Jonathan Gears
The Paw Print
I stepped off the bus from Denver into Alamosa and had no idea where I was; it was my first time being in Colorado let alone Alamosa. As I walked down the dark cold streets I looked up at the street signs to try and figure out which way campus was. Than to my surprise I looked up at a street sign and read Vigil Way. Although not knowing where I was, I felt a sense of familiarity.
Instantly I thought this street was named after the legendary Coach Joe Vigil. Many people think of Coach Joe Vigil and think of all the national champions and Olympians that he has coached. However, when I think of coach Vigil I understand him as much more. A man who’s coaching methods also led to a successful life. Coach Vigil was the reason I knew about Adams State and the reason why I (like many runners from around the world) was coming to Adams State.
What made Coach Vigil such an impactful person in so many peoples’ lives is that he found a way to inspire, not just athletic achievement but moral achievement. This creates equilibrium for contentedness and happiness. As I turn onto Vigil Way I begin to think about what it means to embrace the traditions that Coach Vigil has set for Adams State; what it means to embrace the “Vigil Way”.
Quotes such as, “I want each and every one of you to be an impact person for your team” come to my mind. This is step one of The Vigil Way or, as coach put it, “the challenge.” Coach knew that not everyone on his team could be a national champion, not everyone could even be able to make the varsity squad. However, “each and every one of you” means that everyone on the team could impact the team in some way.
The practical life application of this is to strive to be an impact person in your corner of life. Whether it’s a sport team, classroom, church, work, family, a group of friends, whatever. The Vigil Way challenges you to make a positive impact. To make those around you better, “everyone that you interact with; be challenged and become an impact person in their lives.”
Next is the journey. As coach would say, “the end is nothing, but the journey is everything.” What coach came to understand is that it’s what you learn and who you meet that makes the journey meaningful not the destination.
So The Vigil Way urges us all to never take anyone or any moment for granted, “Medals tarnish over time, certificates and diplomas fade, but the one enduring factor of life is friendship.” Years from now we will look back on our time at Adams State University and think about the people that made our journey an adventure. Every day look for a way to make memories with the people you love. Years from now, when all else fades, this is what you will have to look back on. “Friendship is the greatest thing in the world.”
Compassion encompasses the idea that once you reach your destination you give back. Coach Vigil displays this trait when we look at his career. He was National Coach of the year 14 different times and produced 425 All Americans and 87 individual national champions at Adams State University. After all this, Coach became the chairman of the USATF Coaching Education Committee, a title he would hold for eight years. This committee goes around the country equipping coaches with the education to make their teams as successful as possible. Coach Vigil understood that he could have never been the great coach he became without the help from other people throughout his journey. Because of this he committed eight years of his life to helping other coaches in their journeys to reach their potential. The question is what journeys have you completed, and how will you give back to those in the same place you were once in.
Strength, endurance, and courage are the propellers for the Vigil Way. In a race courage gets you to the starting line, endurance keeps you going and strength gets you through the tough patches. This is also true in every aspect of life. It takes courage to go after something with all your heart. Set big goals, dreams if you will. Go after these dreams with everything you have. Then develop endurance. Endurance is waking up every day and finding a way to press on toward your dream. Set small daily goals that lead up to your dream; this keeps the focus on the process of improving not just how far you have to go. Finally develop strength so that when you encounter setbacks in pursuit of your dream you can come back stronger than ever, or in Coach Vigils words “you have to be able to pick yourself up when things are going bad.” Strength is what it takes to pick yourself back up.
I get closer to where I can see campus now and I reflect on The Vigil Way. I decide that it is what has made Adams State University one of the best distance running universities in the world. I came to the understanding of what makes The Vigil Way so powerful. It is that it does not stop at just distance running, it goes much deeper.
The Vigil Way overflows into life and happiness. If we, Adams State University as a whole, can learn to apply The Vigil Way to our lives in the same way past distance runners have, than we can reach our full potential in any endeavor in our lives ultimately reaching our full potential as a university.
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