

If you're aware of other business who offer discounts to local youth groups like ours, please pass the information along to me and I'll add it to the site.

Paperwork, parishes and shoes

Hello families --

A couple of quick items for you today:

Paperwork

* I have keyed in all the athlete and family information into our team database, and expect to go through all the supporting papers today (birth certificates, health forms.) I'll send an email to those missing one or another document -- you can get these to me at practice.

Parishes

* If you are new to our team, the "parish" assignment is based on three factors:

1. If the athlete attends one of the parishes' schools, or
2. If the athlete attends religious education at one of the parishes, or
3. The home address listed on the form

Since I don't have an RE roster, I made some determinations based on the address on the forms. I will publish a list later today. Please let me know if there are corrections to be made, so I can give the league an accurate count.

Parish affiliation matters only during the final meets of the season, when we are forced to keep our relay teams "parish pure." During the regular season and all practices, we are treated as one big team who happens to wear three different shirts.

I know there are some special circumstances and I spoke to those families at signups. If you have concerns after the list is published, let me know.

Shoes

Your biggest expense on the team -- other than your time! -- is a good pair of running shoes for your athlete. We are usually able to work a deal with local stores to get a discount. Sports Basement in Walnut Creek was quick this year, and gave us an "e-coupon" that you may print or bring in on your phone to show the cashier. The coupon is on our web site:

http://ctktrack.org/sb_2013.png

This gives you 10% off your whole purchase, not just shoes. I'm going to approach Fleet Feet in Pleasant Hill and Road Runner in Concord to see if they will do something similar: they have in the past. (Those are more full-service running stores.)

You do not need to purchase "track shoes" which have the small metal spikes on the bottom. Although they are permitted at meets, we don't need them for practices. I'll talk more about these at the parent meeting on February 11.

Second signups are complete

Our second signup night for the team is done: I've scanned the volunteer sheets and placed them on the team web site.

If you missed signups:

You can still register for the team: bring all the paperwork and checks to practice and see me (Mike) in the stands. I will be wearing a brown cowboy hat and looking a little frazzled. Links to all the forms are on the team site:

http://www.ctktrack.org/forms.shtml

You can also bring it to the parent info meeting on February 11th.

Need to change something?

 
T-shirt/sweatshirt size:
 
Email me right away so I can update the paperwork. I need to place our order with the printers soon so we have uniforms in time for the first meet. I need the athlete's name and the correct size(s) to make a change.


Need to change volunteer time:
 
Again, email me right away so I can update the forms. If you cannot work for a certain day/time, also let me know where to reassign you. ("I can't work March 9, but I can work April 20 instead.")


Missing paperwork/payment/birth certificate:

Bring it with you to practice and hand it to me in the stands. I'll be wearing the identifiable hat.

Signup night #1 is done, night #2 is Thursday

We had our first signup night for the 2013 season last night, and we had around 60 families join the team. If we have the same number on the 24th, our team size should be about the same this year as it was last year. Welcome to all new families, and welcome back to our returning families and coaches!

If you signed up last night, I've scanned the volunteer sheets and placed them online:

http://www.ctktrack.org/2013_signups_1.pdf

If you forgot what dates you are working, please take a look at the sheets and note them. I didn't scan any sheets that were blank.

If you need to drop off some missing paperwork or still need to sign up, we're back at Christ the King School, room 222 from 6:30-8pm on Thursday, January 24th.

A couple of common questions came up last night:

Q: How many meets do we need to work?

A: It's the same as last year: we're asking for one shift at the mini-meet, and five more across the rest of the regular season. So, six total per family, with one of them on March 9. You may double-up to get two done in one day, if you like. Recruit your spouse!

Q: Wait, did you say March 9? That's baseball/softball opening day!

A: Yes, it is. It's not the end of the world if you miss the Mini Meet, but we'd prefer you at the meet, as it's really training for the adults. If you have an athlete playing softball or baseball and running track, you're going to be juggling a lot of conflicts.

Q: Any other surprises?

A: The Relay Meet is April 6, which is the end of spring break for many schools. It's not unusual for people to miss this meet, but please don't sign up if you can't make it.

Q: Where are the meets this year?

A: We don't know yet. Our team is usually the host team, which means that the meets are usually nearby -- we saw a lot of DVC and Ygnacio Valley High last year. No promises, though. It's based on all the other teams' sizes, and we won't have those figures until everyone in the diocese has their team registrations. I'll update the schedule page as soon as we know locations.

Q: Can we rent-a-student to work our shifts again this year?

A: I hope so. That program is run by the track coach at Ygnacio Valley High, and it's a great fundraiser for them. Our team alone raised $1150 last year which went directly to the YVH track boosters. This money goes to help those athletes pay their team fees and other costs. As many of our CYO kids go on to run in high school, this is a great way to continue supporting youth athletics.

2013 signups this week

Just a reminder that track signups are this week, on Tuesday the 22nd and Thursday the 24th at Christ the King school in Pleasant Hill, room 222. Signups are from 6:30-8:00pm both evenings.

Remember:

• Bring your checkbook - the deposit must be a check, fees can be paid in cash or check
• Bring your calendar to note which meets you're working
• Athletes new to the team need to leave a copy of their birth certificate (Xerox copy is fine): other legal proof of age is also acceptable
• You can save time if you come with the forms completed:

http://www.ctktrack.org/forms.shtml

I have blank forms in case you forget them at home. :-)

=====

If you're a returning family and can help out either night -- or both! -- I have openings for another cashier and for someone to help pass out forms at the door. I'll need you from 6:00-8:30 to help with setup and cleanup, which means mostly moving tables around, sharpening pencils, and so on. Please email me if you can help out -- I'll count it towards one of your volunteer shifts for the season.

Reminder: signups next week, and a small change

Just a reminder that team signups are being held next week, on Tuesday and Thursday evening at Christ the King school, in room 222 (the 6th grade classroom, if you're familiar with the campus.) We'll be open for signups from 6:30pm-8:00pm on both nights.

Like years past, you can speed the process by showing up with completed forms, and having your checkbook and calendar with you. I've outlined what you need to turn in on the team web site:

http://ctktrack.org/signups.shtml

If you're new to the team, please remember to bring a photocopy of your athlete's birth certificate or other legal proof of age. You will leave this copy with us to be added to the team files, and it will be destroyed when the athlete ages out of the program.

If you're not able to make either night, you may bring everything to the parent info meeting on Feb 11th. We'll have signup sheets there as well.

I'm tweaking the volunteer process a bit this year. With the exception of key meet jobs, we're trying an open signup process and assigned jobs. This year, families will sign up for the required number of shifts, and we will assign a meet job to you. We try to honor requests -- if you have a special fondness for working high jump, for example -- but I hope this will make like easier for all the parish volunteer coordinators. I appreciate your patience as we try this experiment! I'll talk more about this at the information meeting on Feb 11th.

Families who worked special team jobs last year have precedence for signing up for those jobs again this year: please see me at the signup nights.

Finally, we're always on the lookout for medical professionals who are able to work a few shifts at our meet's first aid station, tending to the inevitable scrapes, bumps, and overheated/underhydrated athletes. See me at signups if you can help out.

Looking forward to a great season!

2013 Dates to Remember

Hello everyone -- the 2013 track season is about a month away, and we have some key dates for you to note on your calendars:

Signup nights:

• Tuesday, January 22 & Thursday January 24
• 6:30-8:00pm
• Room 222, Christ the King School (6th grade classroom)

Coach/assistant coach meeting:

• Wednesday, January 30
• 6-7pm
• Room 222, Christ the King School (6th grade classroom)

First practices:

• Tuesday, February 5 & Thursday, February 7
• 5-5:45pm
• College Park High School track

Parent info meeting & late signups:

• Monday, February 11
• 6:45-7:45pm
• Christ the King Parish Hall

Practices will continue on Tuesday and Thursdays at College Park High, starting at 5pm. I'm getting the team site updated with information as I get it:

• Signups page
• Registration forms
• Schedule page

Running Shoe Amnesty Program

If your kids have a pair of track shoes (spikes) that they have outgrown but are still in decent shape, you may donate them to the team to be passed along to other athletes on the team. Empty those closets! I'll have a donation bin at the signups and information meeting.