Coach Matthew Pence is an important member of the Armijo faculty. Students and staff alike have benefited from his leadership. Coach Pence is in charge of both the Cross Country team in the fall and the Track team in the spring. He was able to share some information about his experience in a brief interview.

Q: How long have you been coaching at Armijo? Where and what have you coached before? What else do you do for work?
A: I have been coaching at Armijo since the 2009-2010 school year, meaning this will be my 11 th year as a coach. I am a teacher at Armijo so I can be the coach of the Cross Country and Track teams.

Q: In the past, what have you done for work?
A: Teaching is the only job that I have had.

Q: Why did you become a coach?
A: I became a coach to try and give the athletes of Armijo a better experience than what I had as an Armijo athlete. I wanted them to have the opportunities that I never had and take them to the meets I could have only dreamed of going to.

Q: What are your hobbies? What else do you do for fun?
A: When I am not coaching I try to play Magic: The Gathering, a collectable card game. I have traveled for a couple of tournaments and done fairly well recently but don’t have as much time for that once I am in season for my sports.

Q: What advice would you give to students considering going into coaching?
A: It is great to know the perfect workout to give your athletes but it doesn’t matter if you don’t have a good relationship with your team and make it a place people want to be. Start by changing the culture to what you want it to be and then you can focus on the perfect training plan.

Q: If you could change one thing about Armijo (students, facilities, staff, etc.), what would it be and why?
A: I am not personally a fan of our new paint scheme. I liked the blue and white that we had before hand.

Q: Anything else you would like to say?
A: If you are thinking about doing a sport, just get yourself out there and try it. Don’t be afraid of what it might entail. The coaches here at Armijo are all good people and will do their best to help you succeed. You just have to take that first step and show up to practice.