‘Be the best you could be’: There’s more to coaching cross country than saying, ‘Run’

Many runners competing Saturday in the Illinois High School Association cross country state finals at Peoria’s Detweiller Park will know what to expect.

Through previous race experience, their coaches’ prior visits or pre-race scouting they’ll have a good idea of what the course offers.

But how did they get to Detweiller? How do coaches actually coach the sport?

Here it is. They point in a general direction and say, “Run.”

Just kidding.

“Basically, what I do is I kind of design programs to build strength, endurance, speed, that kind of thing. As they’re doing their workouts, you’re kind of watching to see how they’re doing — are they where they should be, are they not? Maybe that means they’re a little tired, do we need to back off?” said Barrington girls cross country coach Deb Revolta, seeking a Class 3A three-peat Saturday.

“I think you have to be invested in the girls as people, not just as runners,” she said. “Because I think that connection forms kind of a bond, the trust in you, and things like that. They’ll run through a brick wall for you, so to speak.”

Leading the Fillies to the state meet for a 23rd time since she became head coach in 1991, as a younger woman and former North Carolina State runner, Revolta would run with the girls in practice to provide real-time coaching. She’s since taken to riding a bicycle on training runs.

It’s like the perfect scenario York’s boys team had when Joe Newton was head coach and Charlie Kern his assistant. Kern, a master’s champion, on the run with the boys, while from a golf cart Newton barked out motivation as only he could.

Glenbard South senior Tom Jochum enjoys a somewhat similar situation. Though Raiders coach Doug Gorski will certainly go out with the boys and provide coaching, Jochum said he’s in charge of administration. Assistant Chris MacTaggart “does the mechanical things,” Jochum said.

“I like how I know who to go to when I need a certain thing,” said Jochum, seeking a fourth Class 2A all-state finish.

“If I need to talk about just what I need to get better, I know who to go to,” he said. “And I know if there’s an issue that arises with scheduling or if I’m unhealthy, I might not be able to run, I know who to go to. It’s very clear to me who I should get help from in whatever situation.”

Jochum’s coaches will deal with race strategy, MacTaggart digging up video of Olympians for examples.

They’ll go old-school. When Jochum needed help lengthening his stride, his coaches would lay hurdles or boards on the ground as a guide.

Early in his 40-year tenure coaching cross country at Aurora Central Catholic, Troy Kerber adopted the Jack Daniels Running Formula, of which Kerber says most American coaches “use some derivative.”

An American coach and exercise physiologist, Daniels focused on aerobic thresholds and keeping runners healthy. Principles are endurance, speed, racing and rest, Kerber said.

“Basically that you train fast, you train smart, you balance with rest and you train kids to race — not race to train, there’s a huge difference. You don’t burn them out,” Kerber said.

He maintains data for each runner, motivating them with “a measure of their success,” he said, and meets with his team before practice to explain why they’re doing a particular workout.

“I have everything planned for the summer training through Day 1 of the season then (through), hopefully, a state meet,” Kerber said.

There’s not space here to get into it all, but Hoffman Estates senior Ella MacNider likely has heard it all. Her grandfather Jim MacNider and uncle Jon MacNider both are in the Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Her father, Elk Grove athletic director Kirk MacNider, was on that path before turning to administration.

“We probably talk about it almost every day, just talking about how a run or workout went, how that can apply to a race. And then even before and after the race on race day,” said Ella MacNider, who will run in her third straight Class 3A state meet.

In training runs and discussions, she said Hawks coach Matt Ihms and assistant Madison Rickey will address proper form and breathing technique, fast starts and fast finishes.

Long ago, MacNider’s in-house college of coaches ingrained maybe the most important facet — the space between her ears.

“They taught me a big part, that you just needed to have belief and gratitude and pride and confidence in what you’re doing in order to be the best you could be,” she said.

doberhelman@dailyherald.com