Team Rules

• Practices are Mandatory: Daily team practice runs from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM. You are expected to be on time for every single team function, including daily training, team meetings, and any volunteer events. 

• The 24-Hour Practice Notice Rule: If you must miss a weekday practice due to an unavoidable academic obligation, medical conflict, or family commitment, you must provide at least 24 hours of written notice to both your specific Event Coach and Head Coach Abe. 

• The 48-Hour Meet Notice Rule: If you cannot attend a scheduled track meet, you must submit written notice at least 48 hours in advance to your Event Coach or Head Coach Abe so entries and relay quartets can be adjusted before MileSplit registration windows lock. 

• Emergencies: If an unexpected emergency prevents 48 hours' notice, you must contact a coach as soon as physically possible.

• Day-Before-Meet Rule: If you have an unexcused absence from practice the day before a scheduled track meet, you will not be permitted to compete in that meet.

• Consequences: Overall unexcused absences will have strict consequences, up to and including expulsion from the team.

  • The Practice Strike System:

  • 1st Unexcused Absence = Loss of entry in the upcoming track meet.

  • 2nd Unexcused Absence = Full 1-meet team suspension.

  • 3rd Unexcused Absence = Suspension from all team activities pending an administrative investigation by the coaching staff and athletic director.

• Unexcused Meet Absence (No-Show): Missing a scheduled track meet without prior written notification results in an immediate suspension from all team activities pending an administrative investigation by the coaching staff and athletic director. 

• Student-Athletes First: To maintain the privilege of competing, academics take precedence over athletics. You must satisfy all local social and academic requirements.

• NCHSAA & CHCCS Standards: You must meet all official NCHSAA and school district academic eligibility guidelines, including passing a minimum of 3 out of 4 or 5 out of 6 courses and maintaining the required prior-semester attendance rate. If you require after-school academic tutoring, you must notify your coach beforehand and provide a teacher pass upon arriving at the track.

• DragonFly Clearance: Every athlete must be 100% cleared in DragonFly with an updated physical examination and completed mandatory concussion education before stepping onto the track or into the weight room.

• Fueling & Hydration: Anaerobic speed and power training demand proper physiological preparation. Athletes must consume 80 to 120 ounces of water daily (beginning the evening prior to training) and must eat lunch daily. Training on an empty stomach is not what we want.

• Stay at the Meet: Track meets are long, but team unity is vital. All athletes are expected to stay until the conclusion of the entire meet to support their teammates in the final relays, unless checked out face-to-face by a parent with a coach beforehand.

• The Travel Bus: If you are late for the team bus, the bus will leave without you in order to ensure the rest of the team arrives at the competition on time.

• Ambassadors of CHHS: You shall conduct yourself as a good citizen of Chapel Hill High School at all competitions, knowing you represent your team on and off the track.

• Travel Roster Caps (The 55-Athlete Limit): While our daily practice environment operates with a no-cut philosophy, travel rosters for premier indoor invitationals are strictly limited by host facility regulations. For example, the Spartan Classic at JDL Fast Track enforces a hard cap of 35 total athletes per gender per team and a maximum of 4 entries per event. Bus seats and varsity uniforms are earned through competitive marks at local Polar Bear meets, daily practice attendance, and coachability. Seniority does not guarantee travel selection. 

• Multi-Sport Postseason Commitment: Our indoor championship season concludes on Wednesday, February 10 at JDL Fast Track. Any dual-sport athlete who accepts a varsity travel relay assignment (e.g., 4 x 200m, 4 x 400m) or earns an individual qualifying mark must commit to competing through the February 10 State Championship before transitioning to high school spring sport tryouts. 

• Track Safety ("Head on a Swivel"): We share our stadium and facility with multiple sports programs. Athletes must look both ways before crossing any lane or jumping runway and must NEVER cross in front of an active runner or jumper.

• Lane Discipline:

  • Lanes 1 and 2 are strictly reserved for active workouts.

  • The "TRACK!" Command: If an approaching runner or coach shouts "TRACK!", immediately clear the lane to the outside.

• Absolute Headphone Ban: Wearing earbuds or headphones during team instruction, warm-ups, or active training on the track or runways is a severe safety hazard and is strictly prohibited.

• Cold-Weather Protocols & Footwear: When temperatures fall below 50 degrees, long running tights/pants and long-sleeve technical layers are mandatory. Sprint spikes are prohibited during general warm-ups and extensive recovery tempo days to protect against shin splints and soft-tissue injuries.

• Mutual Respect & Sportsmanship: Treat teammates, coaches, officials, and opponents with absolute respect at all times. Hazing in any form, cyberbullying, physical aggression, or vulgarity is completely prohibited.

• Substance Policy: All student-athletes must adhere strictly to the CHCCS district drug, tobacco, alcohol, and vape policies. Violations result in immediate removal.

• Daily Equipment Maintenance: You are personally responsible for the daily care, transport, and proper storage of all school-issued equipment you handle (including starting blocks, batons, hurdles, shot put implements, pole vault poles, jumping mats, and crossbars). 

• Replacement Costs: If any school-issued equipment or uniforms are lost or intentionally damaged, you may be held financially responsible for the full cost of replacement.

If an athlete has a conflict with either a teammate or a coach during the season, the official Chapel Hill High School protocol is to resolve the matter by following this exact step-by-step chain of command: 

The 24-Hour Cooling-Off Rule: Coaches will not discuss event entries, relay lineups, or competitive outcomes during or immediately following a track meet. Athletes and parents must observe a mandatory 24-hour waiting period before initiating Step B or Step C. 

1. Step A (The Athlete First): Speak directly to your specific event area coach.

2. Step B (Head Coach): Bring any unresolved issues directly to Head Coach Abe Faison.

3. Step C (Parents): Discuss the matter with your parents. (Note: Students should thoroughly inform their parents before moving past the team level, but only after the coaching staff has had a fair chance to resolve the issue directly.)

4. Step D (Athletic Director): Contact Athletic Director Matthew Dixon.

5. Step E (Administration): Bring the matter directly to the CHHS school administration (Principal or Vice Principal).

6. Step F (District Support): Enlist the help of Scarlett Steinert at the Lincoln Center.

Participation on the Chapel Hill High School Track & Field team is a varsity privilege. The coaching staff and school administration maintain a zero-tolerance policy for behaviors that compromise team safety, competitive integrity, or school board policy.

Committing any of the following critical offenses will bypass standard progressive warnings and will result in immediate suspension or permanent dismissal from the program, alongside forfeiture of all varsity letters and postseason honors:

1. Hazing, Bullying, or Harassment: Any physical, verbal, psychological, or digital hazing, initiation rituals, targeted intimidation, cyberbullying, or harassment of teammates, managers, coaches, officials, or opponents.

2. Gross Insubordination: Defiant refusal to follow coaching instructions, profane or abusive language, or aggressive disrespect directed toward coaches, teammates, meet officials, bus drivers, or school personnel.

3. Physical Violence & Endangerment: Any fighting, physical altercation, or threat of harm at practice, meets, school facilities, or on team transportation.

4. Unauthorized Meet Abandonment: Departing a track meet facility without direct, face-to-face checkout from a coach alongside your own legal parent or guardian. This will resulting in immediate suspension pending formal investigation.

5. Unexcused Meet Absence (No-Show): Failing to report to a scheduled track meet without approved advance notice, resulting in immediate suspension pending formal investigation.

6. Chronic Unexcused Practice Absences: Accumulating three unexcused absences from daily team training sessions, will result in immediate suspension pending formal investigation.

7. Substance & Alcohol Policy Violations: Use, possession, purchase, or distribution of alcohol, illegal substances, unauthorized prescription drugs, nicotine products, vapes, or e-cigarettes at any team activity, bus trip, or athletic venue.

8. Willful Safety Non-Compliance: Deliberately ignoring runway, circle, or track safety protocols, throwing implements into unsupervised sectors, jumping without an event coach present, or using unauthorized electronics during live workouts.

9. Academic Ineligibility: Failing to satisfy mandatory NCHSAA and CHCCS classroom academic progress and attendance standards.