Klaus
Weber
2016
Bosque School (2002-16)
By Tyler Dunkel
NMAA Sports Information Director
I
t is with great pleasure that the
New Mexico Activities Association recognizes former Bosque
School Head Soccer Coach Klaus
Weber as the 2016 Fuddruckers State
Soccer Championships Legend of the
Pitch.
Klaus Weber was born April 27, 1943 in Olten, Switzerland and grew up loving the outdoors and sports,
in particular soccer, tennis and skiing. He played for
a second division soccer team in Switzerland and
the Swiss Regional Junior Soccer Team and participated in competitive tennis and cross country skiing
from 1959-62.
Klaus received his first degree from the Commerce
College in Olten, Switzerland, his B.S. in education
from Keene State College in New Hampshire and
his M.S. in Education from UNM.
After moving to New York to work for Marriott in
1965, he competed in cross country races with the
Scandinavian Ski Club of New York and the Ulster
County/Rosendale NY Ski Club. He also spent
time playing pro soccer for Juliana F.C., Hota F.C.,
Bavarian F.C. and Kingston F.C. In 1971-72, he was
named a first team All-American for Ulster CC.
Klaus Weber
Klaus then attended Keene State College from
1972-1975, where he trained with the Collegiate
He came to the University of New Mexico in 1975
as the UNM Cross Country Ski Coach, a position he
National Competitive Training Group in Putney,
Vermont and earned All-Conference honors in cross
country skiing and competed at the NCAA Championships. On the pitch, Klaus was named an All-England and All-Conference soccer player.
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would hold from 1975-1988. Klaus
developed the program that would
lead the UNM Cross Country Ski
Team to numerous national championships.
Also during that time, Klaus was
named the UNM mens’ soccer
coach, holding that position from
1988-2002. Under his guidance,
the Lobos earned their first National
ranking as a program. During the
1985 and 1986 seasons, Klaus
coached both the cross country ski
team and mens’ soccer team for
the Lobos. In total, he coached at
UNM for 27 years.
Klaus left UNM in 2002 and shortly thereafter became a teacher
and coach (soccer and tennis) at
Bosque School, where he stayed
until his retirement in 2016.
The Bobcats’ boys’ soccer team
thrived under Klaus’ leadership
winning three state championships
at the A-4A level in 2008, 2009 and
most recently in 2015, his final year
at the helm. The Bobcats were also
state runners-up in 2006, 2012 and
2013.
The Bosque School’s boys’ and
girls’ tennis teams were equally
successful under Klaus, winning a
combined four state titles, including
a boys’ title in 2016.
He also served as the Athletic Director at the Bosque School during
his time with the Bobcats and later
as the Athletic Director Emeritus.
Klaus has been a leader in the soccer and nordic ski communities in
New Mexico for over 40 years and
continues to be actively involved
with outdoor sports in New Mexico.
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Up Close and Personal with Klaus Weber
What did you enjoy most about coaching high
school athletes?
“The direct connection and communication with the
student-athletes during the school day and the school
year. I could meet up with a player throughout the day,
chat with him in regard to his academic situation, his
satisfaction with his and the team’s performance on
the field, discuss suggestions and ideas as well as
the opportunity to give some positive feedback and
set new and realistic goals, as well as address any
other issues he may have. High school sports are not
based on recruiting the best athletes, but rather on
the development of each individual to his/her highest
level of potential as individuals, as well as contributing
to team members. It is a priority to emphasize and to
formulate the student-athletes into a cohesive unit.
It is during these formative years that a high school
coach can have an important and long-lasting impact
on the overall development and the outlook of his/her
student-athletes.”
preparation as well as Winter sports conditioning activities for private clubs, corporations, and even our prison population. As you probably know, I did play soccer
deep into my 60’s with much younger generations. I
also completed the Western State 100, the Leadville
100, the Biel, Switzerland 100 milers and many long
distance Cross-country Ski races and developed and
participated over 20 times in the Grants Quadrathlon.
The list goes on and on, but to pick another sport that
I have not coached, considering that Soccer and tennis were also on my plate for my 14 years at Bosque
School, I would have to pick Cross-Country running
as my unexplored coaching choice. The opportunity to
be outside, having the choice of many venues, taking
the athletes into our beautiful natural environment
reminds me a lot of my experiences with the UNM
Cross-Country Ski team. I have taken all my teams
on runs in the Foothills, the Sand Dunes as well as up
the La Luz trail (over 40 consecutive years). I think the
natural environment, the movement and the freedom
to express would make Cross-Country running a natural extension of my coaching career.”
If you could coach a sport that you never had the
opportunity to coach, what would that sport be
and why would you want to coach it?
“Well, during my life dedicated to sports and my 60+
years of involvement in numerous athletic and outdoor
activities, I reached numerous highs mixed with some
lows. I coached Cross-Country Skiing and Soccer
at UNM for 27 years, while also conducting classes
in Backpacking, Wholistic Fitness and Lifestyle Approaches through the UNM extension services. I conducted workshops on long distance running, fitness
What is the best book that you’ve ever read and
why do you feel that way about it?
“At my present age (73) I am still a very active reader
after hundreds of books that stimulated my interest
and had a life-enhancing impact. It is, however, very
difficult to point the finger at one author or one particular book. All important player and coaches autobiographies are part of a coach’s education process
and a necessary diet of reading materials. Whether is
Alex Ferguson’s or Phil Jackson’s story or even Lance
Armstrong’s book, It is not all about the Bike, they all
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give us reflections, motivations and personal comparisons important for our lives and our profession. The
book, however, that impacted me in more than one
way is Adolf. F. Bandelier’s The Delight Makers. I had
just stopped in my journey across the United States
in Santa Fe and attended a lecture by the Swiss-born
historian, ethnologist, and anthropologist. It led me to
explore the various New Mexican Pueblos, Bandelier
National Park as well as the New Mexico Wilderness
and Ski areas. It impacted my adventurous spirit and
the desire to return to New Mexico and calling it my
home. I supplemented it with Bandelier’s Journals and
wrote my travel logs on many of his discoveries and
interactions, which were published in my Dad’s paper
(1969). It truly lit that learning fire essential for a creative and life-embracing person. I have also mentored
a Winterim Week program at Bosque School titled,
‘Snowshoeing and Cross-country Skiing in the Footsteps of Adolf Bandelier’ with students enjoying the
beautiful outdoors and learning about the interesting
life of the Swiss-born explorer.”
help not only the individual but the extended organization.”
What do you most want to say to young coaches?
“Express and show patience, understanding and
respect toward all participants and the extended
community. Knowledge and experience, as well as the
influence of past mentors and coaches, are critical in
one’s understanding of the constructive demanding
profession of coaching. I kept charts charts experiences in my journal for over 50 years. Encounters with
other coaches, observations, workshop notes, game
analyses, a comprehensive collection including positive as well as difficult experiences and situation. This
process has not stopped and it will continue throughout my experiences and observations. Grow with your
talent and your experiences. Make certain that you
add something to your knowledge every day, your
skill vocabulary, your understanding of the collective
and the individual expressions and capability of your
team(s), the role of your academic/athletic involvement. Clarify your goals and help others to work on
common objectives. Stay involved as an active athlete
in your sport as long as you possibly can. It adds to
your continuous growth and understanding.”
What accomplishment are you most proud of?
“I am a very patient program builder. Experience
teaches you to study the best models and personalities that have left an important imprint on their
careers. I had the opportunity to formulate the UNM
Cross-Country Ski program into a national contender
with numerous National Champions in the individual
as well as the relay competition. Being part of that 3rd
place overall Ski Team Title (Alpine and X-C) was truly
a memorable event (1984). Building the UNM Soccer
program with virtually no funding (after coach Robertson’s death) was an enormous challenge. Beating # 1
ranked UCLA at home in a conference match (1992,
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) and then beating
# 2 MSU 5-2 at their place were truly career highlights,
as was the 2001 Conference Tournament Championship. In hindsight, though, building a virtually non-existent athletic program at Bosque School into a multiple
State Championship program (soccer and tennis)
has been a career-crowning endeavor. That does not
include the 16 club state soccer championships in
different gender and age group classifications (19772012), as well as the growth and expansion of the
Duke City and the Albuquerque Adult Soccer league.
I am proud that I was part of the formulation of many
creative endeavors and so the story goes on and.....”
What makes soccer such a great sport in your
mind?
“Soccer has the fluidity, interchangeability and the onfield interactions that very few other sports express. It
is constantly shifting from offense to defense with all
11 players involved in a very constructive and interactive fashion. There are no timeouts. There are no
single play calls from the sideline or stopping times
after each play (football, basketball, baseball). It is
truly a players’ game. Coaching is a practice function
with major adjustments during the game are limited to
substitution and slight changes in the tactical alignment of the team. The interactions between the offense and the defense create continuous problems on
either side and the immediate adjustment by players
(not called out by coaches) is an essential part of the
game. The ball control, the accuracy of passing and
the goal chances created as well as the goal scored
to contribute to the ‘beautiful game.’ I have been part
of this game for 61 years and listened on the radio
with my dad the broadcast of the first post-World War
World Cup in 1950, played in Brazil. There was no TV
broadcasting of the event. I also observed Pele’s first
World Cup goal in Sweden vs. Wales during the 1958
World Cup and attended over 10 World Cup games
with my Dad during the 1954 World Cup played in
Switzerland.”
What is your definition of a winner?
“In my experience, a winner is an individual or a team
that has excelled in all aspects of human interactions. The winner has represented an all-inclusive
philosophy and a lifestyle that people can look up to
and incorporate into their lives. In a team setting that
includes unselfish, inclusive and supportive trends that
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