Here it is, February 15 … and track practice was at the Vassar College track today! This is a major victory, brought to you in part by the Captain of the Visiting Team, none other than Terry Horton (thanks to freshman Jared Tomasetti for these pictures). With the blessing of the grounds guys at Vassar, along with XC coach James McCowan, Terry spent several hours on Monday and Tuesday at the Vassar track, shovel in hand, clearing out a thin layer of snow and ice. The result? Several of our women’s athletes were able to complete their workout on the track today. It was cold and breezy – real feel still in the 20s. For a large chunk of our team, being on an outdoor track is preferred over an indoor track or a treadmill. So, that’s GOOD. We’ll be back again tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that, as the temperature is slated to creep up into the relatively balmy 50s in the coming days. We’ll take it. Are we over with winter? Mentally, yes. Is winter over with us? Probably not. But for now, our team was able to run some hard laps on our home away from home, thanks in large part to the brains and brawn of a dedicated 73-year-old coach. Highly neat!
Terry Horton is a local track and field/cross country icon.
ReplyDeleteI remember him in 2006, by himself, using a leaf blower to methodically remove small debris from all 8 lanes, all 400 meters, of the Arlington High School track surface, in preparation for hosting the scholastic and open division competitions of the Empire State Games in 2006, the first time that the Games site had come to the mid-hudson valley.
He has influenced numerous coaching and sport enhancement efforts, over many years.