KEPLER: THE LEGEND CONTINUES
Webster City native guides Utah women to Drake Relays team title
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Each year, it seems as if the legend of Kyle Kepler grows.
He was a standout at Webster City High School and at the University of Northern Iowa, capturing state titles and conference championships along the way. Now, in his 18th season as the head coach of the Utah women's cross country and track and field programs, Kepler attained another feather in his cap of accolades and accomplishments.
In his latest visit to the Blue Oval of Drake Stadium, which took place at the 113th annual Drake Relays last weekend in Des Moines, Kepler guided the Women of Utah to the program's first Relay Cup.
Accumulating 36 points thanks to stellar performances in the Distance Medley Relay, Sprint Medley Relay and Simon Plourde's 1,500-meter race, Utah ran away -- literally -- from the likes of Minnesota, North Dakota State, Illinois State and his alma mater, UNI.
"It's indicative of the work that they do and the effort that they put in as a group," Kepler said, praising his team. "It's really about our women and how hard they work."
All together, the Women of Utah put up points in the 4×100-meter relay, 4×400-meter relay, 4×800-meter relay, the SMR and in the DMR.
"We scored in all of the scoring relays, which was a really cool stat," Kepler said.
According to the veteran head coach, college meets have a different flavor compared to the typical high school competition.
"In college track, there's hardly any scoring except for conference meets," said Kepler. "So, to have something like Drake to be available at this time of year before the conference meet and the national meet is big. You're not racing for time, you're racing to beat people. You're racing to beat the time from the other heat. That is what determines success."
Following the trophy presentation, Kepler and the Women of Utah had to race over to the Des Moines International Airport to catch their 5:59 p.m. flight back to Salt Lake City. Thanks to a great friendship with Drake Relays Director, Blake Bolton, everything went smoothly and even got into the national broadcast window.
"That was interesting, and yeah, we were scrambling out of there," Kepler said, recalling the whirlwind of post-meet activity. "They had to mail us the trophy, because there was no way that we could get it onto the plane."
Just as Kepler was about to leave the Blue Oval, he received a call from Bolton, asking him to visit with the media for quotes.
"I had to park the car half illegally, go through the old fieldhouse and down through the tunnel where we used to come into the stadium," Kepler said. "They don't let anybody come through that tunnel anymore."
After running across the field and meeting with the press, Kepler ran back across the field -- where fans shouted praises in a proverbial encore.
"It was about an hour and 15 minutes of 'I don't know what happened,'" Kepler said. "Our girls had a lot of fun, and they enjoyed it. There were a handful out of the 20 who had never been there before. They understood what the moment went."
"Everyone was impressed and understood why we come back to Drake every year," Kepler added.
At this moment in time, the Women of Utah are resting and training, before gearing up for the Pac-12 Outdoor Track and Field Championships, scheduled for May 12, May 13 and May 14 at Hilmer Lodge Stadium in Walnut, California.
Later on this month, Utah will take part in the NCAA West Preliminary in Sacramento and take aim at sending several representatives to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, set for next month in Austin, Texas.
So, what's his advice to up and coming student-athletes who want to compete at the collegiate level?
"You have to keep working hard every day," Kepler said. "Enjoy it, and have a purpose and passion. You have to keep grinding away. As long as you love it, just keep doing it -- regardless of the sport or the activity. It's with anything in life."
"Find ways to stay involved," Kepler continued. "I grew up in Fuller Hall. You can be from a place like Webster City, get out and do big things. But it doesn't mean that you need to leave, either. It's all about enjoying it, loving to do it and not feeling like you're going to work and helping people -- that kind of thing."