XC Junior Olympics 2019
Running with Whisper
Whisper Running is one of many youth running clubs within the Pacific Northwest region of the USA Track & Field organization. Competing with Whisper offers your child a chance to team with runners from throughout the Vancouver-metro community, taking part in some of the best races in the Pacific Northwest. Typical seasons include up to seven regular season meets and up to three USATF Cross-Country Junior Olympic meets.
Running in the USATF Junior Olympic circuit provides a wonderful opportunity to take your cross-country season to a larger stage! The JO circuit is a three meet process beginning in November, with the ultimate goal of qualifying for the national meet, held on the second Saturday in December. Click here for our 2019 athletic.net season calendar, which is updated regularly with new and exciting races.
Below are the steps for registration so that your child may compete with Whisper this Fall:
Register with USATF. The cost is $20/year and the process is fairly simple. The registration website will populate USATF Youth teams as you type in your home address. There are a few teams in the Vancouver/Portland area, so be sure the correct team, Whisper Running (team #310) is the team you select. If you have never registered with the USATF before, then you will need to complete the registration by emailing a copy of your child’s birth certificate to Tracy Silva of the PacNW USATF Office. Tracy’s email address is pnamember@comcast.net. Please CC Coach Dave to the email, which typically speeds up the process of registration.
Register with Whisper. The cost is $99, which covers all meet registrations that are posted on Whisper Running’s athletic.net cross-country meet schedule.
Uniform: Your child will need a Whisper Running uniform, which are $60 each. There should be plenty available, but be sure to reach out to Coach Dave about getting yours as soon as possible. If we do not have a singlet that fits, we can order more, but we need to do so quickly since the process takes about three weeks from order to arrival.
Runcard: For runners on the go and only enough time for one to two practices each week, the Runcard offers the flexibility to train when your schedule allows. Runcards provide your child with 8 supervised and guided group training sessions.
Finally, one of the many considerations when joining any program is the expense of travel. Parents are responsible for their child’s travel to and from all practice and meet events. The Whisper Calendar may include information on travel, such as meet location, mode of travel, lodging, food options and more, particularly and as we near the JO meets. A sincere effort is made to help reduce costs by seeking team booking discounts at nearby hotels of the events when necessary. Additionally, during the JO season, team dinners are always encouraged, as they provide a time for the runners to get to know one another outside of running.
Be sure to connect with Coach Dave by completing the Contact form so he may answer any and all of your questions about training, racing, or any other inquiries you may have.
EXTRA, EXTRA!
2018 JO’s: Check-out the latest video created by Lindsay Owen, highlighting the 2018 year of training, racing, and USATF JO experiences! Click on the respective links to see Team Whisper results from the 2018 Association, Region, and National meets!
2017 JO’s: Check-out the video created by Lindsay Owen, sister of Candi Owen, who was a participant on the 2017 National team! Click on the respective links to see Team Whisper results from the 2017 Association, Region, and National meets!
Nov. 16 - USATF Association Meet
Click here for information on the Junior Olympic race at Woodland Park in Seattle, WA.
Nov. 23 - USATF Regional Meet
Click here for information on the Junior Olympic race, tentatively set for Salem, Oregon.
Dec. 14 - USATF National Meet
Click here for information on the Junior Olympic race at Yahara Hills Clubhouse in Madison, Wisconsin.