Lettering for highschool track....

For an AUTOMATIC letter, meaning if you just run one of those times once and that's it, I think all of those times are soft. And, the 4:59 1600 is a tad harder than the 10:45 3200. 4:59 is closer to 10:39 as a comparison.

Hopefully your school has other ways to letter...earn a certain number of points in a meet, for example.

Automatic letter at my son's high school for 3200 is SUB 9:45. But, if you score 18 points or more in meets or you are a 4-year member, you letter.

At my high school, the letter times are incredibly easy to attain. They were decided by a sprinting coach:

2:30

5:35

11:45

The mile and 2 mile are pretty similar, although I'd say the miles harder, depending on if you're a speed guy or have a little more endurance.

Lettering in HS was fair for my team. You had to get 5 points in dual meets (we had 5 dual meets per season) That means you won a race or got 5 3rd place finishes or a combination of places.

My team (and league) was distance oriented but those distance time would not get you a letter from my team. The sprint times would probably be easier but by no means a given. Unless coach held out the top guys for a meet of 2 you wouldnt get it.

Those times are easy for a letter.

When I was in high school, it was 10 points in a season or you were a 4 year member. There was no time requirement.

we had to get 15 points over the course of 5-6 (can't remember exact number...it was 30+ years ago) dual meets plus our conference meet.

one of the happiest days of my life was 5/9/81. i was a soph and went into the conference meet with 12 points on the season, needing to place 4th to get my letter.

but looking around the starting line in the 3200 i couldn't see how i could ever finish higher than 5th. There were 4 other guys who were just way better than me. Our league only scored 6 places at the championship meet, so 5th place = 2 points...which would give me 14 for the season, and no letter.

sure enough, 6 laps in i was alone in 5th and racing no one. running well enough but with no hope of lettering...which was all i cared about.

then, miraculously, with 800 to go, the 3rd place guy just stepped off the track! I think it was sore shins, or something. that bumped me up to 4th where I finished the race. I got the 4 points, giving me 16 on the year, and earned that coveted varsity letter.

it sounds silly now, but i remember what a HUGE deal it was on our team to get your first varsity letter. I guess because it wasn't very easy for most of us.

Nowdays, if you don't give the candya$$ punks their participation trophy they'll quit the team. Just show up to practice and we'll give you the letter.

It certainly was a big deal to earn a varsity letter for the first time. I think every team should be different because everyone has different levels of competition. If every team in our league used the 5 point system then some of the really bad teams would have almost no kids lettering. We usually got 15 or so kids out of 60 to letter. I think thats a good ratio. 1/4 means that your best 10 kids letter and then you get some recognition for other kids.

30+ years ago on our team the coaches made the final decisions.

The guidelines were:

If you were #1 in your event you were a sure thing.

If you were #2 to say #5 in your event you got it as long as the guys ahead of you qualified for the class meet.

If you were behind someone in an event who didn't qualify for the class meet you had to be a solid member of a relay team.

+1, track and field programs have become a joke. Anyone in my high school could get a varsity letter just by showing up to practice and giving a quick half ass effort. Shame for the athletes who truly deserve it.

I have a point system where you have to get 30 points over the season. Points are awarded for scoring at meets and qualifying for conference etc. I have automatic letters where if you qualify for states or get a school record you get your letter. Basically 90% of the kids who qualify for conference on the team get a letter. Works out pretty well with about 15-20 girls and 20-30 boys getting there letter out of 90-100 to start the season.

I like the idea of time standards for letters. I have never thought of that. My problem is those kids who maybe borderline but on a good relay throw states etc. I also give points for scoring or setting school records in relays, perfect attendance (only a few excused absences), seniors who have run all four years, attending team fundraiser. Though some of these points are small it can award kids who may not be the best athletically but put in the work and dedicated to the team. In XC its easier where i give kids their letter if their on varsity (aka top 7) for half the season rounding down. So 9 meets is 4.5 so 4 meets if they finish in the top 7 for the team they get a letter.

I went to a small hs with xc and no track team. Stupid right, I should have demanded my parents send me to boarding school. Anyways, if you were top 7 in one meet, you lettered as long as you had no more than 2 unexcused missed practices. Since we never had more than 7 runners, everyone lettered every year.

We have tip top standards and as a result tip top athletes.

1600: 4:35

3200: 10:00

800: 2:01

400: 52.6

200: 23.0

100: 11.3

300H: 41.0

110H: 15.16

I will have you know that we produce 7-8 who letter winners in each event, year in and year out, last year 11 lettered in the 200. Hurdling events there's a bit less success, but we still develop our athletes to 110% of their god given potential.