Brief reflections on the winter that wasn’t

Sorry for my lack of thought-provoking posts. I will try to get back into the swing of things as soon as my frazzled mind allows.

As the MAAC meet dawns tonight, it is time for some brief reflections on what is the end of the indoor track racing season for much of the team. We have a smattering of IC4A/ECAC qualifiers – and we are proud of them all! – as well as a handful of athletes will run at the Armory next Thursday at a last-chance type meet. But by and large, after tonight, the majority of the men and women of our program will put their focus squarely on the outdoor season.

I’m happy to report that we have made it through our first indoor track-less winter relatively unscathed, and for that we pretty much have Mother Nature to thank. I honestly cannot remember a more mild or snow-less winter in my 21 years of coaching at Marist. Good timing!

Also, the use of the SUNY New Paltz indoor track has been a true blessing for us. Each Monday and Tuesday afternoon, we have been able to bring many of our athletes over there, and it has helped so much.

It has not been a perfect and seamless transition, though, and we have to figure out an even better system of getting more of our athletes (namely, some of our men’s distance crew) over there. I’ll take the hit on that one. But again, there’s a learning curve for everything, and I remain proud of the work ethic and performance of all our athletes – regardless of what the final team standings tonight will say down at the Armory.

I hope to see some family, friends and alums there.