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The Columbus Youth Track team has begun practicing in preparation for their first meet of the season.
The team was started in 2021 by one of Columbus’ fastest runners (some call him Columbus’ fastest man) Royce Caldwell.
“Joining the CYS Family I was able to come in and start another youth sport, that I felt like our community needed,” Caldwell said. “I thank Larry Rooks and Brenda Garcia for allowing me to work with these kids as well as be a part of something special.”
He started the team as a way to give kids in the community something active to do in the summer. Columbus has been showing that they are full of summertime activities for kids in the community to be a part of and win some trophies and medals for their hard work.
The age groups for the team range, for example Caldwell said this year his youngest runner is five and his oldest is 18 years old. He said there are definitely challenges in trying to make this sport fun for the kids especially for a five-year-old, so he tries to find ways to keep them engaged and focused on getting better as a runner.
In addition to that Caldwell puts a big emphasis on teaching these young men and women about life. He wears his heart on his sleeve as a coach and is always willing to listen to his athletes whenever they need him to because he always has his kids’ best interest at heart.
“Running is a tough sport, it is physically demanding so a lot of kids, especially my younger ones, tend to give up or not want to do it after a while and I don’t blame them,” Caldwell said. “We try to always encourage them to keep trying because it might not have worked this time, but it might work the next time, and you can apply that to life, always keep trying and never give up.”
Caldwell said it can be challenging, but these kids are up to the challenge, and that’s why they keep coming back, and the team keeps growing.
“These kids want to be great athletes, and they understand that in order to achieve that greatness whether it is in any sport or in life, they are going to have to work hard and earn it,” Caldwell said.
Caldwell wants to see his kids improve, but he always wants to teach them about the world and how cruel it can be sometimes. While the world can be cruel, Caldwell likes to remind his athletes that they are special and they can accomplish anything they put their mind to, just have to watch out for dream stealers.
This team also offers an inexpensive option for a summertime activity compared to others. Caldwell said the team hosts a lot of fundraisers to help out families that want to be a part of the team but cannot afford it.
One of the key fundraisers that Columbus Youth Track hosts is their chicken spaghetti luncheon cooked by Pilsners Cafe that started in 2021, to contribute to raising money for the TAAF regional meets, Caldwell said.
The team is a part of the Texas Amateur Athletic Federation, so they do compete in meets throughout the season. With that comes an opportunity to go to State and Caldwell said he has brought some kids to State every year since they started.
“It’s always fun bringing them to State because they get a chance to see where this sport can take them and they love it,” Cadwell said.
The Columbus Youth Track Team practices every Monday and Thursday starting at 5:30 p.m. and will begin their season later this month.
