Dear Greater Williamsburg Distance Club,
I hope you are doing well. Parks and Recreation have been allowing youth sports to start with some restrictions.
We are looking forward to having club practices this year for 5-12th graders on Tuesday evenings from 5:00-6:30 pm starting September 22nd. Parks and Recreation have asked us to limit our numbers to 50 and below per session. This is one of the reasons we have moved our starting age up to 5th grade for the fall session. Practice locations will at one or more of these locations: Jamestown HS track, Hornby Middle School Fields, or the Warhill Sportsplex Trails and Fields.
We are also planning to start GWDRC pole vault from 5-6 pm on Tuesday at the Jamestown HS track.
This season we are also going to have an application process and all runners in the club need to have some type of racing experience, the ability to social distance properly and follow directions. Athletes that have difficulty following directions and social distancing will be sent home.
Please see the link above "Fall 5-12th Running & 6-12th Pole Vault" to start signing up.
We will have a few changes to our practices. At this point, we have 3 volunteer coaches and maybe adding 2 additional volunteer coaches. Athletes will be in groups of 10 for workouts. Athletes will be told to remain 10 feet apart when arriving, warming up, running, and departing.
We will be doing the following when we start:
· Temperature checks of all athletes. Any athletes with an elevated temperature will be sent home. We ask that parents wait until after temperature checks before departing.
· Athletes will wear masks when arriving and during temperature checks
· Athletes will bring their own water bottle and not share water bottles
· Athletes will not congregate at the start of practice or when departing for practice
· We ask that athletes who are not feeling well or have been exposed to COVID-19 not attend practices
· A COVID-19 waiver will need to be signed by all parents/guardians of athletes
For those who have paid the fee last spring, there will be no fee for this fall. For any new athletes, the cost will be $30.00 to join the club. Athletes will need to also sign up for AAU which is $14.00. All athletes will need to purchase AAU membership again since AAU membership expires on August 31st.
If anyone would like a refund for the Spring session please contact me and I will send it via PayPal.
Please let me know if you have any questions and I plan to have the website updated by September 1st.
Sincerely,
Mark Tompkins
GWDRC Coach
GWDRC is a non profit 501c3 organization.
Vision statement: To inspire a new generation of distance runners.
Mission:
Creating a lifetime passion in Greater Williamsburg area youth for distance running through instruction, training, and racing.
Things we do:
a. Provide instruction and education in youth distance running.
b. Host youth cross country and track and field events to promote the health of young athletes.
c. Host special events in the promotion of youth cross country and track and field.
Since 2014, the Greater Williamsburg Distance Running Club (GWDRC) has provided a team opportunity for 3rd to 8th grade boys and girls who have an interest in distance running (3+ miles). Our youth club runners live in James City County, Upper York County and Williamsburg, VA, though the club is open to anyone in the region.
While GWDRC is open to 3rd to 8th graders, we do ask that youth runners be able to run a mile (without breaks) in under 10 minutes by their third practice with us.
We have weekly practices, run in local road races and participate in AAU Cross Country Meets. For 2019, we are excited to we will have a fall, and spring running session. We also are planning to hold 3-day introductory Pole Vault camp this summer for boys and girls older than 13 years old."