Star Valley High School Indoor Track & Field Head Coach Ty Draney called into First Bank of Wyoming Sports Friday to chat about the upcoming 2026 season.

(0:00) Duke and Dow with you in studio for First Bank of (0:02) Ommick Sports Friday today in Starbody High School track and (0:05) field cross country and indoor track head coach Ty Draney (0:09) joining us today. Coach Draney. Good morning.

How are you (0:11) today? Good morning. I think I’m exhausted after that that (0:15) intro. I don’t know.

Well, you have a few titles that you wear (0:20) right. A few hats a few hats. Yes, sir.

Well, speaking of (0:25) hats, I I’m thinking of warm ones because the phrase (0:29) indoor track is kind of a misnomer of this time of year (0:33) when we start practice. I on Monday, of course, was the first (0:36) day of practice where you’re wrapping wrapping up kind of (0:39) the first week and the first day of indoor track practice. I (0:43) just see kids running around in the in the winter and the snow (0:46) and the cold and I thought that’s no different than outdoor (0:49) track in this part of the country but kind of talk to us (0:53) about how you you’re the the training differs a little bit (0:58) between cross country indoor and then outdoor.

Well, yeah. (1:04) Yeah. It’s a but you know, we take what we can get and and (1:07) spin it how we can.

You know, first of all, we get it all done (1:10) because having such a great staff with coach Young and coach (1:13) Balls and coach Clove and we get really good at being being (1:17) flexible like this morning. You know, there’s games all (1:20) afternoon. So, the few nooks and crannies around the building (1:23) that we practice in will have spectators and you know, I (1:28) I’m guessing that they frown on us throwing shot puts and stuff (1:31) when people are walking around and so, you know, so we’re just (1:35) wrapping up, you know, morning practice and and breakfast.

So, (1:39) yeah, I would dream someday of having a facility but we we just (1:43) kind of go and get after it and do what we can and amazing men (1:47) and amazingly flexible and and and give some kids (1:51) opportunities. It looks like we’re going to we’re going to (1:53) We have 80 plus this year. Wow.

And so, we so we we we take up a (1:58) lot of room in a lot of different spaces. So, it’s (2:02) early. Our first meet is not this Saturday but the next (2:06) Saturday and so we’re we’ll we’ll know a lot more than you (2:09) know, we have some good solid veteran leaderships and but (2:14) yeah and we we got a pretty great freshman class out and so (2:18) we’re just trying to manage all that and the numbers and stay (2:22) positive and keep it a positive experience for everybody and (2:24) hopefully, we can we can develop some of those some folks (2:29) into some contenders that they’ll stick with us.

Eighty (2:32) kids is it it seems like I mean, compare that to to when (2:37) Starbody first began indoor track and field. Uh how many (2:41) kids did you have that time and and what’s I mean, I wanna I (2:46) wanna say we were twenty-ish when we first started. You know, (2:49) it was an idea that got hatched by the they were a (2:53) group of freshmen that uh with names like uh uh Audrey West (2:59) and Kirsten McKinn and that crew.

That was the first (3:03) official year for for Star Valley and uh you know, yeah, (3:07) it’s grown. It’s ebbed and flowed and we’ve had as many as (3:10) ninety. We’ve had as few as forty and so this is is this is (3:14) kind of a little little bubble for us.

So, hopefully, we can (3:17) keep them. Like I say, keep them out, keep them interested (3:20) and and and and keep working on because tracks a game, a game (3:24) of numbers and and being one of the smaller 4A schools, we we (3:28) need those numbers and and to to be competitive with uh with (3:32) the Sheridans and the and the Casper schools and Cheyenne (3:37) schools and and so so that the the numbers is is part of the (3:42) game and track especially. You you talk about that that many (3:45) kids and I’ve I’ve actually had this conversation with a lot of (3:47) the other other winter coaches as well and I want to dwell on (3:50) it uh but II think when people talk about you know, being (3:55) creative with space and practice and things like that, (3:59) I think the indoor track kids uh it’s probably probably it’s (4:02) probably the the third of the three sports going on or the (4:05) three programs going on when it comes to thinking about it and (4:09) you talk about finding the nooks and crannies and I it reminds (4:12) me that yeah, they’re they’re throwing shots in the common or (4:15) at least they used to uh different things like that.

(4:17) You’ve had to get very creative uh uh yeah kind of kind of speak (4:21) to that a little bit and maybe in a perfect world, what would (4:25) Star Valley High School have in terms of you know solving that? (4:31) Oh well about $50 million in an indoor track facility would do (4:35) it would do that II had a uh a good friend and colleague asked (4:40) he said, hey, you’re still going to be coaching my daughters (4:42) come through and I said, well, a little math. I was like, I (4:45) hope not and he says, what would it take? Well, I said, (4:50) there’s there’s there’s only one Ballard Johnson. I don’t (4:53) think I can pull that off man.

So, but I said, but I just like (4:57) what would it take out of curiosity and I said, well, if (5:00) if if I had a track on the indoor facility where we could (5:03) we could host meets and we could practice and uh I said, (5:08) you know, I said, I said, you you might have me, you know, (5:11) they might need to bury me there uh in in the middle of (5:14) the track. I said, I might II could I could coach you know (5:18) the rest of my life if that were the case, but uh yeah, (5:21) it’s it’s yeah, it’s it’s a thing but that’s that’s what we (5:26) do as coaches as we, you know, want kids to have experiences (5:28) and and make stuff happen. So, like I say, work with some (5:32) great guys and and they can do a lot of things and and we just (5:36) try to try to do what we can.

So, yeah, hopefully like I say, (5:41) I don’t know if it’ll be during my career or during my (5:44) lifetime but it would it would be awesome to you know, (5:48) because we’re we really really believe that in what (5:53) activities in general but in particular track can do for for (5:58) kids. It gives them a place to belong. It gives them something (6:00) to do.

We uh you know, mister had really shared over and over (6:04) the the data, you know, the difference between kids grades (6:07) when they’re involved with something and and this just it (6:11) gives eighty kids. Uh that’s a lot, right? What are you (6:13) talking? Ten 10% 10% of our school has a place to belong (6:18) here because of indoor track and these guys willingness to (6:22) you know, go on bus trips to exotic places like Casper and (6:26) Gillette and so so uh yeah, we believe in what we’re doing and (6:31) and and and that that would be awesome. I I get the the (6:34) limitations and the financial commitment with with that stuff (6:37) but you know, who knows? Maybe someone will be living right (6:42) and someone will, you know, needs a tax write off and wants (6:45) to bail us out or something.

So, powerball. Maybe there you (6:49) go. There you go.

Uh coach Ty Drady this morning, Star Valley (6:53) High School indoor track and field coach. You mentioned (6:55) exotic places. None more than Pocatello, Idaho, right? Uh (6:59) oh boy.

ISU, that’s where your your first meet is but as you (7:02) prepare for that and and get ready for that first meet (7:06) looking around uh the team, who do you see as some of your (7:10) team leaders this year for the indoor team? Oh, well, we got (7:14) some great experience, you know, on the throw sides like (7:16) Jonah Manu and uh Abby Carillo, um uh you know, some of our (7:22) sprinters coming back. Uh Preston and uh Sam Gaskill. (7:30) Um uh you know, we have our distance distance crew with (7:34) kind of Brigham Colton and Sully and these guys and so uh (7:39) Gracie Visser.

We anyway, we we we have the leadership and (7:42) we’re we’re kind of working on some new things uh to to try to (7:46) you know, encourage leadership and uh kind of have a crew to (7:51) to kind of bring this this next next generation of track track (7:56) along. Well, you brought that up. Uh you know, you talk about (8:00) you mentioned uh uh what you consider to be a a strong (8:04) freshman class and you know, Duke brought up the the (8:07) beginning of the humble roots of the of the indoor program and (8:10) the just those those kids you brought up then I’m like, wow, (8:13) those were those were all-timer type kids and it kind of takes (8:16) that commitment from maybe a group of kids.

Maybe this year’s (8:19) group of freshmen to be like, hey, let’s go win this thing (8:21) and uh or let’s go be on the podium. You know, it’s uh so (8:24) it’s that’s it’s it’s exciting times. Yep.

Yep. It is for sure. (8:28) It’s fun to be a part of it.

Star Valley Track and Field (8:32) Indoor Track and Field coach Ty Draney. Well, coach uh thank (8:35) you for your time. Anything we missed uh about this year’s (8:37) program you’d like to mention today? Uh I think we’re we’re (8:41) good for for now.

So yeah, we appreciate it. Alright, that’s (8:45) coach Draney and again, their first meet January 17th. (8:48) That’s going to be at Idaho State University.

It’s all part (8:51) of First Bank of Wyoming Sports Friday this morning on the SBI (8:53) Radio Network.