FEATURE Announcing Keeps Retired Coach Don Jones In The Game

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SAN DIEGO -- A lot of track and cross country coaches have to look around to keep themselves busy after retiring. For Rancho Bernardo's Don Jones, it just gave him more time to spend as an announcer.

Jones got the bug big time when he was calling the 1990 San Diego Section championship meet which came down to the final event, the 4x400 relay, where section 400-meter record-holder Allison Dring of Mt. Carmel squared off against versatile 300-meter hurdle specialist Erin Blunt of San Pasqual.

Blunt split a 54.2 to hold off Dring but it was such a good race, he knew he was hooked.

Now if you attend any major meet in San Diego or beyond, to places like the Arcadia Invitational, chances are you'll hear Don Jones giving you quality background as well as race information once the event starts.

He'll even be on the microphone at the Bronco Invitational this Saturday (March 11), which last year was renamed the Don Jones Bronco Invitational.

When Jones revealed his retirement in 2019, it was a bit of a surprise. Why would someone with as successful a record as he had give it up?

In 40 years, the last 29 at Rancho Bernardo after stints at Mission Bay, Monte Vista and Poway, his teams won 39 league titles, 15 section Division I crowns, 11 section Division I runners-up places while compiling an eye-popping 434-94-5 dual meet record.

That 82.2 percent dual meet won-loss accomplishment is special.

"A lot of coaches don't think the dual meets are important, they only focus on invitationals, but not me," said Jones, 66. "When I first started, I used what I learned from coaches like Ron Vavra and Joe Brooks.

"When I first got to RB, we had a department meeting and we were asked who would like one of the three PE units. (Pole vault guru) Tom Martin and I immediately volunteered track. That way, we started introducing track to potential athletes in the fall. I remember walking around the campus at lunch getting familiar with the kids and asking them who the fastest sprinter they knew was. Then I'd go invite that kid out for track.

"I made sure the teachers all knew me and they'd tell me about kids who were bragging about how fast they could run. That was how we recruited. We had people ask about coming to RB and we lost kids to other programs, but we never recruited anyone.

"During those fall programs we'd see kids getting really excited about track and they'd be out in the spring."

As you might suspect, that's something he misses.

"The relationships with the kids and the coaches, that's what I miss," said Jones. "Track and cross country are sports where you can see a kid get better week to week, from the start of the season to the end, from their freshman year until they're seniors. I believe we had the best assistant coaches in the section, the state.

"Of course, I still get to see athletes improve as an announcer, but it's different."

Very.

Jones said the announcer who impressed him the most was the late Doug Speck, who was also the head coach at Arcadia High.

"You'd go to a meet and hear his deep voice and you had to be impressed," said Jones. "He had a rhythm and he'd give you information like 'and that guy rushed for 1,800 yards in football.' Or 'and she's the ASB president.'

"I learned from him you can't go crazy over every race. Every meet, especially ones like Arcadia, has some very big races."

Yet, it was a girls 3200 race in 2014 that he remembers most because of the result.

"(Simi Valley's) Sarah Baxter was almost unbeatable and she was a big favorite in the Mt. Carmel Invitational," recalled Jones, who announced from the field. "But a newcomer, (Irvine Northwood's) Bethan Knights, ran with her step for step all eight laps.

"Neither could shake the other and they were side by side the final 100 yards. After they crossed the finish line together the officials studied the result. They called in others to double check and in the end they were given the exact same time-10:07.52. Who ever heard of a dead heat to a thousandth of a second in a 3200?"

 Jones, himself, got pretty excited as he gave the results and the big crowd cheered loudly for both runners. 

He has some pretty basic standards on the mike.

"One of the keys for all announcers in any sport is to know when not to talk," said Jones. "For instance, during the distance races I don't want to tell the leader who is coming up but you have to tell the crowd when someone is closing. I also work very hard not to be partial toward RB runners even though I know their names.

"Some announcers get excited about every race, but everyone knows the big ones. I like to provide information I think people want to know."

Jones said he learned very quickly not to announce who he thinks won a race.

"I just say a race is close and let the cameras decide," said Jones who admits sometimes the view he has of the finish line isn't the best. He's also careful not to talk while the runners are in the starting blocks.

The list of memorable performances witnessed by Jones as a spectator and announcer, indoors and out, just goes on and on. Not just high school, but college and world class events.

For example, he has been a major part of the Arcadia Invitational boys 3200-meter races which annually produce dozens of sub-9 minute times that are often never matched later in the season.

He can appreciate those quality performances and likes nothing more than to share that excitement with fellow track fans.

Maybe that's what made him a winning coach and what makes him a first-rate announcer.

Or able to name drop a little.

"I remember being under the stands at the San Diego Indoor Games when I was a half-miler at Grossmont College (running for legendary coach Bob Larsen)," said Jones. "I'm warming up, but it was very crowded and I bumped into (NBA great) Wilt Chamberlain, a huge track fan.

"I'm stretching and there was Steve Prefontaine. He asked me my event and told me, 'make sure you get out (fast).' You couldn't hear yourself think because of the noise but I was awestruck."

Jones loves to share experiences and highlights.

"That's why I liked coaching," said Jones. "You could get a JV kid who had never run track go out and get a PR and suddenly he was on top of the world. You can't beat that."

He brings that enthusiasm and wealth of knowledge to the announcers' booth where he can pass it on to the crowd.

Announcing - it's almost as much fun as coaching.