Indoor season is upon us!

All indoor track meets will be held at the new, multi-million dollar indoor facility in Birmingham and start the first of December!
As there are very few indoor facilities available for high schools, these meets become like “mini” state track meets. drawing many of the top athletes from around the state and even Mississippi! Tenn and Ga actually WANT to bring their athletes to these meets as well but as their states do not have “official” Highschool indoor track seasons, they are not eligible to compete. So as you can imagine this makes these indoor meets VERY competitive and perhaps not the best experience for new track athletes to start. Given this, the time constraints of preparing for a season that starts so soon, logistics and budgetary issues we will only be fielding a “scaled down” squad for indoor season.
These teams will probably consist of those who are already competitive at the “State” level and those who have been training on their own in the “off season”.
Team practice for Sparkman High students will begin the Monday after the Thanksgiving break. Please check with Coach Gover for exact times. For new athletes and JV team members, Practice will start in December.
If you think you have what it takes to compete with the Indoor Squad, these practices will be YOUR chance to show the coaches what you’ve got and convince them to put you on the squad!
If you DO plan on making the Indoor squads, you must have your FORMS filled out and turned in by November 30th. If you are a SHS student you can turn these forms into coach Gover. If you are a SMS or MMM student, these forms can be turned into YOUR school’s athletics director. Just tell them that you plan to compete with the SHS JV Track team!
If you do NOT plan on competing in indoor season we still encourage you to come and train with the team. Outdoor season starts the first of March and that will be here before you know it. It is the effort that you put into your training NOW that will determine how far (fast and high) you will go then! You might also consider taking on additional “conditioning” training at a local gym. fitness, or CrossFit facility as many of them offer training programs specifically for teens. You are encouraged to think about this not just as an investment in your HS track career but in your future education. It is really not to soon to start thinking about college and scholarships and track & field is certainly a scholarship opportunity.

PARTICIPATION FORMS –

To compete in Alabama HighSchool athletics events there are a bunch of forms you have to fill out. These include

• a Physical Evaluation Form that must be signed by a doctor,
• A “Concussion Information” Sheet that the athlete and parent must read and sign,
• “State of Alabama Department of Education Health Assessment Record” that must be filled out and signed by a parent and school nurse,
• A “Madison County Board of Education Extracurricular Participation Permission/Waiver” that must be filled out and signed by a parent.
• An AHSAA Participation Agreement, Consent, and Release” form that must be filled out and signed by the parent AND student.
• A printout of the certificate the athlete has received by taking the on-line “Star Sportsmanship Test”. This is found at http://www.starsportsmanship.com/kc2005/star.php  at that site click on “student sign in” then use the code “star00526” (Those are zeros). Then take the test. If you mess up, then try again. You can take the test again and again until you pass.
• and finally, a “Madison County Out-of-County/Overnight Field Trip Medical Release Form” that not only has to be filled out and signed by the Parent … but you have to find (and usually pay) a “Notary Public” to sign it as well! Note: DO NOT SIGN this form until you are in front of the Notary as they are NOT supposed to sign your form unless they SEE you sign your name. Good times.

TEAM PRACTICES –
These are held after school at the Sparkman High School stadium facility (located behind the school). Junior Varsity (considered 7,8 and 9th grades) work out with the Varsity.
Practice starts at 3:30 and (in the spring) will tend to go until 6pm or so. Right now they may end sooner due to darkness. Practices are held rain or shine, hot or cold. Practices are only called off if the school system announces that all after school activities are canceled.

PLEASE BE AWARE – sometimes the school will make this call VERY late in the day so if you are the parent of an athlete you should keep an eye on the weather and be ready to call the school for an update if things look threatening.
All team members are expected to make EVERY practice. Remember, practices are more than just a chance to make yourself better … every sprint you run, every lap you make, every drill you do is another chance to “try out” in front of the coaches for a spot in the next meet.

TRACK FEES –
Fees for those competing in indoor season are $75,  Outdoor season is $150 (unless you have competed in Cross Country this season. Then there is a discount).
These fees cover uniforms and meet entry fees and coaches fees. Meet fees have become rather expensive over the years with many meets charge a fee PER athlete. As an example, to enter a full team for both girls and boys at the December 8th indoor meet in Birmingham, just the entry fee would be $500! Considering that the track team has no budget we will have to relly on participant fees and future fundraising events.

BUS TRANSPORTATION –
Right now, having a “Team Bus” to get our athelletes to the meets is just a dream. Even to use a county School bus & driver, the track team would actually have to hire them. This would be over $100 on TOP of the entry fees and as mentioned above, … the team has no budget.
We are looking into (begging and pleading) trying to get buses for some of our more distant meets but at this point that is still wishful thinking. If enough parents were interesting in paying extra money on a “per event” basis perhaps we could get a team bus for that event but this yet to be organized.
In the meantime, we tend to rally on carpooling. If you are the parent of a track team member and need assistance with trying to find a carpool for your athlete you can contact Dawn Hawkins (Dawn.k.Hawkins@gmail.com) who has volunteered to try and connect carpools for team members.