Since my running days at Furman, I have been fascinated by running on the oval of an indoor track. The short fast races, the quick tight turns, the sound of the starter’s pistol echoing off the walls and ceiling, and the opportunity to compete during the winter months was an exciting time in my life. When I started coaching, I wanted my athletes to have the same experiences, so I would take many of them off to Knoxville or Clemson or Johnson City or anywhere close where other high school athletes would compete against us. The idea of new, indoor school records, traveling to new cities in a different venue, and much better performances in May brought many athletes out for track and field that may never have come out before. But rules in South Carolina were either changed or more strictly enforced and the opportunities to do these meets started slipping away.
