Running a team relay in track is no easy task. It takes a great deal of both athleticism and timing. It's imperative that all members of the team have the ability to run quickly and pass the baton without dropping it. Here is perfect a team relay in track.
Instructions
1. Decide on the order for your relay team. Many teams, for example, put their two fastest runners at the beginning and end of the team and their slowest runners in the middle. Experiment with different orders in practice to find what makes the fastest team time. Remember that it doesn't matter how fast an individual runs in a team relay but rather which combination of the four makes for the fastest overall time.
2. Learn to run fast while not looking straight ahead. Many relay teams try to pass the baton without looking back during the entire pass. This increases the chance that you will either bobble or drop the baton. Instead, work on rounding the corners of the track perfectly while looking back.
3. Hold the baton near the base when running with it. Many hold the baton near the center instead of the bottom. This simply makes the eventual exchange much more difficult. By holding the baton near the base, you can better place it firmly into the waiting hand of your teammate. Any mistakes made during the exchange should never be the fault of the person passing the baton.
4. Use your strong or comfortable hand to pass and grab the baton. Many coaches feel that you must use a specific hand during a team relay. But if you are doing something that is unnatural for you, you will think about it during the race. You may even exchange the baton from one hand to the other, breaking your racing stride and costing your team valuable time. Using your weak hand could even cause you to drop the baton or mess up when passing it to the next teammate.
5. Practice passing the baton in nonrace situations. Stand in a field or on the track a yard or two away from one another. Then, work on putting the baton in the hand of the person in front of you. A relay race is almost always lost because the baton is fumbled by a teammate. Be sure that the baton is snugly in the hand of your teammate before you let it go.
6. Learn the timing of your teammates and when you should take off from your starting position. If you jump too early, you could disqualify your team by not receiving the baton in time. Leave too late and you could not be in full stride when you get the baton, costing your team valuable time and potentially the race. The only way you can get this down to a science is by practicing it over and over again. By learning the speed of both yourself and your teammates on the track, you will quickly learn when you should begin running.
Tags: baton near, team relay, your team, baton near base, baton without, costing your