The season is starting to wind down, so there are a few things all athletes need to start considering. There are two dual meets left on the schedule (Camarillo this weekend at Buena and Oxnard at Oxnard high). After those two meets, we are on to the championship meets. This is a LOT of information that can be complicated, so please read carefully.
April 30 is the League Finals which is held at Ojai. All athletes can participate in this meet – there is no qualification required. However, there are a few rules that dictate what events an athlete can run.
- You must have competed in the event in a previous meet. You can NOT compete in an event for the first time at the League Finals.
- If you have qualified for the VCYTC Championships in an event, you can NOT compete in that event at the League Finals (more about the VCYTC Championships next).
- Normal event limits (4 total events, 3 of which can be running) apply for this meet.
- Relays are open to all athletes, as long as you have not qualified for the VCYTC Championships in that individual event. i.e., if you are in the top 9 in the 100m, you can not participate in the 4×100 at the League Finals.
May 7 is the VCYTC Championship Meet. Athletes who are in the top 9 in laned running events (100, 200, 400 and hurdles) or any field events qualify, along with athletes who are in the top 12 in any distance events (800, 1600 and 3200). You can check the top 20 lists to see where athletes are at:
http://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/Division/Top.aspx?DivID=74996&depth=20&filter=403
There are no limits to the number of events an athlete can compete in at the VCYTC Championships, but they must be in the top 9 (or top 12 for distance races) to participate. The list will be finalized after our last dual meet with Oxnard, so athletes have 2 weeks to improve their position(s).
For relays, each team is awarded one relay team per age group, per sex. So, we have one boy’s 4×100 and 4×400 and one girl’s 4×100 and 4×400. The coaches will be putting those teams together in the next couple of weeks. There will be some very difficult decisions, but we will be basing the teams on:
- Individual performances (times in that event)
- Participation in relays at previous meets
- Participation in relay practices
- Reliability (did you show up for relays you signed up for)
We have some excellent 2nd relay team, and there is good news. This year, relay teams from the League Finals will have the chance to earn a spot at the Co Conference Championship meet on May 21st at Santa Barbara City College (more on this meet in a future post) if they run a time that is faster than the teams who qualify from the VCYTC Championship meets (we think this is a strong possibility for some of our 2nd relay teams).
If you have any questions or concerns about the relays, please email me (midgets@venturatigres.org) or call me at 650-678-3681.
So, with all of this information, the next couple of meets are critical. Please consider what events athletes sign up for this week to a) enable them to participate in the events they want at League Finals and b) position themselves for the VCYTC Championship meet.
I know this is can be confusing, so please contact me with questions. We will be talking about this with the athletes at practice this week as well, so please be sure athletes and parents talk about their entries for the next 2 meets along with their plans for the championship meets.