Swampscott resident Lee Eddy’s track and field coaching career dates back to 1977. After finishing his career running track at Boston University, Eddy founded the women’s track and cross country teams at his alma mater.

Eddy coached at BU for 25 years before switching over to high school, coaching at Brookline High School, where he would stay for another two decades.

This year, Eddy has joined the staff at Swampscott High School.

“I can walk to the track from my house,” said Eddy. “No more two hour commute to coach.”

When Eddy saw the listing for the open position in his hometown, he quickly applied.

Eddy said helping high school student athletes take the next step forward in their running careers keeps him returning to the track.

“I get so much satisfaction at this level from seeing the kids grow, develop and learn about the sport and themselves,” said Eddy.

Eddy’s first six weeks in his new, but familiar, role have been a whirlwind, he said.

“It’s a whole new ballgame with the Big Blue,” said Eddy. “A lot of it for me right now is a learning process. I’m seeing how things are working, doing whatever I can to help make things go smoothly and coming forward with ideas.”

Meets and league structure are different from conference to conference in high school track, so Eddy has been getting used to how track and field is run in the Northeast Conference.

“It’s really different,” said Eddy. “I’ve been learning the kids and adapting. It wasn’t going to get done in a week, it’s going to take the whole season for me to get used to it.”

One key aspect of Eddy’s coaching approach is stressing that athletes must fully commit to track and field if they want to succeed. This includes putting forth full effort every practice, getting enough sleep and eating the right foods.

“My thing with the kids is I hope they can look back on this and think it was a good time where they learned a lot and grew from doing track,” said Eddy.

Eddy also enjoys working with student athletes who may not be certain if the sport is for them.

“I come home from practice with a big smile on my face,” said Eddy. “I’m usually happy with how things went, and I hope it’s the same for the kids.”