GREMLINS TEAM PAGE (8U)

Soooo, the radar lied. The storm shifted north and now no rain forecast until 9pm. Doh!  So if you still can, come on down to Buena for practice. I will be there! Apologies for the confusion – I do not have a future career as a weather person.

Autumn

Due to a volatile and unpredictable weather system, Gremlin practice is canceled for today.  I don’t want to drag everyone out to the track and have us get stuck in the rain.  Encourage your athletes to get some running in this week.  Note the report time of 8am at Buena HS on Saturday for the practice meet.  Coach Ryan will be the POC.  Uniform distribution will be rescheduled – more information is forthcoming (I don’t have any specifics).  Worst case, come very early to the meet to pick yours up.  I will see you all next week – have a wonderful rest of the week and practice meet!

Autumn

Hello Gremlin families,

Our practice meet is quickly approaching!  We are all excited to put practice into action at a meet!  Below are some updates about this busy week. But first, thank you for signing in and out your Gremlin at practice – we had 100% compliance this last practice (1^st time!) – I greatly appreciate knowing that all Gremlins are accounted for after practice.

The news for the week:

Another big storm is approaching and supposed to hit Tuesday 3/5 in the afternoon – plan on practice unless you hear from me otherwise.  We have a lot to get done, especially more relay practice but we will have to cancel if it’s pouring.

On Thursday 3/7 all Tigres practices have been canceled – Buena HS is hosting a track meet.  Please encourage your Gremlin to do warmups and running in order to work on conditioning. Information about a new schedule for uniform distribution will be forthcoming from our volunteers in that department – I don’t have any further information.

Our practice meet is this Saturday, March 9^th at Buena HS. Thank you to those who signed up for events at practice or emailed me.  If you have a Gremlin planning to participate but have not yet signed up, please email me ASAP.  The event options are limited for this meet since the primary focus is training the volunteers. For this meet only, Gremlins will be able to participate in 1 field event (long jump) and 2 running events.

Our running choices for this meet are:

4X100 relay (best to do only if they practiced handoffs)

400m

100m

The meet is scheduled to begin at 8:30am. Please have your athlete arrive by 8:00am and meet the Gremlins in the stands – we should have an orange pop-up tent.  We meet 30 minutes before the start of each meet to get the athletes their stickers, write their numbers on their hands, warm them up, and make last minute adjustments to relay teams. Your athlete will need sweats (labeled), water, snacks, and sunscreen. They can leave their bag in the Gremlin area in the stands.  Saturday will be shorter than a typical meet, but it is a great way to get a feel for what happens at our real meets, and for our parent volunteers to learn their jobs.

I will be out of town at my 20-year college reunion event (!) and will miss the meet.  Ryan DeLapp, one of our assistant coaches, will serve as the Gremlin coach.  Other assistants will be present to help out, as well.  Our Team Parents this meet are Jessica Smith & Jesse Gonzalez – one of them will be sitting in the Gremlin area.  All other Tigres levels stay on the field – Gremlins hang out in the stands for more adult supervision. Thank you all for helping – it does take a village! Reminder that non-coach parents are not allowed on the track at any time.

Let me know if you have any questions.  I am bummed to miss the practice meet but can’t wait to hear all about it.

See you Tuesday (weather permitting),

Autumn

805-878-8048

gremlins@venturatigres.org

Hello Gremlins,

Our practice meet on 3/9 is quickly approaching!  Typically, Gremlins will sign up for events at the Thursday practice before the meet by indicating which events they want to do on a sheet next to the sign in/out clip boards.  I will not be at practice on 3/7 or at the meet on 3/9 (our assistants will be in charge). Sign ups for the practice meet will take place at this Thursdays practice 2/28.  The practice meet is an abbreviated meet designed to acquaint parents and new Tigres with the meet process.  Gremlins will only be able to compete in 2 running events (4×100 relay, 400m, 100m) and the long jump.  Please come ready to sign up for events at this Thursday’s 2/28 practice if your Gremlin will be participating in the 3/9 practice meet.

Go Tigres!

Autumn

Hello Gremlin families,

We just got word from Buena HS that they are doing repairs on the track today and tomorrow.  Therefore the track is closed. There will be no Gremlins or specialty practices today 2/21.  Please encourage your Gremlin to get in some running and strength exercises in the meantime.  We will see you at our next practice on Tuesday 2/26 – lots to do with our practice meet quickly approaching!

Take care

Autumn

Hello Gremlin families,

As you surely noticed, it’s pouring!  The radar and forecast have failed us – these sleeper rain cells weren’t predicted and it was supposed to be dry for practice according to my 3 weather sources!

Practice is canceled for today.  With that said, it is so close to practice time that I will be at the track at 4:30pm in case anyone shows up and wants to run/play for a bit.  I know my daughter was disappointed not to run in the rain 🙂  Please have your Gremlin do some aerobic exercise (preferably running) between now and next practice since we had to cancel another practice.

Please know that I aim to give earlier notice if practice is canceled.  This storm burst really snuck up on us.

Happy Valentine’s Day & have a wonderful holiday weekend!

Autumn

Hello Gremlin families,

What an energetic group of Gremlins!  Hopefully your kiddos are having as much fun as the coaching staff – we are off to a great start!  Stay tuned regarding practice tomorrow – the storm is supposed to intensify Thursday morning.  If we need to cancel, I will send an email and FB post, otherwise assume practice is happening.

Regarding practices, please make sure your child is signed in and out.  If you don’t sign out, you will get a call from me making sure you have your Gremlin.  Please label everything – I already have a water bottle collection.  Lastly, we cannot go on the track/field until 4:30pm so please do not drop off your Gremlin before then – they need to be supervised until practice starts.

Lastly, we need more team parents.  We are VERY fortunate to have been awarded more team parent volunteer positions.  With that, the team parent role is consistent with the 12 hour volunteer requirement.  As long as we get 4 team parents, you will only have to cover about 2 meets (we have 8 meets including the practice meet).  Thank you to Kristy Lim for being 1 team parent – we need 3 more.  Please email me directly ASAP if you are interested.

Thanks!

Autumn

Gremlin practice is canceled for tomorrow, Tuesday 2/5.  This was announced at the parent meeting today – spread the word.  High winds, wet and cold are forecast so no practice tomorrow.  We hope for a more pleasant day on Thursday to introduce your Gremlins to Tigres. See you Thursday 2/7 at 4:30pm.

Hello Gremlin families!

Thank you for attending the parent meeting tonight! Your Gremlin coaching staff is really looking forward to our first practice on Thursday 2/7.  NOTE THAT PRACTICE IS CANCELED TOMORORW 2/5 DUE TO WEATHER (HIGH WINDS, COLD).

I wanted to recap the most important information that we covered.  See below.

Head Coach:  Autumn Watson

Assistant Coaches:

Andrea Arriaga

Jon Chapman

Ryan DeLapp

Dave Gilbert

Jennifer Haddow

Mike Hollis

Stephen Isbell

Jim Montgomery

Kristen Nielsen

Micaela Swafford

Andrea Stallings

Eric Watson

Team Parent:

Kristy Lim

***We need one more person/family to serve this role.  It requires sitting in the stands with the Gremlins during the meets – we only need one adult to be there at all times so it could be alternated between people/families.  This role fulfills your Tigres volunteer requirement (as do the assistant coaching positions).

Goals for the season:

1. Safety
2. Fun and an appreciation for the benefits of sports and exercise
3. Good Sportsmanship
4. Developing your athlete’s abilities and helping them to achieve their goals
5. Making friends

Questions and information:

The most efficient way to communicate with me is through the website (email:  gremilns@venturatigres.org). I am also available for questions after practice, and I will keep our website updated on a regular basis, especially once the meets begin in March. You can text me as well:  805-878-8048.

Practice:

Gremlins will practice Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:30-5:30pm. Practice begins promptly at 4:30 at Buena High School.  Please have your athlete there a few minutes early to get their name tag and get settled. Our warm-ups are equally important to the workout, and we need your athlete to be there on time.

Parents are welcomed to stay and watch in the stands, but only athletes and coaches are allowed on the field. At the end of practice, we will keep our Gremlins on the field until they get a visual on their ride home. There will still be runners on the track when our practice is over so please be mindful of the runner traffic before you call them over to you. We will be teaching our athletes track safety as well.

Sign in and out:

Sign in and out sheets will be on the fence at the track. Please remember to sign in and out! If you do not sign out, be prepared for a phone call from me checking on whether or not you have your athlete with you. Please be on time for pickup; a coach must stay with your athlete until you arrive.

Preparation for practice:

Please have your athlete dressed and ready to go. Our athletes LOVE their Tigres gear, which means many of them have the same water bottles, bags, and sweatshirts. PLEASE label everything!! If they need a snack before practice, please have it be something easy to digest. They are only allowed water in their water bottles on the track.

Attendance:

We understand that other sports, illness, and injury may conflict with practice. You do not need to email me if your athlete will not attend practice, but I would appreciate knowing if they are injured as well as if they are not going to attend a meet.

Meets:

Gremlins will have the option to participate in the following events:

Field – Long Jump (this is the only field event available for Gremlins)

Relay – 4X100 (this is the only relay available for Gremlins)

Distance – 800 and 1600

Sprints – 100, 200, and 400

Athletes can participate in 4 events at each meet with a maximum of 3 running events plus the long jump. Some athletes will already know what events they are interested in, while others are still deciding. We are going to encourage them to try everything until they decide which events they like the most. Event sign ups will be on Thursdays on a separate clipboard on the fence at the track.

Setting up the relay teams for the 4X100 takes time. Once you select the relay, your athlete is making a commitment to three other athletes on the team. Relay teams will be created based upon times and attendance. There may be times that I cannot build a full relay team due to numbers, but I will do my best to make certain it is a fair process.

I will send out more information regarding meets as the dates come closer, but for your future planning, the meet schedule on the website is accurate and meets typically go from 8:00am – 2:30pm or so. Gremlins do not participate in the meet on April 13-14 – enjoy the weekend off!

If you pre-ordered uniforms (singlet & shorts), they will be available at a future practice closer to the first meet.  All your child needs is running shoes (no spikes at this age).

We look forward to greeting former and new athletes on Thursday!!

See you on Thursday,

Autumn Watson

805-878-8048

gremlins@venturatigres.org

Hello Gremlin families!

Welcome back former Gremlins and welcome to our new Gremlins! Hope you all are looking forward to the start of our season next week! Reminder that we have a parent meeting on Monday February 4 at 7pm at Buena High School. Please attend in order to hear important team information. Note that Gremlins will practice Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:30-5:30pm. Practice begins promptly at 4:30 at Buena High School. Our first practice is Tuesday February 5 at 4:30pm.

Please consider serving as a Gremlin assistant coach! We are in dire need as we only have 3 assistants some of whom cannot come to every practice. To put this in perspective, our Bantam team has close to 10 assistants! Serving as an assistant coach does not require previous track and field experience, nor does it require coming to every practice or meet. We need more coaches to be able to run stations at practice and to keep our Gremlins safe and engaged. Tigres is a volunteer-led organization and parents are required to log volunteer hours – serving as an assistant coach is a great way to do that! Please email/call/chat with me at the parent meeting if you are able to be an assistant coach. Please please please!

See you Monday,
Autumn Watson
805-878-8048
gremlins@venturatigres.org