Track sweet track: it’s good to be home

The new stadium at Milton Area High School opened up new opportunities for sports teams in all seasons.

According to information previously published in The Panther Press, the $12.2 million construction on the new track and field facility and additions, including the wellness and fitness center, athletic training room, two locker rooms and wrestling room, began in June of 2021. The new stadium was officially opened on August 26, 2022.

Athletic Director and Girls Track and Field Coach Mr. Rod Harris said the new facility makes things easier for track and field athletes and coaches.

“What every high school has done every season for a long time that they just take for granted, we did not have the opportunity to do. And now we have our own facility,” said Mr. Harris. “We now, as a track and field program, have the ability to compare apples to apples to every other school district around us.”

Mr. Harris added that the new track allows for more flexibility and variety in training, as well as allowing the athletes to do more intense workouts that were more difficult on the old track. Injuries due to athletes running hard on the cinders or asphalt roads were previously a concern, he said.

Last season, Milton’s track and field team had to practice at Lewisburg’s track due to construction, according to Mr. Harris.

“Having to go to Lewisburg, you know, that was rough,” said Mr. Harris. “It was rough on the kids. It was rough on the coaches– having to get on a bus every day and ride over to Lewisburg, get off the bus, practice and get back on the bus to come back home.”

He added that they did not get home until around 8 p.m.

Mr. Harris said that having home meets also motivates athletes more.

“I think it’s important in any sport for kids to be able to have their own home meets, in front of their own school, in front of their own peers and their teachers,” he said.

Family and friends do not have to travel far away all the time to see athletes compete, added Mr. Harris. Previously, not all family, friends and athletes could make it to track meets due to the meets being farther away, he said.

Mr. Harris said other high school and junior high sports, like field hockey and soccer, which were previously held behind the high school and Baugher Elementary school, have benefited from regularly competing on the new field.

According to Mr. Harris, having a concession stand open for all games will allow more fundraisers, not only for the track and field program but for other sports programs as well.

The facility benefits the rest of the student body, such as in gym class, said Mr. Harris. “There’s so many more things you can do outside, and they’re getting the sunlight for Vitamin D. They’re getting fresh air. It’s not just stuck in the gym [like during the years of construction],” he added.

Mr. Harris said the wellness center, which is staffed by Supervisor Mr. Trent Donlan, is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. for the student body and staff on the weekdays. He added it is not open on the weekends

The facility boosts the image of the school, according to Mr. Harris. “It’s just beautiful, looking at it overall,” he said.

Mr. Harris added that there are plans in the works to allow community members to use the facility, though it is currently not open to the public.

There are essentials to maintain the new track and field, said Mr. Harris. He added some of these are the “normal rules of thumb,” such as no gum, chewing seeds, Gatorade, other sticky substances, bikes, skateboards or any other unauthorized vehicles inside the field or on the track.

“One lesson we did learn on it was, because it is a high-performance track, you have to be careful of what kind of movements you do in [one] place,” explained Mr. Harris. “It rubs a whole bunch of the granules off the track, so we had to put proper matting down [for cheerleading].”

Another negative aspect of the new facility is everybody wants to use it, according to Mr. Harris. He added it can be difficult to manage who and when people can use it, since the track and field team, boys junior high soccer, girls junior high soccer, junior high field hockey, varsity soccer, and speed and agility workouts share the new facility.