With a successful cross country season in the books, head coach Darren Gauson looks to continue his first year at Bradley with a prosperous track season.
The Bradley men’s and women’s indoor track season will begin on Jan. 16 as they travel to Champaign for the Illini Classic.
Gauson says the cross country team’s success will help the team get ready for the outset of the track and field season.
“For the majority of our athletes, we had cross country so that was a big part of the preparation from them,” Gauson said. “Coming off of two cross country championships really enabled us to set a good base and prepares us effectively for the track indoor season.”
Even the athletes that did not compete with the cross country team this past season have been able to rigorously train for their track season.
“We have some athletes who didn’t compete during cross country, and they follow a treatment plan to prepare for the indoor season,” Gauson said. “They have been working out and will continue to work out over break to be ready to compete on Jan. 16 at Illinois.”
Senior runner Kylie McKinney said her focus for the season will be on the process rather than the outcome, and to see consistent development in the team.
“I think that if you focus most of your energy on the process, which is the part you can control, the outcome you ultimately want will come to you,” McKinney said.
McKinney said the athletes on the team have been hard at work already this semester to stay in shape, running though a training plan Gauson prepared for them.
“In terms of winter break training, coach Gauson has laid out a 10-week training plan for each individual athlete,” McKinney said. “The plan includes weekly mileage goals as well as specific workouts and core strengthening exercises.”
Beyond their physical preparation, the men’s and women’s track teams have been striving to perfect their mental state as well. Gauson often works with his runners on visualization and race plans in order to achieve a good mental game.
With long gaps in practices due to winter break, mental preparation will be essential for the athletes to keep sharp during their time away from campus.
“When you don’t have the team chemistry over break, that requires a lot of mental endurance to be diligent and do all of your workouts, runs, and weight training,” Gauson said.
All of the team’s physical and prepardness will be on for show only a month into the track and field season for the Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Championship on Feb. 27 and 28.
“Our goal is to have as many individual conference championships as possible at the Missouri Valley Championship,” Gauson said. “I think we have got a lot of really good individuals that will compete there during the indoor season.”
Gauson said he is looking for his athletes to compete well and remain engaged throughout the season in order to perform at a high level.
