Game version
Baton-pass partners: practice smooth baton exchanges at a walk, then a jog. The pair counts clean passes and swaps roles.
Exchange Zone Timing
Learn when to leave so the incoming runner catches you inside the zone.
By Coach Evan Waechtler Youth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTracker Updated October 30, 2026
Set up
Mark a 20-yard zone and a go-mark a few steps before it.
Core: Jog. Beat your own count of clean passes.
- Ages
- 11 and up
- Time
- 12 min
- Players
- You and a partner
- Space
- Gym or court
- Bring
- Baton, partner, cones
- Level · skill
- Developing · Starts & Relays
The steps
How it works
- Mark a 20-yard zone and a go-mark a few steps before it.
- The incoming runner jogs in; leave when they hit the go-mark.
- Pass the baton inside the zone on the call.
- Move the go-mark until the pass happens in the middle of the zone.
Coaching point
Go on the mark, do not look back.
Safety: Run in your own lane and look ahead, not back, once you have the baton.
Make it fun
Play it, don't drill it
Challenge
Pick a level: Less (walk), Core (jog), More (call “hand!” on the exchange). Beat your own count of clean passes.
Story
You are secret agents passing a message in a crowded street.
My best
Beat your own count
Beat your own count of clean passes. Only your own number counts: today against last time.
Practice makes progress
Print it now, or save it free
Free for families and teams
Save this drill to your child or team, free
Sign up and the free track and field week for this age opens in your child's planner, kept to healthy limits. A coach can send this drill to the whole team as homework, and parents see every session logged.
14 days free for a family, no card · Running a team is always free
Does your child's coach know about this?
An email from you to the coach, with the words ready. Nothing is tracked and nobody is rewarded.