Letter from the Editor

Hello subscribers, and welcome to the May 2015 issue of The Hurdle Magazine. This month’s issue has a heavy emphasis on big-race preparation, since many athletes are either in their championship season or about to enter it. This is the time of year when all the training comes together, when emotions are high, and the stakes are even higher.

For the mental side of things, we have the article entitled “Staying Calm before the Big Race.” In this one, I discuss methods and strategies to stay calm and focused in the final moments leading up to the start of a big race, and how to channel your nervous energy so that you can use it as fuel instead of being controlled by it.

In “Championship Week” I discuss ways to approach the week of training that culminates with the championship meet at the end of the week. The article contains a sample workout plan for the 100/110m hurdler, one for the 300/400m hurdler, and one for the hurdler who competes in both events.

This month’s workout, “Pre State Meet 300m Hurdle Workout,” is designed for the high school 300m hurdler preparing for a championship race.

In “The Selfish Hurdler,” I talk about why I feel hurdlers need to focus on themselves this time of year (and all times of year really) even if it means being misunderstood (and even criticized) by coaches and teammates who deem such an attitude to be selfish.

“Why the 19-Flat Hurdlers Matter,”  is more of a personal narrative in which I provide a bit of an update on my current coaching life and reflect back on my experiences coaching hurdlers who weren’t state champions, but from whom I learned a lot and with whom I formed a very close bond.

Finally, in response to a question from a coach, I wrote “Breathing in the Sprint Hurdles,” an article that discusses how sprint hurdlers should breathe during a race.

Video life remains in struggle mode, as I haven’t been able to record any practice footage recently. That’s partly due to weather, but mainly due to the fact that I have only one hurdler at the new school I starting coaching at when I got a new teaching position in January, and she’s not at a point yet where she can serve as a model for good technique. Once this school year is over and I’m back home, I should be able to get caught up on my videos.

The magazine was a solo venture this month, as I had no guest writers and I did all the technical stuff myself, so the only thanks I have to give out are to you subscribers. I appreciate your loyalty and support. If any of you would like to write an article for the mag, please let me know. Having just one less article to write for an issue saves me much valuable time. Payment would be $9.99 – the price of a monthly subscription, and I could pay you through your PayPal account. If you have ideas for an article but aren’t sure how to go about writing or what I might want, just email me at smcgill@hurdlesfirst.com and we can figure it out.

Thanks again, enjoy the May 2015 issue, and best of luck with all hurdling endeavors.

Steve McGill

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