Running Talk With Cherokee Coach Steve Shaklee

 

Sept. 9, 2007
by Kevin Cranston, www.runningco.com

Throughout the season, Runningco.com’s Kevin Cranston will do Q&As with various South Jersey coaches and runners. This first installment of the Q&A feature is with Cherokee head coach Steve Shaklee. Shaklee is entering his 18th year as a head cross country coach. This will be his 15th year at Cherokee. Before Cherokee, Shaklee spent three years at Shawnee. While at Cherokee, Shaklee has guided teams to four South Jersey Group 4 sectional titles and four Group 4 state titles.   

How would you say the team’s summer training went?
The summer training went well. After spring track, we took a couple of down weeks and then got into the summer running in the later part of June. We met twice a week at Cherokee for group runs and the attendance was generally good. We began with around 25-35 miles a week and progressed to 45-65 miles a week by the middle of August when the team attended the RunningWorks Cross Country Camp. Only a few workouts were scheduled over the summer and they were primarily tempo runs and hill repeats. The emphasis each week was on getting in one good long run.

You start the season as Runningco.com’s No. 1 team. What are your expectations of this group for 2007?
As always, we expect to train well and race competitively. What that will earn us by the end of the season, in addition to a sense of self satisfaction, is hard to say. There are many good teams in South Jersey and certainly several that have legitimate shots at the number one ranking by the end of the year. Chief among those is Haddonfield, last year's number one team.

We will stay focused on being the best team we can be. If we lose a meet, it will not be for lack of preparation.

What are the team’s strength’s heading into the season?
We have a strong number one man in senior, Alex Yersak, the two-time South Jersey Group 4 champion. We also have good depth with as many as 12 runners challenging for a spot in the top 7. In order for us to end the year as number 1, we will need several of those 12 to make the step up to the next level and close the gap on Yersak.

How would you rate Alex Yersak’s fitness level right now? What kind of year can he have?
Alex is in good shape right now and is prepared for a long, hard season. Last year he won the South Jersey Group 4 Championship for the second straight year and also captured the Burlington County Championship and the Olympic Conference Championship. He finished the year with a 22nd place finish in the Meet of Champs, making him the 6th underclassman across the line.  He will be one of the top runners in the area this season.

As a sophomore in 2006, Chris Applegate had a breakout season and ended the year as the team’s No. 2 runner. What kind of shape is he in now and how important is he to this team?
Chris improved every race last fall ending with a tremendous performance at the Meet of Champions in which he finished 39th in 16:47. It was his first season of cross country as he played soccer in the fall of his freshman year. He's had a good summer of training and he is ready for another big year. The great thing about cross country is that it is so much a team sport. To be successful, you need 7 guys to run well, not just one or two. Chris, like everyone else on the team, needs to work on closing the gap on Alex if we are to win any championships.

The Olympic Conference American Division looks like it will be even tougher than usual this season, with basically the whole division returning a pretty competitive team. How would you break down the conference race and where do you see your team?
The Olympic American is a tough division this year. I see us as one of several teams with an opportunity to take the title. Pennsauken is still rebuilding, but every other team in the division is a threat, Washington Township and Cherry Hill East in particular.

The Cherokee Challenge has taken on a life of its own lately. What can we expect for this year’s meet?
Meet Director, Chris Callinan, has done a great job of transforming the Challenge into one of the biggest and best events of the season. It's an enjoyable, positive way to start the season for many teams. Last year we had 1,700 runners participate and we expect another good turnout this year. We are also happy to have John Dye, the founder of Dyestat, at the meet this year. He will be posting results, race summaries and photos on his site following the meet.

You’re one of the directors of the RunningWorks Camp, which many of the top runners on the East Coast attend each summer. What makes the camp so beneficial for high school runners?
My wife, Cricket Batz, is the one who runs the camp and, along with Marcus O'Sullivan, is most responsible for its success. She does an amazing job of putting together a camp that includes great training, informative instruction, motivational speakers and a lot of fun and camaraderie. Marcus O'Sullivan, the camp's founder, is also an integral part of what makes RunningWorks special.  He is a 4-time Olympian, a 3-time World Indoor Champion at 1500 Meters, and a former World Record holder. He is there to interact with the kids and, when he tells them his story, everyone comes away inspired and more determined to make something of themselves. As a coach, it is just what I am looking to have my kids get out of a running camp experience.

Entering your 18th season as a cross country head coach, you’ve seen some extremely talented runners come through your programs. Who would make up your all-time top seven?
That is a tough question to answer. I've had the privilege of working with some great athletes. Picking seven...or any number for that matter...is difficult. I'll build my list off of what each athlete ran at Holmdel Park, site of the State Championship for many years.

I began coaching at my alma mater, Cherry Hill East, as an assistant to Don Witzig and Dennis Smyth from 1979-1986.  Two of my top seven would come from those years: 

Bruce Miller, class of 1982, was the South Jersey Cross Country Runner of the Year for the 1981 season and ran 16:01 at Holmdel Park. 
Bill Stewart was the 1983 South Jersey Runner of the Year and ran 16:16 at Holmdel.

I coached at Shawnee  from 1988 through 1991:
Keith O'Brien, class of 1992, was the fastest Holmdel Runner I worked with at Shawnee, running 16:18 in the 1991 State Meet.

The remaining four runners are from Cherokee, where I have been since 1992: 
Marc Pelerin, class of 2002, was the 2001 South Jersey Runner of the Year and the only athlete I have coached who has won the Meet of Champions.  He won the Cross Country MOC in 2001 with a time of 15:43 at Holmdel and made the Footlocker Finals that year.  He also won the 1600 at the track MOC the following spring. 
Keith Krieger, class of 2003, ran 15:45 at Holmdel to place 2nd in the 2002 Group 4 State Meet and ran 15:48 the next week to finish 2nd in the State MOC. He was the 2002 South Jersey Runner of the Year. 
Joe Halin, class of 2000, was the State Group 4 Champion, running 16:09 at Holmdel for the win.
Tom Yersak, class of 2005, Alex Yersak's older brother now running at Princeton, was the 2004 South Jersey Runner of the Year.  He was South Jersey's top finisher at the State Meet of Champions, placing 10th in 16:12. 

If you had to pick one, what would you say has been the coaching accomplishment your most proud of?
The consistency of the program at Cherokee is the accomplishment of which I am most proud. Over the last 10 years we have only lost one dual meet and we have been  the Olympic Conference American Division Champions nine times and the Patriot Division Champions once. We have also won 8  Burlington County titles, 4 South Jersey Group 4 titles and 4 State Group 4 titles while finishing 9th our better in the State Meet of Champions every year (2nd twice, 3rd twice, 4th once, 5th once, 6th three times and 9th once). During that period we have never ended the year ranked worse than 3rd in South Jersey, including 5 #1 rankings. 

We have been fortunate to have some talented runners come through the program. More importantly, however, we have had many athletes willing to make the necessary sacrifices to keep the tradition going. 

Assistant coach, Chris Callinan, has also been integral to our success. It is great to have someone with that much knowledge and enthusiasm to work with. Anyone who is familiar with our program knows that Cal and I are co-coaches, sharing equally in all coaching duties. Cherokee Cross Country would not be where it is today without him. 

Over the years, you have coached a number of post-collegiate runners. What are some of similarities and differences of coaching runners at the two different levels?
I enjoy working with both high school and post collegiate runners. At the high school level, it's more of a teacher/student relationship in that most high school runners don't yet have much experience with the sport and there is a lot more teaching required. Post- collegiate runners are generally more goal directed and self-motivated. 

You’re still an active runner (at 51, Shaklee ran 17:27 at the Run for Tony in Haddon Township on Aug. 29). How many miles do you run a week? How many races do you compete in a year?
I usually run about 30 miles a week. I enjoy “competing” in a few road races each year.  It also helps to remind me of how difficult racing is. It's a good way of keeping me more in touch with what my athletes are experiencing.

-Responses to questions appear as provided to Kevin Cranston