Practice Teams
We have four teams and three practice levels: KOM, Future Stars, North West, and NNJ. Wrestlers are assigned to each practice group based on their experience, skill-level, age, and, at times, other factors. Coaches of each practice group discuss the most appropriate practice team for each wrestler, and during the season, wrestlers may move to different practice teams as we seek the best learning environment for each one. Most practices will be held at WMC high school field house wrestling room.
NNJ team practices on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.
KOM, Futures Stars and North West teams practices Tuesday and Thursday
Most of our first year wrestlers (3rd grade and under) start on our KOM team, where a very slow pace, basic wrestling instruction, and, frankly, sometimes chaos, characterizes the one-hour practice. An effort is made to introduce boys to the sport in as enjoyable a manner as possible at this level. Most of the wrestlers on this practice team are 3rd grade or younger, and the majority are 2nd grade or younger.
Some of our first-year, older wrestlers (for example, a first-year 4th grader or athletic first year 3rd grader) may be assigned to the KOM team if coaches feel that, socially, that will be the most enjoyable place for them, assuming they are athletically and emotionally comfortable with the skill level of that team.
The Future Stars, North West and NNJ practice tone is more serious, longer, and includes more advanced instruction at a faster pace. Wrestlers are expected to exhibit a reasonable degree of maturity, respect for the coaching staff, and, most importantly, a developed attention span. Despite those expectations, the atmosphere at Future Stars, North West and NNJ is still designed to make the experience fun for the boys. Most of the wrestlers on these teams have 2 or more years of experience in the Long Valley Wrestling Program.
Wrestlers on these teams commit to those teams and prioritize their schedules accordingly. A commitment to compete in matches and attend all practices is expected from wrestlers on our competitive teams.
Tournaments
The Long Valley Wrestling program is unique in that our wrestlers’ practice teams do not always attend tournaments as a team. If you are interested in attending or getting more information about tournaments you will find a list on team snap or email lvwolfpackwrestling@gmail.com
Frequently Asked Questions
1) First Practice : The first practice in early November. KOM will practice @ WMC Fieldhouse. The Future Stars and North West teams will begin practice after the KOM from 6:30-8pm @ WMC Fieldhouse.
2)Practice Location : All practices will be held at West Morris Central High School wrestling room (enter via Four Bridges Road entrance; the wrestling room is in the Field house). On rare occasions, we may schedule practices at alternate locations for individual teams.
3) Practice Times :
KOM- Tuesday and Thrusday 5:30-6:30pm
Future Stars and Northwest- Tuesday and Thursday 6:30-8pm
NNJ- Monday 5:30-7:30, Tuesday and Thursday 6:30-8pm
The practice schedule is now available at teamsnap. Toward the end of October, we will email all the Parents (using email address provided on registration) in our program and assure everyone has the correct Team schedules in their TeamSnap calendar.
4) Practice Attire/Policies : Old t-shirts and shorts/sweatpants are the best clothing options for practice. Please make sure the wrestlers bring no jewelry to practice; glasses are also a good item to avoid if possible (if not, we can obviously work around it). Practices are rarely strenuous at the Clinic level, but more so for the more advanced wrestlers. Please bring water with you.
5) Weather : We’ll attempt to notify parents (via email/text message on TeamSnap) when practices/matches are canceled due to weather. Unfortunately, those notifications are typically sent in mid-afternoon of the same day of the cancellation. We thus encourage you to check your email before leaving for practice or matches on inclement weather days. Another good rule to note is that if West Morris Central HS is closed or an early dismissal initiated (because of the weather), our practice will be canceled that day.
6) Clinic Practice Format : We try to teach/practice for about 45 minutes of our one-hour practices, and spend the last 15 minutes behaving like children (not just the coaches). Although we do progress very slowly at the KOM level, and missing practices is by no means a mortal sin, wrestlers that attend practices at a high rate do progress more quickly, and those missing practices consistently do find themselves at a disadvantage as the year progresses.
7) Match Location and Times : Match times and locations vary depending on the team.
Traditionally:
- Future Stars will be on Saturday afternoons with some weekday
- KOM Jamboree is on Saturday mornings
- NNJ will be Friday night
- North West will be traditionally on Sunday and some weekday
- More schedule details will be provided as the season progresses, and our “final” schedule should be established by mid to late November.
8) Headgear : Before our first match – which will most like be in early December – wrestlers will need to obtain a headgear. The cost is approximately $25, and they can be purchased on-line, or at local sporting goods stores. If a color choice is available, we recommend dark or light blue to match our uniforms. We do have some headgear donated to the program from wrestlers no longer using them, so please check with the coaches before purchasing one. Clinic team wrestlers will not need headgear until early December, and we recommend holding off any purchase until you’re certain your wrestler is enjoying the sport and will be continuing through the season.
9) Wrestling Shoes : Wrestling shoes are completely optional, and definitely not required. We strongly recommend not purchasing wrestling shoes until you’re certain your child enjoys the sport. We will have an abundance of wrestling shoes available to use free of charge, as past wrestlers who’ve grown out of their wrestling shoes often donate them back to the program (which we strongly encourage). Although optional, they are definitely nice to have. The investment, however, can run between $25 and $75, and they rarely last more than one season for growing wrestlers.
10) Uniform : All wrestlers will be given a lycra wrestling “singlet” to be used for the season; we ask (more accurately, insist) that it be returned at the season’s conclusion. Each wrestler will also receive a team t-shirt and shorts to use during the season; the t-shirt and shorts are yours to keep. We encourage the boys to wear their t-shirt and shorts around town (when weather permits) to promote the program.
11) High School Matches : We strongly encourage all our young wrestlers to attend as many high school matches as possible throughout the year. First, many – if not all – of the West Morris Central high school wrestlers are former Long Valley WolfPack team members, and secondly, it gives young wrestlers an idea of how exciting the sport can be as they get older, encouraging them to continue. The West Morris Central home match schedule is posted on the WMCHS website.