The key to a strong, sustainable cross country program is culture. That is built from the ground up. To have high numbers at the high school and middle school levels, you have to get kids interested and aware of the sport so they are interested in participating when they reach a certain age. Below are different strategies to help increase youth engagement to increase participation and build community rapport.
Before showing some options, here are some things to consider.
- It's not about times. Kids want to compete and have fun. Don't harp on times.
- Provide something for finishers, not just participants. Reward kids for finishing the race with some kind of incentive.
- No mandatory practices. Lives are busy and schedules are already jam packed. Have the kids just show up and compete. That's all kids want to do anyway. Plus it will eliminate burnout.
1. Host Youth Meets After Home Meets
The course is set. The volunteers are there. Why not have another race? After all the high school and middle school races are done, host a youth meet afterwards. Make a starting line at the desired distance for the kids competing and go!. You can do one big race for all ages (if you do this then I recommend 1k). Or you can make different starting lines for different ages.
2. Host A Free Running Series
This is a great way to get kids involved and something I started a few years ago that still continues. A couple free races held in the fall, typically towards the end of the season. Preschoolers and kindergarteners run 100m, 1st and 2nd graders go 400m, 3rd and 4th graders go 800m and 5th and 6th graders run 1600m. Boys and girls run together (you can separate them if you live in a big city or place with really strong attendance), there is no big clock, just line up and run. We use the same course the high school does so there is no additional financial commitment. Holding meets later in the fall allows soccer, volleyball and football players to come out and try it after their season is over. There are no practices, but if you wanted to host a short 45-minute voluntary practice once a week after your own coaching duties you could.
3. Inter-Elementary Series
If your town is big enough to support multiple elementary schools, it would be a great idea to have each compete against each other. It does not have to be run through the schools necessarily, nor do you have to have set rosters or practices. Simply have the kids indicate what elementary they attend when they sign up so you can calculate team scores. You can decide the distance of races, whether or not you time the races, whether you split up boys and girls or how you want to split up the grade levels. This adds some purpose to the meet and introduces the team aspect. It also helps with getting kids to participate that are already in the school system.
These are just some ideas to get you started. It's important to promote the sport and encourage participation while also avoiding burnout. Do your part and help make more runners for the next generation.