North Penn’s Swanker headed to Pennsylvania HS Track and Field Hall of Fame
The Swankers’ yard was always packed with kids from the neighborhood.
There was running, jumping, a blur of activity.
In the middle of it all was Richard Swanker, just a middle schooler at the time, giving pointers, instructing — as he says, teaching the other kids “this and that.”
A coach was born.
“Getting them interested in the sport and getting them to see that they have a future in the sport — it’s awesome to see the kids go,” Swanker said of a lifetime spent in coaching. “I enjoy that the most.
“Taking that lump of clay and molding it into something that can compete — that’s the best. That’s why we do it.”
Swanker molded some masterpieces over the years, guiding the North Penn boys track and field program to perfection — time and time again.
Being recognized for his many contributions to the sport, Swanker is being inducted into the Pennsylvania High School Track and Field Hall of Fame, with a ceremony taking place Feb. 28 during the Indoor State Championship Meet at Penn State University.
A five-time PTFCA Coach of the Year, Swanker’s passion derived from getting the most out of every athlete.
“If you’re here, you’re gonna compete,” he said. “You’re gonna be on a team. You gotta be here every day and make the commitment. And I’ll make sure you get in the meets and do the things that you can do.
“We’ll coach you up the best we can and get you as far as you can possibly go. And the kids bought into it.”
A 1966 North Penn alumnus and former Bux-Mont champion in the pole vault, Swanker would coach the Knights from 1982-2005, guiding the team to 16 undefeated outdoor seasons, a Penn Relays Distance Medley Relay title in 2002, and four District One team titles (1984, 1992, 2003, 2005).
By the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, the Knights were hungry for a state crown.
“Those are things that get you frazzled,” Swanker recalls with a laugh. “You know you have a good team, but for many years, Glen Mills was such a powerhouse that you couldn’t beat them. They had so many great athletes on their teams.”
In the spring of 2002, on a hot afternoon out at Shippensburg University, the Knights climbed the mountain, capturing a Class AAA State Title.
“We finally won one. It wasn’t easy,” the coach said. “I figured we should have scored about 50 points and we ended up with 33 or 34. We had some guys knocked down and we had some unfortunate situations so I’m glad that we hung on and won. It was nice.
“You gotta have everything and you have to have numbers,” Swanker said. “You have to have a lot of kids to coach up — you can’t do it with just a few.
“I’ll take as many kids as I can get and somewhere along the line, you’re gonna find some guys that put some commitment into it and do it.”
Fanning the competitive flames of every athlete — even at practice — became a daily focus.
“Crawford Sr. would always say ‘when the guy that you’re with, that’s right there with you at practice every day, if that’s the guy you gotta beat to win a league championship or even win that race that day, that’s a good thing,’” Swanker said of his former mentor, the late Jim Crawford Sr., who coached NP from 1931-69. “And it really is. It’s one of those things that makes a team effort very, very strong, makes your team super.”
Swanker’s influence made many teams super: after graduating from Atlantic Christian College — now Barton College, he would coach the Penndale Junior High football team to an undefeated season and league championship as well as guiding the track squad to two undefeated seasons and a pair of league titles.
Nowadays, Swanker is Executive Secretary of the Track & Field Coaches’ Association of Greater Philadelphia as well as PIAA District One Chapter Interpreter, interpreting to area coaches any rule changes that come down the road.
Bringing his valuable coaching point-of-view to the officiating realm, Swanker is also a PIAA State Championship Meet official.
In fact, he’ll be officiating the pole vault at Indoor States at PSU, the same night of his induction ceremony.
“I’ll be interested to see how we get this done,” he said with a chuckle.
Swanker is always around at North Penn, now serving as an assistant coach for the girls squad. He also sees plenty of his former runners out and about.
“A lot of these kids I see around town — running,” he said. “It’s part of their life.”
Swanker’s high school days were at Penndale — before the current North Penn High School was built.
Back then, the athletes ran around Penndale’s old cinder track, and when it rained, water would run so deep in Lane One that it would create a gully.
North Penn track has come a long way. Swanker enjoyed seeing his teams compete on the all-weather track at Crawford Stadium, breaking every school record except the discus during his tenure.
The times and technology have changed but Swanker’s been a constant.
“I’m so happy for him. He’s such a good coach,” said Phoebe Clowser, a senior for the Lady Knights. “He’s always supportive and he’s always watching the team.
“He always has his iPad,” Clower said with a smile, “and he’s always critiquing, making sure they’re getting things right.”
