Interview with Yorktown Coach Jared Turner

ECI: First off, can you give a brief description of your background and how you came to the Yorktown community?

JT: "I grew up in the Grant County area and went to high school and ran for Mississinewa High School. After graduating, I continued on to Tri-State University in northern Indiana. There I continued to run in the NCAA Division III ranks. While there I was coached by Mike Cole, which is really where most of my coaching and training techniques come from. After graduating from Tri-State I was looking for a teaching job that might also offer me the opportunity to continue my passion for running. I was hired by Yorktown High School in 2005 and am now entering my 4^th year coaching Cross Country and Track as well as teaching in the Social Studies department at the high school."

ECI: Your team has had a great year thus far and is much improved from last season.  What do you attribute to your success?  

JT: "All of the credit has to go to the athletes that have I have been around thus far. They have instilled a passion into the program to be successful. As everybody involved with high school running knows, it is sometimes tough to recruit high schoolers to commit to running. But anything that you bring passion and enthusiasm to is bound to be successful. We have had more and more runners commit to running in the off season and come on training trips which has dramatically improved our team as a whole."

ECI: With what looks to be a tight race in your sectional and regional, how do you keep your boys motivated and prepared for “battle” so to speak?

JT: "Our boy’s team understands we have not run well in the postseason the last few seasons. We have just missed advancing to semi-state each of the last 3 seasons. Each year we have felt that we had a very good chance to advance out of our regional, but our performances in those meets have let down our goal of advancing. That is the motivation that our team uses to prepare for the postseason meets. This year will be as difficult as any with our regional having so many solid teams. With great teams like Anderson Highland, Mt. Vernon, Muncie Southside, Delta, and Pendleton Heights who have all been there before and advanced to the next level we understand if we don’t step up we could be left out again."

ECI: You have had two great additions to the Yorktown cross country teams this year in Martin Buss and Alexis Hunt, how have they helped the overall attitude of your program and how do they handle the pressure of being the “new” leaders? 

JT: "We have been very lucky this year to have a couple very talented runners join our team. Runners like Martin and Lexi do not just show up at your school very often so we know how fortunate we are to have them wearing Yorktown green. Both runners have obviously helped out our overall attitude of our team, not just by their talent, but their work ethic. Martin and Lexi are extremely hard workers. They never complain about a workout, are both are intense competitors, and have a passion for cross country. As far as leadership goes we are lucky to have many leaders on the team besides our new additions. Team members like Logan Varner, Michael Stocker, and Ben Brand have been tremendous leaders for our team and understand the importance of getting the most out of every workout and the maximum effort out of every teammate ." 

ECI: Coach Jim Leffler has been a standing member in the running community of East Central Indiana for years, what is it like coach alongside someone with so much experience?  

JT: "Coach Leffler is amazing, what else is there really to say? He has so much experience, is an absolute competitor in his own right, and has a passion for running that few can match. Coach Leffler has been a true blessing for me to coach alongside because of his knowledge. We discuss every workout together and try to form a plan from of the beginning of our season that will do the most for our team in reaching the goals that we set every season. His sense of humor and even-keeled approach are also very steadying forces for me and our team in general. I constantly joke with coach Leffler that he is under a 15 year coaching contract so that I can continue to coach alongside him for years to come." 

ECI: Well, thanks for the interview and good luck to you and your team the rest of this season.

JT: "Thank you Coach Leitch. I cannot tell you how much we appreciate all your efforts with ECI Runner. In a sport that does not get the bulk of media coverage it is great to have a source devoted to recognizing all the great athletes in this area that make the East Central Indiana running community a group that we can show great pride in."