Kids Running

Be a kid again. Play tag. Have fun. Run like crazy and laugh. And if you are tired of ordinary tag, try Bizarro Tag or a zany relay - all recommended by Coach Ed.
- Carol Goodrow, Founding Editor, KidsRunning.Com

TAG by Coach Ed Poirier

My kids like "BIZARRO TAG" the best. It is played on a surface about 30 feet square. One kid is IT and they have 15 seconds to tag as many teammates as they can. Teammates must stay in the 30 foot square. As soon as the 15 seconds is over another kid is it. Keep it going non stop. Don't forget to take your turn at being IT.

kids

The second favorite is relay races. Form 6 person, 10 person, or any number of teams. Set a cone about 25 yards from the start line. The first person on each team will run around the cone, come back to the start and pass the baton off to the second person in line and so on. Keep changing the teams until they are just about even, competitively. Then surprise them and make them do the same thing but run backwards! This stuff is really fun. The athletes get good training and they don't even realize it. The gain speed, endurance, agility, and they build close team relationships. When everyone is tripping over each other in tag and tripping over themselves trying to run backwards fast it is impossible not to have fun. They will look forward to practice because it is fun; a lot more fun than having kids run hard intervals. They will get that training when they move up to high school level. Best of all you get all the credit for being an innovative coach and all you did was play with kids.

Graphics by Carol Goodrow

carolgoodrow@verizon.net
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