COLORADO COACH- SPRING 2018 FROM THE SPORT PRESIDENTS closing date and time (May 13th at 12:00 a.m.). Entries are final after this deadline and no changes or additions are allowed!” My recommendation is to start the process early and not wait until the day it is due. From CHSAA there is a change starting this fall as official season for cross country will begin on August 6th as the first day for practices. This move was a part of all CHSAA sanctioned sports aligning to the NFHS calendar. Two changes that unfortunately did not pass at Legislative Council involve both cross country and track and field. First for cross country the move to run 6 score 4 in 2A failed as the cross country committee report was amended from the floor at January’s Legislative Council. The Track and Field Committee had recommended the deletion of the 800 Sprint Medley as a track event but it too was amended from the floor of April’s Legislative Council. So at this time the 800 Sprint Medley will remain an event for at least one more year. Unfortunately, it has been disappointing to see the halt of the advancement of both sports by keeping with archaic systems. I commend both the Cross Country Committee and the Track and Field Committee for making recommendations for the good of both sports and hope they will continue to do so. We have to entrust these representatives of all classifications in making decisions for the good of the sport and not the good of an individual team. In both instances these recommendations were also supported at the CHSCA Regional Rep meetings. I ask that if you are opposed to changes such as these that you either attend the committee meetings or the regional rep meetings at the CHSCA clinics so responses are not coming reactively from the floor at Legislative Council. Let’s continue to work together as a state to move the sports forward versus limiting them to our own individual good. Looking ahead it’s not too early to get the CHSCA Multi-Sport Clinic on your calendar. The clinic is July 27th and 28th at the Radisson in Aurora. Along with a great list of general sessions the clinic line-up for cross country is spectacular. Scheduled to speak at this time are Valor Christian head coach Greg Coplen and Rock Canyon head coach Dan Davies. Out of state high school speaker will be Casey Jermyn of Bozeman High School. Casey was named the 2016 USTFCCCCA Boys High School National Coach of the Year. Our other scheduled speaker is Mike Smith of Northern Arizona University. Mike’s NAU men’s cross country team was the 2017 NCAA Division I Cross Country Champions. It’s definitely a clinic you won’t want to miss. I wish you all the best of luck at State. Let’s all hope this year is not a Snowpocalypse as Ben Hershelman likes to say and we have three solid days of nice weather. Also don’t forget to stop by the CHSCA hospitality tent for breakfast and lunch on Friday and Saturday. All CHSCA members are welcome. WRESTLING President Darin Arnold Dear Colleagues, On February 27, 2018, I attended the CHSAA wrestling committee meeting. A number of key items were on the agenda for the day. First, the dates for the Regionals are set for February 15-16, 2019. The State Wrestling Tournament is set for February 21-23, 2019. Please mark those dates on your calendars. Second, there will be a key change in your scheduling for the upcoming season. A coach can have more than twenty-eight points on your schedule, but you have to monitor how many points your wrestlers have actually wrestled in the course of the season. Third, female wrestling is on the rise and will only continue to grow in Colorado. It is on its way to becoming a sanctioned sport. As a result, continue to encourage female students to wrestle. As I reflect back on this wrestling season, I have stopped and thought a lot about sportsmanship and the influence that we as coaches have. Anyone who has ever wrestled understands the impact a coach can have, both good and bad. I am sure each one of us has had a coach who has made an impact on us. My experience in a small school district in Roxana, Illinois, a small town in down-state Illinois, has left a positive influence on my life. Thirty-two years after graduating, I remember all of my experiences on the mat and on a variety of fields. All of the coaches there always taught us the importance of integrity and sportsmanship. The life skills that wrestling teaches are fundamental to success in life. However, this school year I have seen coaches across a variety of athletics who do the opposite. They actually run kids out of sports and damage the idea of a coach. All of the influential coaches who I have ever experienced had a leadership style that can be defined as an extrovert and conscientious. The predisposition to be sociable and assertive and to have positive energy is what brings athletes to our sports. Conscientiousness, or the inclination to be thorough, organized, controlled, trustworthy and decisive is what keeps our athletes coming back every season. Coaches are a special kind of people- SOFTBALL President Mark Roberts Why Do We Coach? Often times, I’m asked this question by some of my coaching colleagues. It’s usually after they just got ripped by their