Athlete supports track project

As a member of the Broncos Track & Field team, I am a firm believer in Project 56’s all-weather track project. I am certain that improving our track & field facilities will benefit the Bronco athletics program for years to come. Our community, our school and our athletes will all profit greatly from building an all-weather track through the efforts of Project 56. Wouldn’t it be exciting to be able to hold our own invitational in our own town, as opposed to 45-minutes away in Medical Lake? Don’t you, as a part of this community, want to see our athletes set school records right outside of their own school?

Last Saturday was the 7th annual Undeberg Invitational track meet. Presently, this track meet is put on by the Broncos and yet we don’t hold it in Ritzville. It is held all the way in Medical Lake. Why not hold it in Ritzville? It’s because the track in Medical Lake is by far superior to ours, and it is simply because it is an all-weather track.

An all-weather track is exactly what it says it is. When it rains, the water runs off, it doesn’t make mud that sticks to your feet and slows you down. When the wind blows, you don’t get dirt in your eyes. If we had an all-weather track here in Ritzville, we could host the Undeberg Invitational here in our town.

This would benefit more than just our athletes. This past year there were 530 entrants that competed in the Undeberg Invitational.

If you were to include coaching staff, parents and spectators, we would have over 700 people coming into our town. This gives the community an excellent opportunity. We would have 700 extra people visiting our restaurants, our stores and our downtown area.

Our track facilities have not been used for an invitational in several years. As far as I am concerned it is time for our track to make a long awaited reunion with the athletic community. The athletes and coaches we have now, and the athletes and coaches we will have in years to come, should have the opportunity to set new school records on our own track. The Broncos Track & Field program needs a chance to raise the bar and to set new standards for Bronco and Bi-County athletes.

None of this can be done without the assistance of our community. Project 56 needs our support, in order for their goals to be accomplished and for our community to reap the benefits of their achievements. With help from the citizens of Ritzville, Project 56 can turn its steady progress into leaps and bounds.

Please consider donating your time to helping Project 56 accomplish its goals by contributing to their fundraisers. I feel that this is a worthy cause for the benefit of the community and the Bronco athletes. I hope that after reading this you feel the same.

Tyler O’Brien, Ritzville