The Track Team Without A Track

The College of Charleston Track and Field team is lacking a major part to its 13-year-old program: a track. Everyday the team spends close to an hour (round trip) traveling to James Island Charter High School. The track there becomes the track these Division I athletes call home.

Julia Petruch
Courtesy of CofCsports.com

"By driving out to practice everyday, we waste an hour that could be used getting stronger, faster and better," says CofC sophomore Track and Field athlete, Julia Petruch.

Amy Seago
College of Charleston
Track and Field Head Coach

Amy Seago, College of Charleston's Track and Field head coach, has been a part of the program for 12 years. When asked about the lack of facility, there were a good amount of positives but more negatives that overshadowed the harsh reality.

"We have always tried to put a positive spin on any obstacles that we have had," Seago stated. "The girls used to make a joke out of not having a track, calling themselves the 'Jamaican Bobsled Team.'"

Although this positive mindset will help the athletes keep their heads up, it is not always this easy for the program to be so optimistic. When it comes to recruiting, not having a facility of its own gives the track and field program a great hurdle to overcome.

Brianna McDonald
Courtesy of CofCsports.com

Coach Seago says recruiting becomes a lot more challenging when potential student-athletes compare The College to other institutions and, everything else being equal, not having a track is a huge setback.

"By not having a track we feel inadequate compared to other division I programs," says Brianna McDonald, CofC Track and Field junior.

However, for the track and field athletes, this situation has instilled what Coach Seago calls a "blue-collar mentality" of work. Even though the team does not have a facility to call home, they still believe that hard work can still be accomplished and they are going to overcome the challenge.

It has been shown through the team's performances, including the five school records that were broken in 2014 alone, that the team can still prevail. "We may not have what everyone else has, but we still do a good job," Seago stated.

There has been talk in the past about the potential to build a track for the College of Charleston. However, this is not something that is an easy task.

First, because The College is located in downtown Charleston, there is not much land to work with. Therefore, the program is forced to be at the mercy of other entities to help the dream come true.

Aerial view of Patriots Point Athletic Complex

For example, when thinking about the facilities at Patriots Point it is easy to want to add onto such a piece of land, especially one that is already home to four other CofC athletic facilities. However, there are more hoops to jump through than what meets the eye. What can be overlooked is the fact that Mount Pleasant owns that land and that is another mayor, township, and various boards to negotiate with. And that is just one example.

Rachel Leder
Courtesy of CofCsports.com

"I have been here for 12 years," Seago explains, "and there has been two or three different times where we have been really close to getting something done and then something would happen where it has not worked out. The longer it takes the more frustrating it gets."

At the end of the day, the team as a whole is simply grateful to represent the College of Charleston in the field of competition. Rachel Leder, Track and Field junior sums up this feeling by stating: "Though having a track would be a monumental addition to the program, after witnessing other varsity sports being cut due to lack of funding, I just feel grateful to still have the opportunity to compete as a Division I athlete."

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Below is a story that illustrates this situation in a real-life encounter. Continue reading if you are interested:

As a College of Charleston track athlete myself, I have encountered this negative effect first-hand. I want to share this experience in order to illustrate the reality of this setback.

I was having a conversation with a sophomore track athlete from Winthrop last season at a track meet. She told me that she looked at going to the College of Charleston and really liked the school but the only problem was that she did not have a track she could call her own. However, this girl did not have a track of her own in high school so going to college was her first chance to gain such a gift.

I understood where she was coming from, although disappointed that this turned her away from our program. When she asked me how I felt about it, all I could say (and all I ever say when asked about the situation) is that I am blessed enough to call myself a Division I athlete that it does not matter to me where I practice. I could practice on a dirt road and still be thankful.