By James Kavelish
As a former DBU runner and Texas A&M Commerce coach, the new Guyer High School Cross Country and Track coach, Trent Phelps, uses his personal experience to connect with the runners. Allowing them to learn and grow from a collegiate perspective. His main goal is to unlock runners’ true potential, have them understand that there is no luck involved in fast running. They must be intentional, committed and consistent.
With all his years of experience, Coach Phelps has learned to interact with different personalities and learning styles. Guyer freshman students are usually 13, while seniors can be 19 years old. Phelps’ experience allows him to train athletes differently and learn how to adjust to their genders and different training backgrounds to make sure every runner is successful. “Cross country is a natural sport to mankind and it’s available to everyone wanting to do it with only a pair of running shoes. The simpleness of the sport is what makes it so beautiful,” Coach Phelps said.
The difference between the college atmosphere and the high school level resides on college students having more freedom. They have the ability to drive themselves to practice and a lower load of classes a week. High school students on the other hand have more classes, extracurricular activities and depend on others to drive them to practice. High school students have a more rigid structure while college students have more flexibility for the day. Coach Phelps learned how to make plans for high school students to have productive communication. Phelps values the sense of pressure, he believes in leading the athletes out of their comfort zone and increasing their personal expectations. “Progress takes time but hard work shines through, ” he said. This training philosophy reflects on their performance during race day. “Winning teams work hard. The ultimate test is the human’s mental strength,” Phelps added.
Phelps’ father, a long time coach, inspired him into this profession. Seeing the effect of his father’s training style on the student athletes made him want to experience the same feeling. Phelps wakes up early in the morning to drive about 30 minutes to work, to make sure he arrives on time to get organized and prepared before practice starts. He was grateful to receive extraordinary help from all the Guyer coaches during his first year. They were there to mentor him, as well as to provide support during hardship moments. Last December a baby arrived to the Phelps family, the day to day activities got changed, new worries, responsibilities, and priorities, however Coach Phelps continued to focus on the team’s success and performance. “It’s hard to balance both(family and work)” but it is helpful that Coach Phelps’ wife loves to be with him during meets and track events, he said.
Phelps embraces athletes’ stress and frustrations, because it shows their determination to compete at higher levels, to win district and state titles. Coach Phelps is focused on the team and will always plan for a successful season. He wants his athletes to grow the appropriate mindset for the best outcomes. Making sure the team records their workouts and runs daily to keep consistency and growth “It’s the testament to what the runners have been doing,” he said. “Coaches can write the best workout plans, but all falls down if the runner is not willing to follow the workout schedule,” Phelps concluded.
