Storm
Team,
Well,
it
is
now
official,
the
significant
countdown
begins,
our
first
official
race
is
this
coming
Saturday!
If
you
thought
the
summer
went
fast,
hold
on
to
your
hats
and
hair-pieces
because
you're
about
to
experience
the
wildest
ride
in
the
wilderness.
Alright,
since
we
aren't
at
Disneyland,
maybe
the
wildest
ride
in
Southern
California.
What
in
the
world
is
going
on
you
say?
It's
time
to
rumble,
it's
time
to
start
showing
off
all
the
strength
the
athletes
have
been
building,
it's
time
to
have
a
blast
as a
team,
racing
and
cheering
each
other
on!
So
what
should
you
expect?
Let's
start
with
the
week
of
training.
Last
week
we
hit
it
super
hard
with
a
long
run
Monday,
a
brutal
lung
burning
repeat
workout
Tuesday,
a
hilly
tempo
steady
run
Thursday,
and
we
topped
it
off
with
a
rewarding
easy
Lapathon
run
Saturday.
This
week
we
will
continue
to
hit
it
hard
with
more
hills
and
we
will
start
churning
the
speed
a
little
more.
We
only
have
7
weeks
left
of
regular
season
and
after
this
weekend
if
you
have
your
sites
on
post
season
you'll
know
where
you
need
to
improve.
Moving
on
to
the
race,
this
is
one
of
my
favorite
races
of
the
season.
O'Melveny
is
right
over
the
hill
off
Balboa
and
is a
course
of
rolling
hills,
nothing
steep
or
long,
but
very
technical.
This
course
begins
for
all
in
grass
and
then
moves
onto
mostly
dirt
with
some
asphalt
with
a
quarter
mile
long
uphill
finish.
For
those
who
ran
at
El
Cariso
a
couple
weeks
ago,
you
have
those
first
race
jitters
out,
the
remaining,
don't
sweat
it,
you
will
get
more
instruction
this
week
and
be
ready
to
go.
For
parents
here
are
some
logistics:
arrive
at
least
by
7:45
for
this
race.
You
park
in a
lower
parking
lot
and
have
to
walk
about
a
quarter
mile
with
your
gear
so
allow
for
plenty
of
time
to
get
settled.
The
main
parking
lot
always
fills
up
in
minutes
but
if
you
time
it
right,
the
park
ranger
will
open
a
gate
that
allows
you
to
cross
a
bridge
where
you
will
find
a
lot
more
closer
parking.
Otherwise,
there
is
parking
on
the
street.
There
isn't
a
fee
for
parking.
The
park
is
shaded
where
we
setup
camp
but
still
bring
plenty
of
water,
electrolytes,
fruit,
granola
bars,
and
healthy
sandwiches.
Based
on
the
total
number
of
athletes
we
might
combine
some
divisions
girls
and
boys.
So
please,
for
the
first
meet
just
get
there
early
and
be
ready
to
cheer
everyone
on.
We
are
usually
done
with
all
races
by
11:15
so
hopefully
you
can
all
stay
and
show
support
for
all
divisions.
The
walkthroughs
start
at
8:15.
Please
remind
your
athletes
to
bring
water
with
them
on
the
walkthrough.
That
is
going
to
be
exciting
for
sure.
Alright,
I
want
to
move
on
to a
more
serious
part
of
the
team.
First,
the
safety
of
every
athlete
is
my
number
one
concern.
Sometimes
we
take
for
granted
how
many
parents
we
have
out
there
but
at
the
same
time
we
must
realize
that
with
150+
kids
on
this
great
team
we
can't
afford
ever
to
be
complacent.
We
had
an
incident
Thursday
night
that
reminded
me
of
how
important
this
is
for
parents,
coaches,
and
athletes
to
understand.
Everything
is
fine,
but
we
had
a
younger
athlete
unfortunately
end
up
alone
and
finished
well
behind
the
rest
of
the
team.
We
have
to
be
alert
and
looking
out
for
each
other.
The
heat
and
humidity
snuck
up
on a
lot
of
our
athletes
that
night
and
it
was
important
to
help
them
identify
when
to
cut
the
workout
short
if
necessary.
While
some
are
perfectly
fine
running
it
out
and
finishing
within
a
normal
time
range,
some
are
affected
in
different
ways
and
need
to
be
comforted
to
take
it
easier.
So I
will
break
it
down
like
this:
-
Coaches:
it
is
our
responsibility
to
be
aware
of
the
kids.
We
need
to
have
a
leader
of
every
group,
several
mid-packers,
and
a
tail.
This
is
important
because
we
need
to
be
close
to
any
athlete
if
there
is
an
issue
but
I
also
need
you
to
help
monitor
and
help
the
kids
make
decisions
like
cutting
a
workout
short.
I
believe
we
do
an
excellent
job
of
this
so
my
words
are
only
to
remind.
-
Parents:
if
you
have
young
ones,
10
and
under
(and
coach
Elaine
might
add
more
to
this),
help
us
by
reminding
your
athletes
to
always
be
alert
for
their
teammates
and
coaches.
With
as
many
athletes
and
parents
as
we
have
out
there,
it
is
hard
to
imagine
anyone
would
be
alone
but
please
emphasize
that
they
know
to
stay
with
at
least
1
other
teammate.
-
Athletes:
coaches
do
their
best
to
know
and
monitor
each
of
you,
but
it
can
happen
where
they
might
miss
you.
It
is
essential
that
you
are
paying
attention
always
to
where
you
are
running,
other
teammates
with
you,
coaches
around
you
and
the
trail.
If
you
feel
dizzy,
or
short
of
breath,
first
stop
running
and
then
tell
a
coach
right
away.
If
you
don't
see
a
coach
or
parent,
grab
the
closest
teammate
and
ask
them
to
stop
with
you
and
tell
them
what
you
are
feeling
and
to
get
some
help
if
needed.
I
purposely
keep
the
runs
close
or
simple
out
and
back,
especially
for
the
younger
kids,
so
we
can
minimize
this
risk.
I
believe
we
all
have
a
part
in
the
safety
and
I
wouldn't
ever
want
anything
terrible
to
happen
so
please,
everyone,
help
me
out
by
paying
close
attention.
We
did
have
kids,
who
while
running
Thursday
night
in
the
half
mile
loop
area,
stop
to
play
with
rocks
off
the
trail.
This
cannot
be
tolerated
as
it
definitely
adds
to
the
safety
concerns.
If
that
continues
this
week,
we
will
have
to
address
that
with
the
parents
of
the
athletes.
Sorry
for
the
reminder
email
of
not
fun
stuff.
Ultimately,
we
are
the
most
amazing
team,
and
we
are
that
way
because
we
are
family.
Let's
keep
that
up
and
look
forward
to
an
exciting
week
in
preparation
for
our
first
race!!!
See
you
Monday
night
at
West
Creek!!!
Coach
Jeremy
