POLICIES: GATEWAY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY COMMUNICATION: Visit our Gateway Cross Country website EVERY DAY for team announcements, meet results, postponements or cancellations, team records, etc. The website is 1. Attendance: Except for cases of severe illness, attendance at every practice is required for every athlete unless special permission has been granted by Coach LaBuff for extraordinary circumstances. During the season, we will practice Monday through Saturday every week, except for competition days. Most Saturdays, there is an invitational, once we get into the competitive season in September. Practices are NOT optional Unexcused absences will be first be dealt with by assigning penalty hills or something comparable laps according to established guidelines. Additional unexcused absences will first result in suspension from competition; three unexcused absences will result in dismissal from the team. 2. Attendance: Practice will NEVER be canceled by the coaching staff due to inclement weather. We can always accomplish something worthwhile. Unless you are otherwise informed, the practice schedule will be as follows “Monday through Friday, practices will be held after school from 2:45 to sometime between 5 and 5:30 PM. Athletes arriving late due to getting academic help, attend mandatory meetings, etc., are expected to stay long enough to complete the day’ training program. Team members will change in the TEAM locker rooms at the rear of the Furtie Sports Complex. Claim a permanent locker & LOCK YOUR VALUABLES UP IN THE LOCKER ROOMS! *Athletes must be dressed and ready to begin warmup together by 2:50. Appropriate laps and/or hills will be assigned for lateness, excused or unexcused. You are a team. Every effort should be made to begin together. *Athletes who anticipate missing or being late to practice for academic reasons or due to a club ot organization meeting after school must clear it with Coach LaBuff ahead of time, Lateness to practice for any reason must be minimized. We cannot be a team if we do not practice as a team! *Your rides should pick you up by 5:30 at the latest at the REAR of the Furrie Sports Complex. * Saturday practices and practices when there is no school (for example, Labor Day) will usually bein the morning beginning at either 8 or 9 AM. These practices will be held at Boyce Park. 3. Warmup regimen: Pre-stretch run: 1 mile over an assigned course TBA daily. Then a warmup session combining dynamic warmup exercises and static stretching. Socializing should be kept to a minimum during stretching & warmup. FOCUS! 4, You are responsible for bringing proper workout attire to practice: good running shoes, shorts, t-shirts, socks, etc, All athletes MUST wear shirts on campus both during and after practice: no exceptions. Always have a swimsuit & towel (for pool workouts). I suggest keeping these in your lockers as a backup. Pool workouts will not always be announced ahead of time. 5. Any clothing or accessory item not permitted in competition is not permitted during practice. For ex: No sunglasses, cell phones, or Ipods Regarding UnderArmor in meets. Rules permit only one (small) visible logo on a uniform or piece of under-uniform attire, UnderArmor has TWO. This is not permitted and this will lead to disqualification, You may not tape over one of the logos, you may black one logo out (on a black shirt), but you may not “black” out a logo on a white shirt.6. Conduct yourself with CLASS at all times! No behavior that is inappropriate during competition will be tolerated during practice. Practice good sportsmanship! I expect these guidelines to be followed throughout the school day as well, For example: no swearing or inappropriate language or gestures; no taunting, no fighting; no physical or verbal harassment; no hazing of underclassmen; nto use of any form of tobacco or illegal drugs; no clothing displaying inappropriate language or slogans; shorts & sweatpants wor at the waist (no “sagging”), ete * Appropriate penalties will be meted out for infractions, *Coaches are held to the same standards as the athletes, “All of these behaviors result in disqualification during a meet so it is expected that this model behavior will be practiced at all times, regardless of whether or nota coach is present, and that every team member will assist in monitoring it. 7. We are fortunate to have an athletic trainer available for taping, injury assessment, rehabilitation, etc However, his primary duties during the fall season are with the Football team so he will be located in the ‘taining room on the other side of the school. Consequently, if you believe you need some sort of help from the trainer, talk to Coach LaBulff first. Except in cases of emergency. no atlilete is to seek out the trainer without first obtaining permission from a coach. This will prevent abuse of the privilege, keep the staff aware of any potential physical problems, and prevent athletes from straying, 8. Generally, we will do any assigned weight training in the Fitness Center in the Furrie Sports Complex, Be reminded, this room is a WORK area. Treat it as such. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOUR TIME THERE! It is not a social setting. Itis especially not a place for horseplay or any fooling around. Except for those on the Zero Runner or the treadmill or a bike or a similar alt. training machine, no phones or ipods or headphones in the weight room. Make sure you do not track dirt or mud into the weight room. Ifit’s wet or muddy outside, change shoes before entering!! Put weights or equipment away when you are finished. 9. Although the MEN'S AND WOMEN'S Cross Country Teams are separate entities, they have the same coaches, use the same facilities, and usually compete on the same day against a common opponent, That fact necessitates the following guidelines: A. Boy-gitl relationships are not to be cultivated in any way, shape, or form during team activities There will be no public displays of affection (or disaffection); generally speaking, individuals in a relationship should avoid social interaction during practice and meets. Do NOT be a distraction! Do not allow yourself to be distracted! B. The men’s team will sit separately on the bus and gather apart from the women’s team at meets. C. Any athlete caught in the locker room of the members of the opposite sex will be dismissed from the team. D. No athlete is to be ina locker room alone during practice. 10. As already stated, practices are MANDATORY (see # 1 above) Athletes are expected to remain under the supervision of the coaching staff, stay out of restricted areas, and communicate with the coaches in regard to their planned course for distance runs. Except in extraordinary circumstances, runners are never to run off campus alone. All athletes are required to stay at practice (& meets) until they are officially dismissed by a coach, either individually or collectively. Athletes should be picked up after practice and after meets at the rear of the Furrie Sports Complex.11. All athletes must ATTEMPT to complete all assigned workouts. Failure to do so may result in dismissal from the team. 12. All athletes must participate in the team fund-raising efforts at the Gateway Invitational. The funds raised are used to provide you with incentives, extra equipment, awards, etc, This is a team effort. 13. Unless excused by the coaching staff, all athletes must attend and compete in every scheduled team competition except in cases of incapacitating injury or debilitating illness. These include all dual or tri meets, and all WPIAL& PIAA meets. Injured athletes are still expected to attend practice and competitions to help out whenever and wherever that is possible. . Except in instances of professional rehabilitation appointments, they are expected to come to practice to “rehab” and cross train, Athletes who violate this policy are subject to dismissal from the team, 14. Championship level competition is necessary for the development of championship athletes and teams However, although it is discouraged, an athlete MAY be excused from competing in an invitational competition in cases of unavoidable schedule conflicts with activities that BOTH the head coach & the athlete deem important enough to merit such consideration, In such cases the athlete MUST discuss the matter with the head coach a minimum of nvo weeks before the date in question. The final decision rests with the head coach. 15. Spectators are excluded from practice. It is expected that athletes will communicate this o their parents and friends. 16. At competitions, parents and relatives, (and other spectators) are asked to stay away from the team until afler the races are over and the runners have completed their cooldown distance runs. Please help your parents understand this. They wouldn’t sit on the bench during a basketball of football game: they wouldn't be in the huddle for the coach’s pregame talk; they wouldn’t run on the field of court in one of those sports if their child turned an ankle, Before, during, and immediately-after races, they need to remain spectators, fans, and cheerleaders. Please communicate this to your parents and friends. They are not permitted on the field or in the team areas in those sports for the same reasons that they should stay away from you during a cross country meet. Despite their good intentions, they are often a distraction to you or to others on the team. If parents or friends violate this policy, the athlete in question is subject to possible suspension from competition, 17. You will eventually be issued a uniform and a warmup . You are responsible for these items until the end of the season. These are not to be worn at practice or in school. ‘These are not 10 be shared with a friend. ‘They are only for competition and you are REQUIRED to wear them (warmups included) to each competition, You are a TEAM! You will tum in these items at the conclusion of your last competition 18. For competition you MUST wear the school-issued uniform. Anything worn under the uniform top that is not a “foundation garment” is to be a single, solid color. Anything worn under the uniform bottom that extends past the knee must be a single, solid color. For uniformity, we at Gateway wear black. (Socks are not considered to be part of the uniform.) 19. The school does not provide training shoes or competition shoes such as spikes, waffles, or racing flats.