<p>Hello,</p>
<p>I will be attending Virginia Tech next fall and am interested in walking on the school's track team. My times are on par with their recruits and are even better than some of their current runners. I contacted the coach and he told me to send him my final times once my high school season is over and he would be able to give me a better idea of what options I had. So heres my question. How much will being a student athlete change the college experience? I know track is a little less time consuming as say football and basketball are, but will I still be able to pursue other traditional college things like joining a frat? Typically, how many hours a day do athletes spend practicing?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance</p>
<p>D1 track s a big time commitment. NCAA rules allow a coach to work you 20 hours per week during season (which is indoor and outdoor), max 4 hours per day. Training room time, fundraising, travel to and from the facility, etc, is not counted in that 20. So figure an average of around 3-3.5 hours per day during season, with one day off.
Every D1 coach I’ve ever known will use all time the NCAA allows.</p>
<p>So, my son is a DI Track and Field athlete in the ACC. During the season, practice is typically 3 hours per day, 6 days per week. Some of the meets can require a travel day, and several days at the site. Doing activities other than the sport can be difficult, but manageable. He does miss some school events every now and then, but finds the Track experience rewarding. Note there are other commitments as well: he will be on campus about a month into summer vacation due to meet commitments and NCAA regionals, and has a set workout commitments during summer as well. There are some positives, with a big one being early class registration ;). Will be doing an interview with him soon on Recruiticus to give an even better overview and feel for the commitment. Good luck!!</p>