FOUNTAIN VALLEY GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY PROGRAM

By Dan Moran

Varsity Cross Country & Track Coach
Fountain Valley High School

The first meeting of the year takes place in early June. We discuss the summer running camp and the summer running program. We offer incentives to run 250 miles and 500 miles. These incentives are a 250 mile club shirt or a 500 mile shirt and improved times during the season. We give each runner a calendar for the summer and they are on the honor system to record their miles. The summer running program begins in the middle of June, after school is out. We meet three times a week usually during the evening hours and go on organized runs. The other four days the runners are on their own (running charts are checked by coach).

Workouts during June and July are long slow distance runs between three and eight miles a day. I ask that the last mile of each run be as close to race pace as possible in order to feel as though you're finishing a race. Always finish fast. In August I begin the running camp. We meet daily in the morning with the experienced runners going longer runs of four to eight miles a day. The new or inexperienced runners start slowly and progressively add miles to their runs. This is where the summer running program pays off.

The girls who ran faithfully during June and July are ready for some serious distance in August. We are fortunate to have a wide variety of running surfaces to train on. In the park where we train, there is asphalt, grass, dirt, and hills. The beach is close by for running on the sand and the city streets are half mile intervals. During the summer we try to vary the runs and surfaces so the runners don't get bored.

MIDSEASON:

Our midseason workouts include runs similar to this:

• Monday: Three mile warm-up to park. Ten hills then a three mile race pace run back to the school.
  
• Tuesday: Fartlek workout. Forty-five minute run, 7 to 7 1/2minute mile pace with 30 second surges every three minutes. We do this at a local park on flat terrain consisting of grass and asphalt.
  
• Wednesday: One mile warm up. Eight strides the length of the football field. Half mile cool down.
  
• Thursday: Usually a race day
  
• Friday: Usually a pre meet day. I like to break the monotony or running by scheduling a social swimming day or another activity that breaks up the runner's schedule.

LATE SEASON/WEEK OF LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS:

• Monday: Try and run the course two times at medium to light pace. Point out the spots on the course runners might want to surge on.
  
• Tuesday: Mile repeats on league finals course. work each mile at race pace
  
• Wednesday: About four or five half mile repeats on league finals course.
  
• Thursday: Four half mile repeats on grass at school.
  
• Friday: Light one mile jog and team meeting. Varsity team goes out for carbo load at Italian restaurant.
  
• Saturday: Race Day