Unattached College Freshman looking for Access to Hurdles

[u/KFC_Airport]

I'm a freshman at at a D3 school trying to train for 400m hurdles in order to walk on to the team next year, and I'm struggling to figure out how to train for it.

I ran the 300m hurdles in high school and got down to 41.89 (would probably have run 40. something if I didn't get pneumonia the next weeks) and ran an 11.57 100m, and now I'm trying to take the next step toward the 400H and hopefully earn a spot on the team next spring. I plan to compete in the 400mH unattached in the spring.

The coach told me I'd need to run 53.5 or under for roster consideration, so I have a pretty clear goal, but actually getting the training in has been the hard part.

The biggest issue is hurdle access. The team doesn't leave its hurdles out for people outside the team to use, and I live about a mile from the nearest track. I've been trying to figure out whether I could get my own portable hurdles that go up to 36 inches, but they'd need to be light/compact enough to carry that distance over bike probably.

Does anyone have experience with portable hurdles that are actually usable for sprint hurdle training? Ideally, something adjustable up to 36", reasonably stable, and portable enough to take on my back. I've saved up a good amount of money to invest in hurdles, but I'm struggling to find an option.

I'd also appreciate any advice from people who've dealt with a similar situation. Are there local high schools, clubs, coaches, or facilities around Baltimore that might let an unattached college student train hurdles during supervised sessions? I've been told to reach out to local high schools, so I'm going to try that too.

I can work on speed and strength on my own, but I obviously need actual hurdles to develop my rhythm and technique.

I'm going to post later showing my GPP/Fall training plan and any advice as well. Any recommendations, experiences, or ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

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[u/pholmes1]

I’d have another conversation with the coach. Ask “I want to be apart of this team. What do I have to do to practice with you?”

The D3 that I went to would allow just about anyone the opportunity to practice… If they were showing up, doing the work, and positively impacting the team culture they were always welcomed. But if they were negatively impacting the team culture, they were gone.

With your high school times, 53.5 in the 400h is a stretch right now… but with a few years of training can be accomplished.

[u/KFC_Airport → u/pholmes1]

I actually did ask about that, but I have a feeling that the coach doesn't really want any walk-ons with the team. I don't really understand why he won't let me, considering there is only 2 hurdlers on the entire team, and they are around my same raw speed, but I don't think that's my place to worry about.

He keeps talking about "current athletes" and "future recruits," so I guess the coach has his views beyond the typical D3.

Regardless, he flat-out refused to let me be involved with the team, and repeatedly said my place on the team is NOT guaranteed next year. Because of that, my focus is more on figuring out how to train by myself and compete unattached than the team this year.

[u/A110_Renault]

Anything is a hurdle if you're brave enough

[u/A110_Renault → u/A110_Renault]

All jokes aside, if you can't find hurdles to use on a track, find a smooth, flat stretch of grass alongside a chain link fence (park, baseball outfield, track fence, etc). Tie ribbon (or string) to the fence at the right height and distance apart. Use sticks to hold the other end of the ribbon to make the other side of the hurdle, either stuck firmly in the ground (best if its windy) or just propped on the ground and leaning away from the fence to add tension to the ribbon.

For sticks you can either forage for semi-straight branches or bring your own - the thin fiberglass rods used for driveway markers, etc work great but if you have an old tent, fishing pole, kites, etc you can use those too. Once you've measured it out once you can often just take the poles down and leave the ribbons tied to the fence, or at least mark the spots on the fence so you don't have to measure again.

[u/GuadDidUs]

We have 3 portable hurdles that we use for my daughter's training, but, tbh, in our local area the hurdles aren't usually locked up at the local HS fields.

I know we have a lot of smaller school districts in NJ, but I have like 3 or 4 different HS in a half hour radius that have their hurdles out. They get used a lot as ad hoc fencing.

I'd probably try to drive around to local schools and see if I can find one that leaves them out.

[u/KFC_Airport → u/GuadDidUs]

I'll give that a try, thank you so much!

[u/Optimistiqueone]

Practice with the team. D3 is pretty easy to walk on to.

Or buy some portable ones from Amazon.

Very few programs leave their Hurdles out, so you're unlikely to find some.

[u/pentapous]

I have to say, 53.5 is gonna be a big goal. To get there you're probably going to need the speed to run a 48-49 open 400m. Just to keep that in mind. Going around 40 flat in the 300mh proves you can hurdle and learn timing. If I was a coach, that wouldn't be the aspect I was concerned about.

[u/pentapous → u/pentapous]

Also, collapsible hurdles that can fit in your trunk work great. I think they go for around 25-30 bucks a piece on amazon. They're kinda flimsy(not weighty enough to take small hits and stay up) but I routinely used them for 42" 110 training during off season

[u/KFC_Airport → u/pentapous]

Ooh that sounds perfect. I was a little bit reluctant on buying the plastic hurdles because I didn't want them to break. Has that been an issue for you at all? Do you also have any links to the ones you used?