Interview with US track and field coach Josh Priester about track and field training and running tracks in the U.S.
Josh Priester, director and head coach of the Santa Barbara Track and Field Club and track and field coach at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California, is a detailed connoisseur of the track and field scene in the United States. He has coached many top athletes for major national and international competitions. His primary responsibilities include coaching all aspects of track and field training in collaboration with the Sports Performance staff. He has also recently become an active representative in the U.S. for the running track specialist Conica AG, located in Switzerland.
Question:
Has athletics always been a passion of yours?
Josh:
In high school, I started out playing basketball and football. But then I got more and more excited about track and field. It started with sprints, hurdles and long jump. I knew that I was interested in the decathlon at a young age, in college I had an opportunity to pursue that ambition.
Question:
How do you reconcile sports and health – on the one hand, the athletes’ peak athletic performance, and on the other hand, protecting their health?
Josh:
Balancing athletic excellence and athlete health is the most important aspect of being an effective coach. By nature, track & field is very demanding on the human body. Communication and trust are two words that stand out to me as being the most critical elements of the coach/athlete relationship. The coach needs to take many varying training demands into consideration, while also allowing for proper recovery between training sessions and competition. Athletes need a head coach they trust 100%. Of course, feedback from other coaches and the medical department is also important, but someone has to lead the way in directing the overall program.
Question:
Can you give an example?
Josh:
I coached Barbara Nwaba, who started in the heptathlon as a 19-year-old, through 13 seasons of dynamic athletic development. I always kept her health in mind. I won’t say she never had an injury, but we were able to find an effective rhythm in her training that allowed her to compete at a high level of performance during her prime competitive years. It’s a very individual thing, as each athlete has their own biomechanics and predispositions.
Brief information on Barbara Nwaba: She is a 2 x USA Champion in the heptathlon, and 1 x USA Champion in the pentathlon. Barbara earned the bronze medal at the 2016 World Indoor Championships in the pentathlon.
Question:
What role does running track play in both performance and health?
Josh:
A crucial one. For male and female runners, there are demands on training tracks: In the typical training year, they want a surface that’s good for their joints. Some materials are very hard, which is good and fast in competition, but not necessarily optimal for training. There are many different surfaces in training tracks – and that’s what finally led me to Conica. I was aware of Conica throughout my coaching career and I got in touch with Conica’s team following the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games.
Question:
A competition like Tokyo reflects the competition situation in a short time window. Looking at the long term – what about the durability of the tracks?
Josh:
The durability of a track is very important. After all, it’s also about cost. Likewise, I think the installation of the tracks is important. There are poured and prefabricated rolled out tracks. When a club or school makes the investment to renovate or build a new track, it is a big deal for everyone involved. As a coach and overall fan of the sport, I want to make sure that their investment benefits their program for years to come. Conica has proven durability, innovation and athlete safety for years, I am excited to be a part of expanding these great tracks in the US.
Question:
What is important to you as a difference – what makes Conica special?
Josh:
Conica is the pioneer in cast/poured tracks. The long life combined with the ease of maintenance due to seamless surfaces is a fundamental aspect. The benefit of a full pour track is that the durable material retains most of its properties throughout its lifecycle. Tracks made of rolled material, on the other hand, often harden after only a few years and don’t seem to maintain their initial integrity for as long as a full pour system.
Question:
Are there any other differences?
Josh:
When installing the tracks, there is another advantage of the cast ones: uneven surfaces can be leveled out. With rolled material, this compensation is more difficult, because unevenness must be done in advance. Subsequent correction in the further course of installation is no longer possible.
There is also a difficulty in curves when installing rolled tracks. When the material is bonded to the substrate, it is stretched in the outer area. This means that the unrolled sheets do not have absolutely equal properties in the curves.
The joints between individual sheets are a general problem with unrolled sheets. Although they are closed, they prove to be a disadvantage in the course of the service life, as they can open up due to weather conditions. The advantage of cast tracks, on the other hand, is that there are no joints at all.
Question:
How can you get the U.S. market excited about the special Conica quality?
Josh:
First of all, Conica is “Made in Switzerland.” That speaks for itself. I’m thinking of precision Swiss watches or the Swiss Army Knife, which almost everyone in the USA knows.
Also significant is that Conica surfaces have been installed in some very prestigious stadiums, such as Zurich and Monaco, and that track and field athletes have given very positive feedback after major competitions there.
Question:
What’s the situation at American universities?
Josh:
There, people are familiar with certain brands that they’ve known for years. But here I see good opportunities for Conica. Because many US coaches work at a high level and need top quality that can still be proven years later. Economics and budgeting are nearly always a major consideration for universities, colleges and high schools in the United States. The great thing about Conica is that there is a surface solution that can fit nearly any budget. I am excited about the opportunity to provide fanatics products, but also to offer outstanding value and service for these schools.
Question:
What is the quality of the equipment there?
Josh:
Some tracks are very good, some are not. My goal is finding individual approaches. An example of a nearby university I contacted: The head coach there gave me feedback that the surface was in desperate need of resurfacing, but she didn’t know what the budget was. I went there, took photos of the facility to get a general basic assessment and then coordinated with Conica in Switzerland. After all, I come from the coaching and training side of the sport. Looking closely at the material side requires learning in a wide variety of areas for me. I wanted to give her all the indications necessary to be able to work within the economic constraints of the university.
Question:
Who do you even have to approach when a track needs to be renewed?
Josh:
It’s complex. There are many potential stakeholders: Coaches, athletic directors, facility directors and even private owners. If you’re the athletic director or owner, you’re primarily looking at cost and longevity. If you’re the coach, you are looking at longevity, athlete safety and performance. Being equipped to answer questions from all parties is critical when approaching a track renovation. Everyone has a different role and a different concern about their project. The great thing is that Conica products speak for themselves in every area.
Question:
Conica has noted in Germany that German athletes often know little about the quality of track surfaces and the effects on joints, muscles and the body as a whole – how do you assess that for your country?
Josh:
It’s the same in the US. Athletes don’t know details about different surfaces, but they can answer the question about the surface in terms of whether they like it or not. Athletes have favorite stadiums where they like to run or just don’t. And 100-meter runners, long-distance runners or long jumpers give very different answers. But athletes exchange opinions. You can’t underestimate that.
Sprinters, for example, give the Letzigrund stadium in Zurich an outstandingly good rating because the running track supports them in their movements. The track is not too soft and not too hard. This is crucial for the running sensation and performance. Too soft would absorb too much energy, too hard, on the other hand, does not develop enough catapult effect and leads more easily to injuries.
Question:
How difficult is it to increase quality while keeping costs in mind?
Josh:
When it comes to track quality, I can relate to the problems all coaches face because I’ve been in the same situation. When I started as a coach, we had a track that was in poor condition. That problem has since been solved. But it took many years of planning and budgeting to navigate issues in funding at the university. The quality and value of Conica surfaces will be highly attractive for owners. My objective is to introduce Conica as a new option for track programs at every level in the US.
Question:
In which regions of the U.S. should Conica launch?
Josh:
It would be difficult to fly coaches, athletic & facility directors to Europe to check out Conica tracks. Our first objective is to get some tracks on the ground here in the US that can serve as a showcase or example for other coaches to see. The region of the country isn’t too important as there are great track programs in every state at every level of competition. I believe that when we do get some of these tracks in place, it will create momentum for the future as I am confident that athletes and coaches will love the Conica tracks.