FAQ
The Cambridge Youth track team is a club created to share the benefits of the sport of track and field to the North Fulton community. Cherokee County and the city of Atlanta have robust youth track programs but North Fulton had limited options for the sport.
The Cambridge Youth Track & Field Club strives to provide our youth athletes the opportunity to develop their speed, strength, self-esteem, and endurance through good sportsmanship, self-discipline, leadership, and goal achievement. Our coaching staff is committed to developing well-rounded athletes who understand the fundamentals of training and competing in track & field while also developing sound athletes of sound character.
Our event head coaches are former track athletes or current professional athletes who are true experts in the sport of track and field. We will also have volunteer/parent assistant coaches to support the head coaches.
All coaches have to complete an annual USATF Background Check as well as complete USATF Safesport training that covers critical areas such as bullying, harassment, physical and emotional misconduct. We also have several coaches on staff that are USATF Level 1 certified coaches. Our club’s programming will be created and reviewed by Olympic track & field athlete, Dwight Phillips.
- World-class coaching
- USATF Club Team Membership
- Operating Expenses (website, every practice has high cost facility use fees, supervision, liability insurance, etc.)
- College Recruiting Assistance (if applicable)
- Purchasing track equipment for the club (batons, hurdles, javelins, high jump bungees, starting blocks, youth shot put etc.)
- Developmental meet fees
Additional expenses are optional and not mandatory. They include:
- Team uniforms (cost TBD – required for meets).
- Track Spikes ($50-100 not necessary but recommended)
- Warm-up suits (highly recommended cost TBD)
- Meet fee for Jackrabbit-Sapphire Invitational (entry fee $20)
- Optional Competitive Season Meets- USATF Junior Olympics Championship qualifying meets- Area, State, Regionals, Nationals and Junior Olympics (average $20 each meet)
- Travel to championship meets (summer athletes only)
Running Events: 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, 3000m, hurdles Running Relay Events: 4x100m, 4x400m Field Events: Shot Put, Javelin, Discus, Long Jump, High Jump (will add pole vault if we recruit an expert coach)
You, your child, and the coaches will figure out what events per meet in which to participate. We encourage all 1st year athletes to try all of the events.
cambridgeyouthtrack@gmail.com We will respond to your email as quickly as possible, but please be patient — especially in the off season. The email is checked at least daily during the season, but it is not monitored constantly, and in the off-season, may only be checked every few days.
We plan to practice 2-3 times per week typically from 6:00pm until 8:00pm. On big meet weeks we may offer 3-4 practices for the week. We cannot specify exact days, as the High School teams have priority, and our practices have to work around their schedule. If their games or meets are rained out, our practices are subject to being moved or cancelled. All of our practices and meets will be posted on our website HERE.
We do not have any requirement for attendance, other than to let your coach know, especially for meets. Coaches have to form relay teams, and enter athletes into events, so it makes their job much simpler if they know ahead of time that you will be late, leaving early, or not there at all. All practices and meets are optional during developmental season.
Track practices will primarily be at Cambridge High School. We will have additional speed and strength training practices at local grass fields (all locations will be on calendar with practice times) and some long distance practices will be on local trails.
No! We are a developmental club. We have children who are brand new to track as well as seasoned, elite athletes in every age group.
First and foremost, PLEASE make sure every child brings a water bottle to both practices and Meets. Adequate hydration is crucial, and coaches will strictly enforce water breaks. Track meets can be all day long so packing a cooler of healthy, easily digestible snacks is recommended to bring.
We will discuss proper nutrition for athletic performance extensively throughout the season. Most meets will have concessions. Athletes should wear sensible running shoes –no sandals, Crocs, Mary Janes, etc. to practice. This is a safety issue; proper running shoes significantly reduce the chance of injury.
Big Peach Running offers a 15% discount to our club members. Athletes may wear shorts and a t-shirt, or sweats, or running tights, a light jacket, or any other clothing that they find comfortable for running to practices. Club uniforms will be worn at all meets. It’s a good idea for meets to pack an umbrella or tent. We will have some tents at the track but not enough for all athletes. Pack sunscreen for meets as well.
Athletes should plan on bringing their warmup suit or jacket to all practices and meets in case there is a change in weather. Finally for the track meets, parents don’t forget to pack your patience, a sense of humor, and a willingness to volunteer…
Is this the right club for them? One of the great things about track and field is that it is black and white. It’s also a benefit that there are both individual and team components to the sport. If your child is highly competitive, in addition to potentially winning, they can properly measure their progress and performance throughout the season.
We record race times, measure jumps and throws from the beginning of the season to the end. We track PR’s (personal records). Your athlete will know in measured marks and times if they are faster, if they improved their vertical jump, if they are stronger and can throw farther. This progress isn’t subjective and isn’t dependent on someone else blocking a tackle or passing them the ball.
If you want to improve your speed, strength and vertical jump for another sport- you will have tangible proof of your improved abilities. If your child is competitive and wants to be a collegiate athlete it’s black and white in track and field.
You can look up what it takes to get a D1 or D2 scholarship and know how fast you need to run, how far you need to jump, how high you need to jump or how far you need to throw to get an offer. Your athlete can work hard and control that and not depend on if his team has a good QB, a great pitcher, a good defense etc. For the collegiate track scholarship standards click here.
If your child hasn’t been on a winning team in other sports, track and field offers another way for them to measure success outside of simply getting a participation award. We focus on what we call PB’s (personal best) or PR’s (personal records). In practice and meets this is your child’s goal and how we measure success.
Your child may not win first place in the 100 meter but they may get a new PR and all track athletes from youth to pros celebrate achieving a new PR. It can be really rewarding for an athlete to see and measure their success and we will make a big deal to recognize the improvements. We will talk about who achieved PR’s much more than we will talk about how athletes place at a meet.