DyeStatCal California Girls Coach of the Week 9/30-10/03/02
Chris Walsh (Campolindo, Moraga) (NCS)

Coach Walsh and his son

From the North Coast Section in recent years the program at Campolindo HS in Moraga has achieved a level of quality year in and year out that would seem possible at only a much larger school. The obvious limitations in numbers at a medium size Division III school would seem to make the peaks and valleys of success much more understandable with a consistent championship level program worth taking a close look at. Coach Chris Walsh and Campolindo have done amazing things recently, with wave after wave of runners on recent years teams, especially on the Girls' side, that have really impressed. A strong group that can be expected to reach to that next level at championship time is the Campolindo tradition, with the 2001 Girls State Championship Division III squad having its top four underclass, with a 2000 team that was third at the State Championship level. Obviously some good things are looked forward to in the Fall of 2002, with, if everyone can stay healthy, the Campo Boys and Girls crew once again near the top of the championship stands. This week's DyeStatCal Girls Coach of the Week is Chris Walsh of Campolindo HS in Moraga. Chris has an interesting background as an athlete, with the influences personally with Bill Bowerman, the famed Oregon mentor, and later Joe Vigil providing well thought out background to the Campolindo program as described below. Read on and learn from another of our great Golden State coaches who is so open about the reaons for his team's success

Congrats and continued best of luck - Doug Speck DyeStatCal

1) Briefly trace your season so far—Low key, we haven’t put our varsity squads to test (in terms of an invitational) but we are in a very tough league (Diablo Foothill Athletic League and section North Coast). Our boys and girls teams are undefeated in league competition however.

2) Briefly trace your personal athletic and coaching career and successes along the way—I was blessed to have excellent coaches: Wayne Nakoneczny (Southington HS Southington, Conn), Wil Wright (Southern Conn State University. We were very good in HS and college—at Southern Coach Wright led us to 2 NCAA Div II XC appearances in 1976 & 1977. At Southern I ran 24:55 (5 miles) at Franklin Park in Boston. I “peaked” in grad school at the University of Oregon where I had the honor of being coached by the legendary Bill Bowerman. Running for the Oregon Track Club I ran 4:11 (mile) and 8:55 (2 mile) under Bowerman’s tutelage. I wrote my master’s thesis on Bill Bowerman’s training for middle distance runners which Track & Field News published into a book called The Bowerman System in 1983 (since out of print!) HIGHLIGHT: May 1979 Hayward Field Twilight Meet—I ran 8th or 9th in the 3,000 (8:20 PR) won by Oregon’s Rudy Chapa who set an American Record in 7:37…I enjoyed watching Rudy run back to back 4:07’s from the opposite side of the track!!

3) What is your outlook for the future of your 2002 Fall Cross-Country squad? Very good. Our girls look tough. They’ve only lost one league meet since 1995 and have won league since 1995 and have won the NCS title every year but one (2nd in 1999) since 1995. We have 210 kids on XC (student population 1450)…only two seniors in our top 10 girls. Boys are very tough led by senior Barry Fischer (9:34 3200 last spring) and Justin Pines (jr) CIF XC qualifier in ’01 as a soph. Our goals every year are the same: win league, win NCS and medal at CIF.

4) Describe the process whereby you secure athletes for your sport at a smaller school? If you want an “A” in PE!…just kidding. I started coaching at Campo (off campus) in 1989. We had 36 kids on XC. I started teaching full time PE at Campo in the fall of 1994. Since then our numbers and success have climbed. We run a 1.5 mile cross country run as part of our PE final every Jan & June…great recruiting tool! We also have a great staff: Alison Adams (who is also our head girls basketball coach and full time PE at Campo) and Dino Petrocco, full time history teacher on campus. Moraga is a very supportive community and our parents do a super job. We also have a very supportive administration of XC. We have a varsity altitude training camp in Arnold at Coach Petrocco’s cabin in August for 4 days. We try to make XC fun—popsicles on hot days, tag on game day, early morning pool workouts and pasta feeds. Tradition. We have a great tradition of XC at Campo because the kids work hard and take pride in their team. Most of the strength of this aspect of our program comes form listening, studying and having had the privledge to meet with Dr Joe Vigil. His principles and practices are the core of this part of our program. Also keep your athletes of any local collegiate success. We have girls who have been All American at the college ranks in cross country and track.

5) What is your magic that seems to have a new wave of female runners every couple of years who are capable of sub-20 minute times for 5k? If there is any magic to our success it is simply Bowerman. All our success is from what I learned form Bill Bowerman—hard easy days, race specific (date pace goal pace) intervals…when in doubt do less etc. We also get very good athletes. One of the benefits of the “Satan” year-round sports, is that often we get very good athletes who are fit from these other sports but the child is looking for something new, different and challenging. We only run 3-4 days a week (two days a week in the pool at 6:30am) totaling only 25-35 miles per week. Sunday rest-these are young bodies we are coaching. Very low mileage. We only race when necessary on course’s specific to the years goal: NCS & CIF. The last microcycle (3-4 weeks) of the season we adapt Joe Vigil’s principles of peaking with fast mile repeats and 400’s. These are our bread & butter workouts going into NCS & CIF. We work all season long on the pack time (runner’s 1-5). We study it and design workouts to keep the pack tight. The girls believe in the program simply because the roots are from 2 of the greatest distance coaches in history: Bill Bowerman & Joe Vigil.

6) Briefly summarize what this week's workouts will be for Campolindo and what the racing schedule will be—

Mon- 10-15 minute warm up…3 x mile repeats at race pace with 3 minute jog…speed: 2 x 300-200-100…70-100 push ups-3 minutes of abdominal work- 5 minutes of step ups-3 x 35 seconds toe raisers

Tues- 45 minute pool workout 6:30 am

Wed- (usually a dual meet) or 12-16 x 400 w/90-120 second jog on grass (we very rarely run on the track) …70-100 push ups-3 minutes of abdominal work- 5 minutes of step ups-3 x 35 seconds toe raisers

Thur- as Tuesday

Fri-leave for Clovis Invite…jog course

Sat-Race Clovis Invite (because this is the state course—specificity)

Sun- rest

7) Who has affected your coaching style the most along the way?

As a person (hard work, principles) my father Raymond F. Walsh

As a coach--Bill Bowerman, University of Oregon

8) What advice would you have for beginning coaches—

Enjoy the ride and be patient. It took us 6 years to get a team to CIF. It took 8 years to get on the award stand: 3rd in 1996, 2nd in ’97, [4th in ’98], 3rd in ’99, 3rd in ’00 and 14 years since I started we were fortunate to finally capture a state crown over an excellent San Lorenzo Valley squad by 1. Study everything, go to many clinics, have a book & video collection for knowledge and motivation for your athletes…be incredibly enthusiastic…promote and defend your sport on campus and in your community and (if and when you can) run and enjoy the world’s greatest sport cross country!!

DyeStatCal News

is published by

Editor: Doug Speck
Publisher: John Dye

�2002 by DyeStat