Jacket alum getting ready for first season as head coach following Hobby
For the first time in 10 years, there will be a new coach leading the way for the Calhoun High cross country team this Fall.
Longtime coach Raymond Hobby retired from his headcoaching duties following last season, and assistant coach and Calhoun High alum Justin Lindsey was named his successor.
Lindsey is a 2009 graduate of Calhoun and went on to attend Shorter University, where he graduated in 2013. He teaches special education at Calhoun Middle, where he has been since the 2013-14 school year.
He’s been an assistant under Hobby, who has been the head coach since 2006, for the last three seasons along and is also an assistant coach for the Calhoun boys soccer team, where he serves as JV coach.
Lindsey, who is an avid run- ner in his free time, said the opportunity to lead the cross country team and follow one of his mentors Hobby is something he is humbled by and extremely excited for. Hobby will continue with the program as an assistant coach.
The Calhoun Times recently caught up with Lindsey to discuss the new position, following a great coach like Hobby, his passion for running and how it will apply to the job, his expectations for the program going forward and other subjects.
Here’s what he had to say:
CT:
How excited are you to take over as head coach of the Calhoun cross country program?
LINDSEY:
I am beyond excited to have been blessed with this opportunity to follow in the footsteps of many successful coaches. It is an honor and privilege to work at Calhoun and coach such hard working students. Simply put, the runners we have are special. I am more excited to influence and guide them than I am to just coach them.
CT:
How passionate are you about distance running in your own life and how will you apply that to coaching?
My passion for distance running grows each year. Year after year, more and more people flock to this sport for a reason. It provides a break from the many distractions we have in today’s society, allowing us time to clear our minds. It teaches you how to overcome obstacles and challenges in life, while also being patient in the process. I hope that my passion for the sport helps propel each and every runner to a level they have not reached yet, both on and off the course.
LINDSEY: CT:
Do you feel any pressure following a great coach like Raymond Hobby? How much have you learned by working alongside him as an assistant the last few years?
When you follow such an accomplished and respected coach, you are going to feel some pressure. It would be a lie to say that I don’t, but the humble feeling I have from being given this opportunity overrides the pressure. The past three years I have served as an assistant for Coach Hobby, which has allowed me to grow substantially as a coach and educator. It is hard to find a better man than Raymond Hobby. There is definitely a reason he will be assisting me throughout the season.
LINDSEY: CT:
How have the athletes in the program responded to you taking over as head coach and what has been your message to them so far?
The athletes are excited about this season. This year we have seen some growth in numbers at our summer workouts, but this is due to the momentum we have been building the past
LINDSEY:
several years. We have had anywhere from 15-32 athletes at every voluntary workout. It really tells you how much this sport is growing in our area. The runners know that our expectations have not changed, and this has allowed the transition to be almost unnoticeable.
CT:
What kind of workouts/ conditioning have the athletes been doing in the offseason and over the summer to be ready for the season?
We run as a team three days a week. Runners are expected to run 2-3 additional days on their own, focusing on building volume and time on their feet. Increasing your mileage is one of the main focuses of the summer. As we near the season, we will begin to throw in more speed work, hills, temp runs, and much more variety in our locations. Nothing we do is for naught. Each and every workout has a purpose.
LINDSEY: CT:
What are your expectations as head coach for the team this coming season specifically and long-term?
I think this is a great question. We challenged our runners to select academic, personal and athletic goals this year, so it is only fair the we as coaches do so too. Goals drive the expectations and vice versa. I expect this to be a year in which we become more involved in the community, improve every day inside and outside the classroom, compete for the boys and girls region championship, and earn two trophies at the state level. Long term, as a team we want to continue the tradition of excellence by competing for region and state championships. More importantly, I want to see our runners out in the community, state and country making a difference in some form or fashion. If you don’t improve as a person in some way by being on this team, then I didn’t do my job.
LINDSEY: