Gregg keeps cross country running

PHOTO: Bill Gregg, DHS XC and track coach.

By Paige Tracy

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

When he was in high school, coach Bill Gregg was a multi-sport athlete on the ski team, swim team, cross country and distance running team. 

“I had a swim coach and a cross country and track and field coach (in high school) who both influenced me greatly and pointed me in that direction (of a career in coaching),” Gregg said.

Now, he continues to inspire athletes at Davis High as the cross country and long distance running coach. 

He began coaching with a summer swim program in the California town of Quincy for several summers, starting in 1978. After moving to Davis, from 1983 to 1989, he worked as an assistant coach at UC Davis for cross country and track and field. 

“My favorite thing, or the thing I was most interested in was distance running,” Gregg said. “And to have an opportunity to coach in that realm was what I really wanted.”

Gregg has been coaching long distance running at DHS since 1990. He has also coached the DHS ski team. 

As a distance running coach, he creates the training programs or workouts that athletes do, organizes meets, travel plans and attendance rosters, as well as making sure all members of the team have a strong support network. 

“We’re doing everything we can to help the athletes be successful and for everyone on the team to have a great experience,” Gregg said. 

In order for this to happen, he believes that there should be “a two-way street of trust” between the coach and athletes. “The athletes can be honest and not operate worrying about what the coach is going to think,” Gregg said. 

He defines success as improving as an individual, or everyone competing against themselves in order to improve. Therefore it is important to spend equal amounts of time working with everyone on the team regardless of skill level.

“Coaching high school athletes is not just about fast times,” said Spencer Elliot, head coach for track and field at DHS. “(Gregg) cares genuinely about his runners and always coaches with their best interests in mind.”

Gregg also believes high school athletics can be used to teach life lessons and to help people stay fit through college and adulthood. 

His favorite part of coaching is not only mentoring and teaching, but also hanging out during practices. “Not many people get to just go hang out and goof around with high school kids every day,” Gregg said.

Throughout his years of coaching he has seen many runners’ accomplishments. “Over the years, he’s had numerous league, section and even state championships.” Elliot said. “Even coaches in other event areas rely on (Gregg) for his sage wisdom.”

In 2015 and 2016, the women’s cross country team placed second in the United States. “Those girls were amazing but they also believed in each other and were a team in the best way imaginable,” Gregg said. “I am a strong believer in the concept that teams that are super together can accomplish things that the stats don’t support.”

Even having been a coach for many years, “I continue to be a student of our sport,” Gregg said. He goes to and speaks at coaching clinics that give presentations about physiology of training/running and team building possibilities. 

“I think you always have to say no, we’re not perfect right now. So if we acknowledge we’re not perfect how do we get better?” Gregg said.