Good coaching is an art form. Each athlete has different needs and requires different methods for producing the best from them. Coaching young kids can be a rewarding experience when you witness their progress and success. It can also be disheartening when you can't teach them to be self-motivated. Michigan has produced many fine coaches and athletes. But just taking on responsibility of coaching doesn't make for a good coach. A month ago I witnessed an incident between a young female runner and her coach at the Tommy Titan Cross Country invitational.  The situation is still gnawing at me.

I watched in disbelief as the coach jumped up and down, slung his fist in the air and chastised the young girl for her poor effort. She didn't finish the race. I would have let the incident go but ten minutes later he was still berating her. I noticed many other spectators and athletes starring in disbelief too. Finally, I stepped in between them and told him that he was out of line. He jumped all over me to stay out of his business. It wasn't until another women backed me up that he finally walked away in silence.

Meet director Guy Murray got wind of the incident and sent him a letter stating the proper code of ethics for meet sportsmanship.  I have heard of further incidents about this coach during his practices. What bothers me is that these are very young kids who have no power to fight back.

I believe that running for young kids should be all about having fun. For many years the Ann Arbor Track Club has promoted fitness for people of all ages. Their youth division ranges in ages from 6-18. They offer an outdoor track & field program during the spring and summer months, a cross-country program during the fall, and an indoor track & field program during the winter months. Kids train 2-3 days a week in these three programs.

AATC has three coaches Robert Bard, Kevin Gallagher and Ron Beasley who work together to offer the kids a positive experience. The parents also play an integral role in their Youth Program and provide invaluable assistance to the coaching staff.

Not all the kids in the AATC program train and compete with them all year round. Some kids are short sprinters and don�t run cross-country. Others participate in other sports, such as soccer, hockey, basketball or football. Since many middle schools and high schools offer spring track & field and fall cross-country, the majority of the kids on the club tend to be from grade and middle schools.

The key to any successful exercise program is finding the means to achieve motivation. Some training principles are universal for both adults and children, but there are also many differences.  Two areas of motivation that AATC cultivates are to attend practices and train at a high level.  They have found that kids will be motivated to exercise at a high level if the program emphasizes having fun.  Children also tend to be more competitive with one another during practices, so AATC exploits their competitive spirits.  Coaches have found that regardless of how much the kids have already run the younger children love to run relays against each other during practice,

If the kids (not their parents) choose to compete in meets, there are several series of cross-country and track meets that are good for kids. The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and USA Track & Field (USATF) and Michigan Indoor Track Series (MITS) offer many meets. Parents can look on www.runmichigan.com for postings.