Q: When does the track club season start and how long does it go?
A: The season for the Rising Phoenix Track Club starts at the beginning of June. The competitive season ends at the end of July, but RPTC members are welcome to continue practicing and working out all the way through August.
Q: Is competing in meets during the summer mandatory?
A: Competing during the summer season is not mandatory. Our various membership plans with the COMPETITION label in the name are meant for athletes planning to compete during the summer. The cost of the COMPETITION plans include the cost of entry fees for meets that athletes choose to compete in. The plans with the NON-COMPETITION label in the name are meant for athletes that are just planning to come out and practice to develop their fitness and skill. These plans do not include costs of entry fees for meets. Athletes that choose the NON-COMPETITION plans are still eligible to compete in meets if they choose to do so, but entry fees to meets are not covered in their registration fees.
Q: What is the USATF and AAU? And why do we need memberships with these?
A: USATF is USA Track & Field. USA Track & Field is the governing body of our sport. AAU is the Amateur Athletic Union. Most meets that the Rising Phoenix Track Club will compete in are sanctioned by either of these two organizations and require that participants are members of one or the other. The Rising Phoenix Track Club is an organization member with both the USATF and AAU and as such our insurance for practices and meets come from the USATF and AAU, therefore membership to these organizations is a requirement for the Rising Phoenix Track Club.
Q: How does membership with the Rising Phoenix Track Club work?
A: Each membership plan is done on a month-to-month basis. So if you pay for your one month membership on June 8, then your membership is good until July 8. If you would like to pay for more than one month at a time, you are welcome to do so.
Q: Does the team travel together to meets/competitions?
A: As of right now, traveling to and from meets is the responsibility of athletes and parents. The club unfortunately does not yet have the resources to be able to accommodate taking all members of the team to and from meets, especially for any meets that may require overnight stays. Athletes are also welcome to choose to attend meets that coaches may not be able to make it to. Coach Ben will do the best he can to stay in contact with athletes/parents during those meets to help coach virtually if able. If a COMPETITION membership is purchased, then entry fees for these meets that coaches are unable to attend are also covered in the membership registration fees.
Q: Is there a set schedule of meets that Rising Phoenix Track Club will attend?
A: There is a list of meets that the club has either been invited to or plans to attend on our athletic.net homepage which can be found here: https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/School.aspx?SchoolID=70343
But it is up to the athletes/parents to choose which meets they will like to attend and communicate with Coach Ben in order to get them registered. Various upcoming meets and registration dates for meets will always be communicated to club members and parents. Some meets listed in the schedule require qualification standards that need to be met or placing at prior meets in order to attend. If an athlete/parent finds a meet not listed on our schedule that they would like to attend, then that just needs to be communicated with Coach Ben and we can get them registered for that meet.
Q: When will practices be held?
A: Monday through Friday. A general practice schedule will be posted here on the website at the very beginning of the season and Coach Ben will post updated practice schedules every Sunday for each week of the season. Dates that Coach Ben will be out of town or unavailable will also be posted. We will offer most practice sessions in the mornings, but will hold our Youth practice sessions as well as Open sessions in the evening for athletes that cannot make morning practices. For the first few weeks and depending on how many athletes join the team, practice times may be adjusted to accommodate the majority of members to make sure times work.
Q: Does the Rising Phoenix Track Club host home meets or other events?
A: The Rising Phoenix Track Club has hosted open meets in the past. We are looking to try to host more meets as well. If we hold any home meets or other events such as camps/clinics, then our COMPETITION members get free entry to all of our RPTC-hosted events and our NON-COMPETITION members get a 50% discount for all of our RPTC-hosted events.