Coaching the jumpers at Monta Vista even helped me to improve in my own jumping. Since my injury in March 2011, I have had to go back to basics. I had to learn to run again. As my running form improved, it was time to work on relearning the jumps. Coaching a young group of jumpers, most of who were learning the long and triple jumps for the a first time, took me back to fundamentals. I strongly believe that solid fundamentals are the key to being successful at any task. However, as we settle into our crafts, we so very often forget those key fundamentals. We evolve from those fundamentals to personalize our craft. As I took back to the track after 8 months of inactivity, I quickly realized that my body wasn't able to handle my past personalizations to the triple jump. I was going to need to take a step back and first understand the basic mechanics of jumping. Therefore, my high schoolers and I were in the same boat. I was learning just as much from them as they were learning from me.
We had the team's end of the year banquet only a week ago, but I can already say that I miss the little goobers. My senior, Sayali, will be taking off to UCLA in the fall and I wish her all the very best! I wish I had one more year with her, though, as she was such a sweet person and a talented athlete. However, I am looking forward to coaching the rest of my incredible jump squad in 2013! We got by this year on a dirt track and a rubber-strip runway, but next year, the school will have a brand new track. YAAAYYYY!
GO MONTA VISTA MATADORS!
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