TO:                 TRACK & FIELD COACHES,

PARENTS, AND ATHELTES

                        YOUTH ATHLETICS COMMITTEE

FROM:           DAVE SKELTON, YOUTH ATHLETICS CHAIR,

                        USATF-MONTANA ASSOCIATION

RE:                  USATF JUNIOR OLYMPIC PROGRAM

DATE:            MAY 1, 2004

            On behalf of the Montana Association of USA Track & Field and Board of Directors, we want to take this opportunity to wish all of you much success as you prepare for your district, divisional, and state high school track & field meets.  

            As you begin the last half of the outdoor season, its never too early to start marking your calendars for up coming track & field events once the high school season is over.  After returning from the USA Track & Field National Convention last winter in Greensboro, North Carolina, and having had the opportunity to meet with some of the top track & field athletes of USA Track & Field at the convention, we wanted to share with you some of the dates that have been confirmed for the upcoming 2004 season:

Junior Olympic State Championships Bozeman, MT                               June 10-12

USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships Buffalo, NY          June 24-27

Junior Olympic Region XI Championships Boise, ID                               June 24-26

USA Youth Outdoor Championships Landover, MD                        June 30 July 4

Junior Olympic National Championships Eugene, OR              July 27 August 1  Junior Olympic X-C State Championships Bozeman, MT                      November 6

      Junior Olympic X-C National Championships Schaumburg, IL          December 11

The above dates are provided for you with an effort to inform all of you so you can share these dates with all of the track & field advocates in your area.  Keep in mind that we see this year as a special season for the Junior Olympic track & field program in Montana with the Junior Olympic National Track & Field Championships to be held in Eugene, Oregon.  Frankly, the national championships will never get any closer to our state than what it will this year. Who can resist traveling to the collegiate home of Steve Prefontaine and all of the history of Hayward Field?  It would be a shame if we had athletes in Montana that wanted to travel to Eugene and didnt know about it. 

You will note that the Bozeman Track Club is hosting the Montana USATF Track & Field State Championships, which will also serve as the official beginning of the Road to Eugene!  Dont hesitate to go to the Associations website for more information on the indoor meet.  And please go to our message board and chat with us about the up coming Associations track & field state championships.

            In light of what should be an exciting season, the following will also help in making 2004 a user friendly year for parents, coaches, and track & field athletes wishing to participate in Montana USA Track & Field.  Please keep these in mind as you consider the 2004 USA Track & Field season.

1.      Apply for your USA Track & Field 2004 membership early.  Encourage your athletes, coaches, and parents to apply early while there is still plenty of time to do so.  This is the biggest problem we have with athletes registering just prior to the state championships in June and not having a USATF membership number in order to compete.  Early membership also provides you with the first couple issues of Fast Forward, national office updates, Association newsletter, and a handful of other benefits.

2.      Renew your 2004 USATF club sanctions early and beat the last minute rush of paper work.

3.      If you are starting a USATF Club for the first time contact Bill Brist at the state Associations office in Kalispell immediately for sanction papers.  And if you need advice and/or assistance with starting a club dont be bashful about reaching my home e-mail address at bztkclub@mcn.net.  Currently, we are working with coaches in Red Lodge, Dillon, Miles City, Polson, and possibly Whitefish to get sanctioned clubs ready for the 2004.  Join the party and add your community to the list of sanctioned clubs in Montana.

4.      When starting a sanctioned USATF club, the number of members and activities hosted as a sanctioned club is not important.  Only the ability to serve the youth and people in your community as an ambassador of the Junior Olympic program and the many disciplines of USA Track & Field.

5.      Please think about serving as an ambassador for the Junior Olympic program in the state by getting track & field coaches, physical education instructors, parents, teachers, and former athletes involved, or at least familiar, with the Junior Olympic program.  Local newspapers, radio stations, and the school system are excellent contacts in your community.

6.      If nothing more please share with your community the activities of the USATF-Montana Association and encourage everyone that you know to visit the Associations website at www.mtusatf.org.  We are currently updating the website with photos from the state track & field championships in Bozeman, regional championships in Butte, and the state cross-country championships in Kalispell.

If there are questions to be answered, or assistance and/or advise that we can provide you with, dont hesitate to e-mail me at home.  I regularly check my e-mail on a daily basis and usually spend an hour or two in the evening helping those who are addicted to the sport as bad as we are.  If you have any doubts of trying to start a USATF sanctioned club in your area, or wanting to improve the club currently in your area, please write us.

Please feel free to share this with everyone in your community and hope all of you have a successful track & field season.   Looking forward to hearing from all of you!

Regards,

Dave Skelton

Youth Athletics Chair 

USATF-Montana Association, Inc.