This summer, athletes from PHS will be working their butts off in culmination of their work during the year and as a chance to get a jump on the next. Football and Track are two such disciplines with students training over the summer.

Track and Field coach Chris Smith has organized the opportunity for off-season training as a sanctioned USA Track and Field club (USATF). All club dues that are collected are for the purpose of fund raising for the PHS track team.

 “The club training is not restricted to PHS athletes. It is open to anyone who would like to join and participate. I have been doing this for years and it has many positive effects,” Smith said, “For those who are serious about pole vaulting there is an opportunity to train for USATF competitions which occur in the summer months and prepare to compete at a high level during the track season.”

For those who do it for enjoyment there is the opportunity to pole vault, stay in shape and have fun. The age ranges of club members are 14-56 and everyone has their own reason for being there.

Track runners also have the chance to compete with a Club USA team, giving them an opportunity to see different competition and maintain their fitness during the offseason. Senior Kyle Dalton participated in a similar program last summer.

“I wanted one last chance to run in a meet my junior year to get a personal best and make my times more attractive to college coaches.” Dalton said, “I decided to run the 400, which is not what I usually run.”

Dalton said, “I came all the way down to San Diego for the meet so I thought i might as well [run the 400]. I ended up winning my qualifying race in 51.7 seconds.”

Dalton caught the attention of this group of guys who are all outstanding 400 runners, following his race they approached him and asked if he wanted to be a part of their 4×400 team, which he agreed to.

Junior Michael Tam is also participating in training over the summer in preparation for football season next fall.

Tam said, “We’re starting training early because we need to prepare plays for passing league in early june and our fresno state camp mid-june.”

The football team is also weightlifting, which they started months earlier, in order to prevent the large number of injuries which they suffered from last year.

Tam said, “Basically we will be doing a combination of lifting and ‘actual’ practices in order to prepare ourselves for a great season. The work we are putting in now is leading to big gains on and off the field.”

Freshman Miles Kim is another football player, excited for the summer to get a shot with some of the more experienced players.

“I’m pretty excited that spring football practice is starting soon, but for now we’re just lifting weights,” Kim said. “As far as I’m concerned, football season started as soon as the weightlifting sessions began; the games start in the fall, but the majority of the work is done way before.”