Mike Kautz was born and raised in Muscatine, Iowa and graduated from Muscatine High School in 1954. He went on to Coe College, graduating in 1958 with a BA in Biology and a minor in Physical Education and coaching. After a brief stint in the army, he taught science and coached girls’ basketball at Nichols High School until it closed. He accepted a job at Lone Tree where he taught science until his retirement in 1997, and at various times coached baseball, softball, girls’ basketball and girls’ track.
Mike was selected for the IATC Hall of Fame by our committee on June 6, 2015. We lost Mike just 11 days later.
It is for Mike’s success in track and field that we honor him today. He was the head girls’ track and field coach at Lone Tree High School for 44 years, and his teams put together, some very impressive stats.
In 268 regular season meets, his teams won 60 championships and were 2nd 56 times.
His teams finished in the top 3 in 39 conference championships, and he was named conference Coach of the Year 4 times.
His teams finished in the top five 20 times in 44 district meets.
Lone Tree qualified one or more events to the state meet, 35 of the 44 years he coached, including at least one qualifying event each of the last 22 years. The total number of state qualifying events during his tenure was 107.
Of those qualifiers, 28 were place winners, another 8 won state titles and another 8 were runners up.
The team placed in the top 10 at state 5 times, the top 5 three times and the 1988 team was 2nd.
77 of Mike’s former athletes took the time to send me an email in support of their track and field mentor. Here are a couple of examples of what I received:
1) I remember the belief Coach Kautz had in his athletes. He believed in me more than I believed in myself at times. His encouragement and motivational techniques helped me lower my times and gain the school record in the 800. He helped me gain confidence as an individual; that if I work hard I can reach new goals that I didn’t know were possible.
2) His strategic decisions were always made with the team first. While it may have upset some runners, Mr. Kautz didn’t always put runners in the race they would excel at the most individually or he might put individuals in four events; knowing that would lessen their chances of winning their specialty. He strategized from a team framework – placing individuals in the events that would add up to the most points for the team. His strategy paid off – we won countless meets when I was a runner and it was done because of true teamwork and sacrifice of all, not simply because we had a few outstanding athletes who excelled in their individual events. This was a great learning lesson for me; to value the team more than myself. This helped prepare me for real life! Thinking of others’ success and not just how to attain my own.
Mike and his wife Janet had two children, Lori Swinton and her husband, Mitch of Lone Tree and Doug Kautz and his wife, Bonali of Tucson, Arizona, and three grandchildren, Kenyon, Kamden and Ross.