I want to start off by thanking my friend and mentor, Tony Jones, for giving me this opportunity to share a piece of myself with you all. Let me start with a brief introduction about myself.
My name is Jeffery Bryant. I am the Lane Tech Girls Track Middle Distance Coach and Assistant Cross Country Coach. This means I basically coach any event from the 400m dash to the 3200m run. I am a former Lane Track Athlete so I am proud to be in a position to give back to my school.
How did I get in this position? I never had any intention of coaching girls when I first decided to give coaching a try. That was the last possible thing I had considered. I didn’t have anything against the girls team I just always envisioned myself coming back to help with the boys program that I helped to build as an athlete. But I have your host of “Spikes and Flats” to thank for the change of heart. The crazy part is that I couldn’t imagine coaching anything else now.
I came out to watch a cross country time trial during the summer and was surprised with the turnout of students for the team. It was completely different from when I ran and we had trouble filling a 7 person roster. There were at least 100 kids on each team. I was introduced to the team and stuck around and spoke to some of the girls and boys after the time trial. I noticed that there was a void in the girls’ team. They didn’t get the same attention as the boys received and much less was expected of them. The boys looked like they were headed in the right direction but the girls looked stagnant.
I talked with Tony and Head Coach Kris Roof, over the next couple of days about how I could help out with program. I started off just helping out in the weight room and with the younger kids. After that I became hands on with the girls’ team and bit by bit I began to add my own flavor to the sauce. It felt amazing seeing something that you developed in action.
I enjoy cross country but it is nothing compared to my love for track & field. Many of you know that it is just a different mentality. So when there was a vacancy for distance coaching on the girls track team I was first in line. I met with Head Coach Francisco Marchan, and he asked me why I wanted to coach. The reason then is the same reason I have now. I want to help students become better people, not just better athletes. Teach them life skills and how to deal with adversity. I want them to be able to reach their full potential and learn how to inspire others. Marchan took a chance and gave me a position as the girls’ middle distance coach and the rest is history.
I want to give a special thanks to Marchan, Roof, Tony and Pat for getting me back involved in this sport and allowing me to take this girls program to the next level. I appreciate Pat for letting me bounce my crazy ideas off of him. And last but not least, the Lane Tech Girls Track Team. I appreciate the energy and the competitiveness that you bring to practice each day. You keep me feeling young and make coaching worthwhile. None of this is possible without you!