Titans track team rebuilding for success

“We’ve got some really talented freshmen”

Last year, the Crested Butte Titans track team finished with the boys team taking the league title, the girls team finishing third and several runners making the trip to the state championships.
They also had a lot of seniors and were heavy in numbers, making a force to be reckoned with, from sprints to relays and distance events and a couple of field events.
Now, head coach Dustin Simoens is in the position of rebuilding for the 2015 season after losing several of his athletes to graduation last year and a number of kids either joining the team as freshmen or trying out track for the first time.
“It will be interesting,” says Simoens. “It’s just a completely different team from last year.”
While numbers are down from last year, Simoens should still have at least 30 on the team, which is strong for a 2A program. Plus, he does have some key returning runners such as senior Kaleb Schultz, who reached the state championships as a sprinter last year, has taken on a leadership role this season and looks to build on his success even further this year. But the team’s overall success will still rest, in part, on the younger Titans.
“We’ve got some really strong freshmen and some of the freshmen and sophomores may end up anchoring some of the big relays,” says Simoens.
Chelsea Murray, a former collegiate heptathlete (a track and field competition comprised of seven different events), and Ben Davis, a field events specialist from Chicago, join Simoens on the coaching staff this season to allow Simoens to focus on his wheelhouse, distance events.
“I’m really stoked on both of them,” says Simoens. “They’re a good wealth of knowledge.”
The Titans opened preseason training on February 25 and the coaching staff is committed to a slow build-up for the team. While current training conditions dictate that to a certain extent, Simoens also believes a slow start is a good start.
“We build it up slowly to avoid injuries. It’s strength-based stuff mostly,” explains Simoens. “The slow start sort of pays off in the end.”
Simoens has the kids putting in one morning workout before school on Mondays and then the rest of the afternoons, including a trip to Gunnison on Wednesdays to train at the Western State Colorado University indoor facility. Once the WSCU outdoor track is clear and ready, they will continue workouts down there on Wednesdays to get the kids’ key training on an official track.
The Titans headed to Montrose this past weekend for an informal meet to get some times down on paper but when they arrived, they found out the meet was cancelled. Rather than call it a day and hit McDonald’s, Simoens still managed to turn the day into a workout by utilizing the Montrose facility to run time trials for his team.
“We decided to use their facility to get some times down on paper,” says Simoens. “We still got a good workout in.”
The Titans head back to the Western Slope this weekend for the season-opening Delta Invitational on Saturday, March 14. The meet typically draws some bigger schools as well as regional foes Telluride and Paonia.
Despite the massive turnover in talent from last year, Simoens is looking for another successful season out of his Titans this year.
“I think we can still be competitive. Some people are going to have to step up,” says Simoens.