The Coaching Staff

Liam Clemons

"font-size: xx-small; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">Running is my life, well maybe not my whole life, but a significant part at least. I started running my freshman year in high school and almost 20 years later, I am still running. I am originally from Sacramento, CA and I am a NorCal guy, or so I am told. I graduated from Del Campo HS in 1996 where I was the Captain of our 1995 Div. 1 State Championship Cross Country Team. I attended American River College for two years where I did my best running in the 3000m Steeple Chase and 10K. At ARC I recorded times of 9:20 and 32:20 for those two events. I also captained the 2007 Cross Country team that won back to back BVL Conference titles.

In the Fall of 1999 I met my wife, Melissa, on the cross country team at Humboldt State University. I think that was pretty lucky considering that was the only season I competed for HSU due to injuries. I graduated from HSU in 2001 with a BA in Journalism and began working for a newspaper in Eureka, CA as a Photojournalist and Graphic Artisit.

Melissa and I got married in 2002 and soon after, relocated to Orange County in search of better employment opportunities. Melissa introduced me to her high school coach, Jack Recla, at the Sunset in the Park race in August of 2003. He said he needed a coach, I said I would like to try it, and I was hired on the spot.

I began coaching in September of 2003 and took on the training of all the freshmen who were not considered to be "talented." (Two of those kids later helped me win a State Title their senior year.) I stayed on for track and took over the boys and girls distance programs. We were not very good that year, but I saw potential and, I was hooked.

I was hired as the boys' Head Cross Country Coach in the summer of 2004 and I enrolled at CSU Fullerton to get my teaching credential in Biology of all subjects. I was hired at Trabuco as a Biology teacher in 2006.

2006 was a landmark year for me and the Mustangs. The boys Cross Country team won the CIF Div. 1 State Championship with a course record team time and finished 9th at the Nike Team Nationals. That year we also won league and county titles, all in record team times. I was named the California Coach of the Year, Southern Section Coach of the year, and Orange County Coach of the year for my role in that team's performance.

I am now the Boys' Head Coach for Track as well. I oversee all of the boys' and girls' distance runners in track and I manage the other event areas for the boys. I am lucky to have to have an excellent staff of coaches in both sports and I attribute a lot of our success to their contributions.

Family is a big focus in my life, both at home and at work. Melissa and I have two boys, Micah and Lucan, who were both born around my coaching schedule. We consider the running teams and all those involved in both programs our extended family. It is a wonderful thing to get to live and work with family every day.

Melissa Clemons

My husband, Liam, and I met at Humboldt State University on the cross country team. Running was more of a hobby to me then. Now it is more of a lifestyle. We moved back to southern California to be close to my family and to find better work opportunities. The first summer back, I called up my old high school coach and asked if he needed an assistant. We drove to a local race where he was with a few runners. I introduced him to Liam and he was immediately hired. Liam decided after his first year that he liked coaching so much that he would go back to school and get his teaching credential. Two years later, he began teaching at Trabuco Hills High School and he also took over the job as head boys cross country coach. My first son, Micah, was also born. After his birth, I quit my job with an environmental consulting company. In the summer, when Micah was about 6 months old, I began coaching cross country also at Trabuco Hills, as an assistant to the girls team. Micah came along to practice with me and I soon was nicknamed "Mama Clemons". Although the girls and boys programs are separate (different coaches, training, etc), both teams spend a lot of time together. And so, now the heart of our family is entwined with the sport of running. Compared to the average person, I was healthy. Very healthy. I never would have imagined that I was going to be diagnosed with cancer, especially at 33 years of age. About 5 months after Lucan was born, I attempted to start running more consistently again. I had a very difficult time with it. I thought the problem was from being exhausted from having two young kids and pushing a HEAVY double jogging stroller when I was already out of shape. But I began coughing... the coughing became progressively worse over the summer. I was told that I had allergies. Fall came, running did not become easier and the coughing became constant. I was then tested for allergies and all tests came back negative. So I was told that i had asthma. Every two to four weeks I went back to the doctor and got new and/or additional asthma medications trying to find what would work for me. In December I was finally sent downstairs for a chest xray. With both of the boys with me, my asthma doctor informed me that I needed to be admitted to the hospital immediately and could my husband come meet us there. I have finally finished 12 sessions of chemotherapy (over 5 months) and have now started radiation (4 weeks total). My family and friends have, of course, been so wonderful during this hard time. But my family would have been lost without the help of our extended running family. Athletes came to babysit; parents helped babysit cook, clean, run errands, etc. Micah is 4 and a half now and we also have another son, Lucan, who is 1 and a half. (Both births planned around cross country season!) I have been coaching 4 years now. The freshman girls who I first started with just graduated. I feel blessed to have the opportunity to positively influence the lives of so many young women and also for all the love and support that my family has received in return! I have decided that I would like to study nutrition now, as I am beginning to learn that health is tied 100% to nutrition, not just fitness. I hope to share my new found knowledge with loved ones and of course, tie it in with coaching!