Today we’d like to introduce you to Byron Ragsdale
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
We started Run-em-Down Track and Field 3 years ago with 2 atheletes. My son Grayson an one of his friends. At that time, we never imagined it growing to where it is today. I was really just training my son an his friend to sprint. But as the season moved forward and we started competing in meets, more and more kids wanted to join us. By the second meet that year we had 6 atheletes that performed really well an more people began taking notice. We ended that season with 14 atheletes. We became a real team overnight basically. The following season (year 2), we had a total of 26 kids ages 6-18. Year 2 was a breakout year for us. 70% of our team qualified for AAU Junior Olympics. Of that 70%, 2 of our atheletes gained ALL American honors. Our team had gained so much notoriety around the city we were featured on Sesame Street in our very own special called “Cookie Monster Bake Sale” which can be viewedon MAX. Sesame Street ended up sponsoring our uniforms that season for participating in the show. We continued our success during the indoor track and Field season when 100% of our atheletes qualified for indoor nationals. Fast forward to the start of this season. We are getting into the start of our 3rd season now. We have a total of 57 atheletes. We are a fully functioning 501c3 Non-profit organization now to help us fund the growth of our team. We have 3 Track meets under our belts as of today and 3 more to go. Expectations are high as usual. And our kids are performing well because they train very hard.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There has been a few ups and downs id say. More ups than downs. The major struggle we face is funding. The majority of our atheletes are from high poverty inner city areas. So, funding is typically scarce, which is why we depend on donations and sponsor support to help offset the cost to participate. There’s always a curve ball thrown from somewhere. But funding could also alleviate those issues. We are constantly looking for community support and outside donors to help us out. 350$ scholarships 1 athelete for an entire season (march-august). That 350$ includes: (uniform, back pack, socks, training 2hrs a day 4 days per week for 6mo, 4track meet entries, and AAU credentials and insurance. Everuthing else, my wife and I will typically pay for out of our own pocket. We have several kids in need a assistance and we have had to tell atleast 7 that we don’t have any extra funding to allow them to participate. In the future I would like to be in a position to be able scholarship all the kids that want to participate.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My name is Byron Ragsdale, my atheletes call me Coach B. I’m 37yo and I’ve been in the sport for over half my life. I competing in high school and College primarily in sprints. I’ve ran everything under 800m competitively. 100m,200m, 300m hurdles,400m, 400m hurdles, I completed at Tennessee State University in Nashville, TN.
What I love most about Coaching track and Field is the ability to give my kids a level of knowledge that I gained over my college career while they are young. This gives them the advantage over there completion, an I also prepares them for a d1 college program. My program does college level training no mater the atheletes age. I had a wake up call when I got to college while trying to adjust to that level. I did eventually make the adjustment and I flourished. So essentially, I figure teach the kids how it’s going to be so that they are ready when they get there. I believe this is what sets our team apart from others in our city. We don’t water any of our practices down. We go hard. 5yo do the same training as 18yo.
I’m most proud of the success our atheletes experience and the joy that it brings them. I love sitting back and watching our atheletes shine after weeks and weeks of hard work and training.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I’m not sure, I like to think I’m pretty transparent. But, I could say Music. I love music. All genres. I can play multiple instruments and I’ve taught myself to play several instruments including the drums which I play at church on Sundays for the choir.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Werunemdown.org
- Instagram: @Runemdowntrackandfield
- Youtube: 2_SHADES_OF_GRAY
