This title, "The X's & O's of PED's" is the third of three I thought about and obviously the one I've chosen for this post. The other two were, "Fans Don't Care" and "When the Prize Becomes Too Valuable". I feel you'll see why the latter two were candidates as you read on. PED's of course means "Performance Enhancing Drugs".
Most of you reading this post know why it's my topic today. I'll not go into the details of the specific incident. I'm sure my journalist colleagues will at some point and many have already done so. My focus here is to educate. I'm going to describe first just how easy it is to know if something you've ingested is for something other than nutrition and whether it is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency ( WADA) and I'm going to make you and I active participants in this. Here's what I would like you to do.
1) Go to your medicine cabinet and get any over the counter or prescription drug which lists its active ingredients. I have been prescribed drops for my eyes to reduce the pressure inside the eyes to ward off "glaucoma", which is present in my family.
2) Record them in some fashion or simply have them available. In some cases you'll need a magnifying glass especially if the candles on your birthday cake resemble a five alarm fire. The active ingredient in my eye drops is "brinzolamide" and I did use my reading glasses.
3) Go to the web site www.globaldro.org (global drug reference online).
4) Identify yourself by country and sport (i.e. Canada & curling).
5) Compare the active ingredients for your medication/supplement/drug with the approved list on the web site.
6) Put your hand up if you're taking a banned substance. If your hand is up go to the next step. If your hand is not up, carry on and good curling! In my case, both as athlete and coach, "brinzolamide" is not prohibited "in" or "out of" competition. It took me about one minute to learn that!!!
7) If your medication was purchased by you "over the counter", stop taking it. On the other hand, if it has been prescribed for you by a certified physician and you want to compete on the international level, make an appointment with your physician a.s.a.p. to let him/her know of your dilemma. If there are alternate substances that you can take that are approved, make the switch. If not go to the next step.
8) Contact your national sport governing body to obtain a "Therapeutic Exemption Form" (TUE). Complete the form according to the instructions provided. Make copies and keep one in a very safe place (i.e. safety deposit box).
If your country is not listed on the www.globaldro.org site then go directly to WADA's site (www.wada-ama.org) for similar information or the World Curling Federation web site (www.worldcurling.org).
When an athlete is tested, it is done so by urine and/or blood analysis and can be on site ("in" competition) or randomly ("out of" competition). The test is administered by a WADA certified tester with an official representing the athlete in attendance. A sample is provided by the athlete in full view of the tester and the athlete's representative. If the testing is done immediately following the event, a WADA official stays in full view of the athlete until a sample can be provided. The sample is then divided into to "A" & "B" containers with the athlete participating in the sealing of them. The samples are then coded for identification with the athlete receiving copies of the paperwork. The samples are then tested for banned substances pertaining to the sport in question either on site (if the lab facilities are available) or sent to an accredited lab. The results are provided to the athlete as soon as possible and of course, everyone hopes for a negative result, no banned substances detected. If a positive test result is indicated, the "B" sample is then tested (with the athlete and his/her representative notified beforehand and invited to the unsealing and testing). If the result of that testing is also positive, the athlete's sport governing body is notified for further action.
You'll notice that the steps to determine whether the substance you're ingesting is banned for your sport and country or not is quite simple and self directed. For anyone who is serious enough about competing at the highest level to say they did not know that what they were ingesting was banned is just plain imprudent and if the athlete is competing in a team sport, I'll add self-serving, as a positive test affects the entire team in some instances. Good luck getting caught ingesting a banned substance which causes the team to return medals finding another team in the future!
For our sport in Canada, we also have an individual who is our resident expert on the doping regulations. There is absolutely no reason for a curling athlete in Canada to mistakenly ingest a banned substance!
I'm writing this post in the midst of the Tour de France, the sport most associated with PED's. One must have been living under a rock to not be aware of the trials and tribulations of one Lance Armstrong and his association with allegations of the use of PED's during his competitive cycling days especially in connection with the aforementioned Tour de France.
Each sport, like a society, has a culture which in essence defines what's acceptable and what's not. In your copy of "A Pane in the Glass: A Coach's Companion" you'll find an article entitled "The Culture of Sport" and how it changes from one sport to another and how athletes playing one sport act and react very differently the moment they change from sport to sport. Why, because the "rules of engagement" change. One of the more disgusting axioms, especially in professional sports is, "If you're not cheating, you're not trying!" and it's accepted in many, perhaps most sports because that's the culture.
I recently witnessed a baseball game where, on a double play attempt by the defensive team, the second baseman missed stepping on the base before throwing on to first base to complete the double play. The play ended the inning. The camera focused on the second baseman who video replay showed missed contacting the base by the proverbial country mile, knew he had, and laughed about it with his teammates on their return to the dug out. Can you imagine what would have happened had the same second baseman gone to the umpire to indicate that he had indeed missed stepping on the base? His teammates and coaches would have reacted with righteous indignation toward him. You see, it's the culture of baseball to accept a call even if you know the official has clearly made a mistake and would be quite willing to rectify the call. But, that same second baseman as a professional golfer, had he inadvertently grounded his club in an hazard with no one watching, would have so indicated and gracefully accepted the penalty. Or if that person was a curler and touched a running stone and so indicated even though no one might have been aware. Same person, different cultures!
In some sports, PED's are accepted by participants and fans because, here it comes, "everyone does it"! What a cop out! What's more disturbing is the attitude of the fans. In simple language, most, the vast majority in my experience, just don't care. They want to see baseballs leave the yard, cyclists with unbelievable speed & stamina, football players with superhuman endurance ... I hate to say it, those fans don't give a rodent's backside if the athletes they're watching and the entertainment they're enjoying are "juiced". And if the fans don't care, why should the athletes? Well, thankfully, there are athletes who feel playing "clean" is a positive attribute and keep the flame of clean play burning while around them the temptations to artificially enhance his/her performance are readily available.
In my mind, the classic example occurred during the summer of 1998 when Mark McGuire (St. Louis Cardinals) & Sammy Sosa (Chicago Cubs) duelled for the major league home run record with full stadia of fans cheering enthusiastically for every ball that cleared the outfield fences from their bats. Even at that stage there was clear indications that something was amiss. All one had to do was look at Mssrs. McGuire & Sosa to know that their physique was altered. No amount of time in the gym could have produced the bodies they brought to the stadium each day. One of the most distinguished sports periodicals named both players "Sportsman of the Year", an honour coveted by athletes which only re-enforced the heroic efforts of the athletes. Many felt their season long home run contest saved major league baseball from a rather tumultuous period of labour unrest in the preceding few seasons. But, at what price was major league baseball saved? Did major league baseball sell its soul to the devil?
In an attempt to deal with the issue or at least to project to the world that major league baseball cared, it hired George Mitchell, a former U.S. senator to study the matter with the results naming players in his report known as, duh, "The Mitchell Report". Congress even got involved with some players testifying before committees, with some caught lying (can you say "perjury"?). Needless to say, baseball was in a mess. Roger Clemens, while a member of the Toronto Blue Jays was accused of taking PED's as was his Yankee friend, pitcher Andy Pettitte. Mr. Pettitte admitted to taking the substance, in his words, to recover more quickly from an injury, not to enhance performance. Hmm, does that pass the "smell test"? Clearly most believe it does but in Mr. Clemens' case, not so much as the allegations in his case were clearly to prolong a career artificially.
Fast forward to today. Players in the "steroid era" of major league baseball have been shunned by those who vote for inclusion into "The Baseball Hall of Fame" in Cooperstown, NY. Not one player, many of whom "have the numbers", have been voted into the hall. But will the passage of time numb some of those voters or future voters into granting admission down the road? Only time will tell.
Canada was plunged headlong into the world of PED's in the 1988 summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea when the nation went from euphoria to dismay when Ben Johnson tested positive for a PED. That led to, at the time, the most comprehensive study of the new world of PED's in any nation by the Dubin Inquiry. The report by Justice Dubin had enough blame to go around to athletes, coaches, sport governing bodies etc. It was hoped that other nations would use the report and follow Canada's lead to meet the PED issue head on. Unfortunately, that didn't happen and we're left where we are today!
To me, one of the most disturbing elements of this whole PED matter are athletes, who when asked about taking PED's say that even if they were proven to shorten one's life span or leave one in a diminished state of health in later years, if it could get them onto an Olympic podium or pave the way to a professional career in their sport, it would be worth the risk. Has the prize become to valuable?
The really scary part in all of this is for parents whose teenage sons & daughters feel that for a variety of reasons, taking PED's is a necessary part of achievement and/or status. Common feeling among those whose expertise is in the area of PED's and their long term implications is that they are generically dangerous. Until the "steroid era" athletes reach those birth milestones when those long term implications are make known, it's only conjecture. Is the risk worth the reward? Well, clearly some say it is!
Those who turn a blind eye to PED's and their detection often point to the fact that like "prohibition" if someone wants to artificially enhance his/her performance and take both the physical and social risks, there are those who will do so and the "PED Police" will always be a step or two behind in the detection game. Until the culture changes, I'm afraid PED's may rule the day. I hope I'm wrong!
I've used the word "artificial" and a few of its derivatives in this post. When confronted by the question re. PED's and my feelings toward them the answer is simple. It's a short cut to the time and effort spent by one's peers in training. It's artificial! In my books, if you take PED's, you're cheating! Where do you stand? I invite your comments!
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Saturday, July 6, 2013
All Star Awards
Those who know me well can very likely compose the remainder of this blog. I not a fan of "all star awards", especially in the sport of curling. Make no mistake, I'm not opposed to the recognition of exceptional performance. But I am adamant that the process to identify worthy recipients be appropriate. But more about the all stars in curling later in this blog.
Hockey fans, or should I say NHL fans, were bemused unless you're an Edmonton Oiler follower (Oiler Taylor Hall was the second highest vote getter at left wing) then you were likely much more than bemused when the Professional Hockey Writers Association voted for the first and second 2012-13 All Star Teams. Alexander Ovechkin, the NHL's Hart Trophy winner (the NHL most valuable player award) was voted to both the first all star team at his normal right wing position and to the second all star team at left wing. Now to be sure, the Russian super star does, on occasion, play on the left side but it's common practice and indeed a directive from the PHWA, at the end of each season, to name players to a particular position for the purposes of voting for all star team inclusion.
The honour of being a member of the august body of scribes charged with the responsibility to establish each season's all star teams is not taken lightly by most of its members. In many cases, for a player to be named to one of the two all star teams means dollars in that player's jeans. When a player negotiates his contract, incentive clauses are often included and a common one is all star selection.
The PHWA association sent out an email to its members to make sure that they understood that Alex Ovechkin's position for voting was that of "right wing". Many NHL players, in specific circumstances play a position which is different from the one they play on a line change by line change basis. On the power play for example, it's not unusual to have one defence man and a forward on the blue line. That forward playing defence might amass a significant number of power play goals & assists which are assigned to him and just might make him a candidate for all star selection but when the members of the PHWA association consider his candidacy, it will be for his "regular" position. Forty-five of the approximately 180 members of the PHWA failed to read the memo and voted for Ovechkin on the second team at left wing. To say the other 135 members of the PHWA who did read the directive are embarrassed is an understatement. Voting for the all star teams and other NHL awards is one of the most important tasks each of the members takes on and to not read the most important of directives is unconscionable. To call yourself a "professional" writer at the same time is disingenuous.
From what I gather, the voting is done secretly even though many members of the PHWA make their selections known in the media outlet they represent but not all. I would hope that those 45 members who acted in the most unprofessional way possible in this voting procedure voluntarily withdraw from the PHWA! Let's see how many do.
When one earns then accepts the designation of "professional", that individual's performance is held to the highest standard of conduct and accuracy. No one is perfect, but best practices are not only expected by a professional in all fields but in the case of the medical profession, it could be a matter of life and death. That's clearly not the case here but nonetheless it's of sufficient import to be a cause for concern for those in the media, players, fans and the PHWA.
I shake my head in dismay when I hear or read about a professional athlete when he/she says he/she can't seem to get up for certain games or state that it's sometimes hard to be motivated to perform. What?! I would like to ask that same athlete, if they were injured and needed career-saving surgery, would it be OK with them if the surgeon indicated, prior to the operation that he/she just wasn't feeling up to it or that he/she was not motivated to be the best he/she could be in that operating room? Hmm, I think not! Professional athletes not only accept that their performance will be held to a high standard, they are paid large, very large sums of money as well, in most cases more in a short span of time than most of the people who buy the tickets, products and services that support the athlete/team will see in a life time!
Although not the focus of this blog, in the midst of all the adulation paid to professional athletes who are touted as bigger, stronger & faster, my late father would also add, dumber! And he was correct in my view. I see more "mental mistakes" made by professional athletes than ever. Baseball is particularly susceptible it seems. Players throw the the wrong base. They get caught off base and become the back end of a double play because they didn't let the line drive get through the infield. I could go on and on as I watch major league games on television.
But this blog is about all star awards. Of the four main professional sports in North America (hockey, baseball, basketball and football) the baseball "all star game" is clearly best. I never miss it on television even though it's far from perfect, very far! Look, every all star game is a fantasy to some extent. It's not a genuine athletic contest and in most cases is nothing more than a showcase of entertainment for fans and league officials. That said, when the teams representing the National & American Leagues match up, there is something on the line. The team that represents the league that wins that season's all star game, will get home field advantage in the World Series. At least it's something for which to play. The final score matters to some extent. Baseball is also the only one of the four to include fan balloting. It's the fans who choose the eight "position players" to start the all star game. The managers of the teams who played in the preceding season's World Series select the pitchers.
But the fans get to vote as often as they like which I guess is OK but it seems somewhat of a popularity contest as much as a sober decision re. a player's skills. Here's what I'm proposing for professional all star games. Voting is done by three separate groups. One group are the fans (and OK, vote, and vote often). The second group, despite what's happened with the PHWA, are the accredited reporters. The third group are the players themselves who will vote by the position each plays. If a player receives the highest number of votes by all three groups or two of the three, he is the starting all star at that position. If three different players are at the top of the groups vote tally, the player who has been voted by the players themselves will be the starter at that position. The remainder of the team can come from fan voting.
Also, remove the caveat that all teams must be represented. No explanation required for that one and make the game mean something, anything! Put a wheelbarrow full of money on the side line which goes to the winning side if that's what it takes but try to win the game, not just make sure all players play, as is the case many times in the baseball all star game.
Now to curling and many of my regular readers (thank you for sticking with me) already know what I'm going to say here. There is nothing more inappropriate than all star selection that's based upon shooting statistics! Every shot is a team shot, every shot! To say that a lead shot 87% is just wrong. The team shot 87% on the first two shots of each end played. If the "team" with the best shooting percentage is honoured at the end of a competition, fine! I rather like that! Now, shooting statistics are appropriate!
And, I'm not suggesting that all star awards be removed. But make them relevant. I'd be most happy if the players who play each position voted for the competitor they feel played exceptionally well in all phases of the skills required at that position. Now you have all stars that have really earned that designation.
Before my days end on planet Earth, I want to see our all star awards changed. I'm only one voice. If you also feel the way I do, please speak to your provincial/territorial representatives to the Canadian Curling Association Congress and AGM next June. If enough representatives at the annual CCA powwow put their hands up on this matter, it will happen. We can do this and it's the right thing to do!
Hockey fans, or should I say NHL fans, were bemused unless you're an Edmonton Oiler follower (Oiler Taylor Hall was the second highest vote getter at left wing) then you were likely much more than bemused when the Professional Hockey Writers Association voted for the first and second 2012-13 All Star Teams. Alexander Ovechkin, the NHL's Hart Trophy winner (the NHL most valuable player award) was voted to both the first all star team at his normal right wing position and to the second all star team at left wing. Now to be sure, the Russian super star does, on occasion, play on the left side but it's common practice and indeed a directive from the PHWA, at the end of each season, to name players to a particular position for the purposes of voting for all star team inclusion.
The honour of being a member of the august body of scribes charged with the responsibility to establish each season's all star teams is not taken lightly by most of its members. In many cases, for a player to be named to one of the two all star teams means dollars in that player's jeans. When a player negotiates his contract, incentive clauses are often included and a common one is all star selection.
The PHWA association sent out an email to its members to make sure that they understood that Alex Ovechkin's position for voting was that of "right wing". Many NHL players, in specific circumstances play a position which is different from the one they play on a line change by line change basis. On the power play for example, it's not unusual to have one defence man and a forward on the blue line. That forward playing defence might amass a significant number of power play goals & assists which are assigned to him and just might make him a candidate for all star selection but when the members of the PHWA association consider his candidacy, it will be for his "regular" position. Forty-five of the approximately 180 members of the PHWA failed to read the memo and voted for Ovechkin on the second team at left wing. To say the other 135 members of the PHWA who did read the directive are embarrassed is an understatement. Voting for the all star teams and other NHL awards is one of the most important tasks each of the members takes on and to not read the most important of directives is unconscionable. To call yourself a "professional" writer at the same time is disingenuous.
From what I gather, the voting is done secretly even though many members of the PHWA make their selections known in the media outlet they represent but not all. I would hope that those 45 members who acted in the most unprofessional way possible in this voting procedure voluntarily withdraw from the PHWA! Let's see how many do.
When one earns then accepts the designation of "professional", that individual's performance is held to the highest standard of conduct and accuracy. No one is perfect, but best practices are not only expected by a professional in all fields but in the case of the medical profession, it could be a matter of life and death. That's clearly not the case here but nonetheless it's of sufficient import to be a cause for concern for those in the media, players, fans and the PHWA.
I shake my head in dismay when I hear or read about a professional athlete when he/she says he/she can't seem to get up for certain games or state that it's sometimes hard to be motivated to perform. What?! I would like to ask that same athlete, if they were injured and needed career-saving surgery, would it be OK with them if the surgeon indicated, prior to the operation that he/she just wasn't feeling up to it or that he/she was not motivated to be the best he/she could be in that operating room? Hmm, I think not! Professional athletes not only accept that their performance will be held to a high standard, they are paid large, very large sums of money as well, in most cases more in a short span of time than most of the people who buy the tickets, products and services that support the athlete/team will see in a life time!
Although not the focus of this blog, in the midst of all the adulation paid to professional athletes who are touted as bigger, stronger & faster, my late father would also add, dumber! And he was correct in my view. I see more "mental mistakes" made by professional athletes than ever. Baseball is particularly susceptible it seems. Players throw the the wrong base. They get caught off base and become the back end of a double play because they didn't let the line drive get through the infield. I could go on and on as I watch major league games on television.
But this blog is about all star awards. Of the four main professional sports in North America (hockey, baseball, basketball and football) the baseball "all star game" is clearly best. I never miss it on television even though it's far from perfect, very far! Look, every all star game is a fantasy to some extent. It's not a genuine athletic contest and in most cases is nothing more than a showcase of entertainment for fans and league officials. That said, when the teams representing the National & American Leagues match up, there is something on the line. The team that represents the league that wins that season's all star game, will get home field advantage in the World Series. At least it's something for which to play. The final score matters to some extent. Baseball is also the only one of the four to include fan balloting. It's the fans who choose the eight "position players" to start the all star game. The managers of the teams who played in the preceding season's World Series select the pitchers.
But the fans get to vote as often as they like which I guess is OK but it seems somewhat of a popularity contest as much as a sober decision re. a player's skills. Here's what I'm proposing for professional all star games. Voting is done by three separate groups. One group are the fans (and OK, vote, and vote often). The second group, despite what's happened with the PHWA, are the accredited reporters. The third group are the players themselves who will vote by the position each plays. If a player receives the highest number of votes by all three groups or two of the three, he is the starting all star at that position. If three different players are at the top of the groups vote tally, the player who has been voted by the players themselves will be the starter at that position. The remainder of the team can come from fan voting.
Also, remove the caveat that all teams must be represented. No explanation required for that one and make the game mean something, anything! Put a wheelbarrow full of money on the side line which goes to the winning side if that's what it takes but try to win the game, not just make sure all players play, as is the case many times in the baseball all star game.
Now to curling and many of my regular readers (thank you for sticking with me) already know what I'm going to say here. There is nothing more inappropriate than all star selection that's based upon shooting statistics! Every shot is a team shot, every shot! To say that a lead shot 87% is just wrong. The team shot 87% on the first two shots of each end played. If the "team" with the best shooting percentage is honoured at the end of a competition, fine! I rather like that! Now, shooting statistics are appropriate!
And, I'm not suggesting that all star awards be removed. But make them relevant. I'd be most happy if the players who play each position voted for the competitor they feel played exceptionally well in all phases of the skills required at that position. Now you have all stars that have really earned that designation.
Before my days end on planet Earth, I want to see our all star awards changed. I'm only one voice. If you also feel the way I do, please speak to your provincial/territorial representatives to the Canadian Curling Association Congress and AGM next June. If enough representatives at the annual CCA powwow put their hands up on this matter, it will happen. We can do this and it's the right thing to do!
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
"Curl Coach" - An Exciting New Tool for Curling Coaches
My guest blogger today is Stephen Orr. Stephen introduces himself in his blog from a curling perspective so I'll not go on any further with that but I will say that Stephen is, in addition to a curling coach, a computer programmer who has created a wonderful "app" for one's iPad. It's called "Curl Coach". As Stephen indicates below, it started out as another stats gathering and disseminating tool but in conversations with Stephen, the final product will, if you're a curling coach, knock your socks off! "Curl Coach" is available from iTunes for the modest fee of $25. Next to "A Pane in the Glass: A Coach's Companion", it's the best money a curling coach can spend. With the additions that Stephen has planned and is in the process of coding (I have the privilege of knowing what's down the line and let me tell you, it's exciting), with your iPad under one arm with "Curl Coach" and APITG:ACC under the other, you're ready for any challenge that might come your way.
BT
I first connected with Bill when I came across his article on Curling stats on this blog. Given that I had recently published Curl Coach, which is, at its core, a curling stats app for iOS, I reached out to Bill asking to if he would be open to a chat about stats in curling. You see I have found that the best way to make an app like Curl Coach really good, is to get to get input from people who will actually use it, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Obviously Bill responded and we had several good discussions, and Bill thought it would be interesting to his readers to get some insight into how apps like Curl Coach come to be.
For me, I have two sons curling, one in Bantams and one in Little Rocks. As they grow older and move up, I wanted to be in a position to help them be their best. So I took the OCA level 1 competition course last fall and started on the path of coaching a young competitive team. Being partially retired (code for between jobs) I had some time on my hands and thought it would be interesting to develop a tool to help me with coaching. Now there are other applications out there for the iPhone and iPad, but I thought I could bring something fresh to the table because I saw those other applications as more about the stats than about coaching (my opinion only). While the stats are important, I wanted to create something that would help coaches coach. Stats are a part of that, but only if they can be leveraged to help with team and player development, learning strategy, and improving from game to game and season to season.
Okay, so that is the philosophy that drives Curl Coach development. I am going to spend a (very) little time on the technical aspects of developing, and then get back into how the app evolved and continues to improve. First, developing on apple platforms requires an architecture called Model-View-Controller or MVC for short. The M in the case of Curl Coach is the database of data that is required to managed players, venues, competitions and do all of the game charting. The V is the actual screens (and parts of screens) that you as a user interact with to enter information, do game playbacks, get reports, etc. Curl Coach has dozens of views that combine to provide the required functionality.
Some of these views are built in to iOS, buttons, date pickets, etc. whereas others are custom views (the sheet, the scoreboard, even the rocks) that have special properties and abilities built into them. Finally, the C part is used to collect up a set of views and to connect them to the Model.
When I develop as a one-man shop, it is very much about working on whatever interests me next. In the case of Curl Coach, the first piece was the sheet. A custom view that would draw the rings and all of the lines, and that could manage a set of sub-views that could draw the rocks. Once I had that, I added the ability to add a brush and move the rocks around, and from there the ability to extract all of those rock positions and movement and save them in the model. From there I built out the parts of the model to create players, pull them into teams, as well as creating venues and pulling all of that together into a competition, creating games, and starting to chart. I also developed some very simple reporting ability, more to verify that all of this data was actually getting saved properly and could be extracted later. Then I started using it to chart real games, and started running into real issues.
First came the realization that charting a game is HARD. It takes concentration and full time attention, and a charting app has to be simple and as easy to use as possible.
My first real issue came in the second end when I realized that the rings were the wrong way up, I spent much of that game holding my iPad upside down in order to be able to chart anything Another early problem came when the skip placed the brush (and I followed suit), and then promptly changed the brush once they got to the hack. I had no way to undo that brush. Many, many other issues came up, and each of them led to some kind of change or refinement to the application. Anything I could do to make charting easier, faster, more automatic, I did, that's how the application got automatic sheet rotation, turn, and difficulty. I also started talking to real coaches at my local club, and started refining the reports. One coach liked to look at shoot accuracy based on brush position, so that went in.
Another asked for the objective stats (force efficiency, etc.) so that went in. Once I was ready I got reached out over Linked In and connected with a Colin Sinclair of high performance coach based in Toronto who agreed to Beta test the application with his Seneca college varsity team at the Ontario provincials, and provided a whole bunch more feedback.
That is pretty much how Curl Coach evolved, a lot of hours of development and testing, and a lot of looking for ways to make charting as easy as possible while also providing the tools that can help coaches communicate with their teams and help drive real improvement over time. Indeed Curl Coach continues to evolve. In discussions with both Bill and another high performance coach, there was an interested in what the team does after an opposition miss. The shots selected (and executed) are often critical to who will eventually win, so the next version of Curl Coach includes a report that pulls out opposition misses and lets you look at what the team did about it.
Similarly, Bill believes that all Elite teams have to spend a lot of time thinking about shot tolerance, so the next version of Curl Coach will add, what I believe is the easiest way to track tolerance as part of charting a shot, and with that will come a new set of curling statistics and analysis to help teams improve both shot selection and shot execution.
I intend to continue to evolve Curl Coach to enhance the number of tools and abilities it provides to help coaches develop their teams and players. I would like to thank Bill for giving me this opportunity to talk about my journey (so far) and hope curlers everywhere take advantage of the off-season to recharge and, come the fall, get back to the ice ready for some great curling.
If you'd like to contact Stephen directly, his e-mail address is support@chatorr.ca and his web site is found at http://www.chatorr.ca/support/About_Curl_Coach.html! A purchase of the current version of "Curl Coach" puts you in line for all future additions and upgrades at no charge (that's like "free")!
BT
I first connected with Bill when I came across his article on Curling stats on this blog. Given that I had recently published Curl Coach, which is, at its core, a curling stats app for iOS, I reached out to Bill asking to if he would be open to a chat about stats in curling. You see I have found that the best way to make an app like Curl Coach really good, is to get to get input from people who will actually use it, but I'm getting ahead of myself. Obviously Bill responded and we had several good discussions, and Bill thought it would be interesting to his readers to get some insight into how apps like Curl Coach come to be.
For me, I have two sons curling, one in Bantams and one in Little Rocks. As they grow older and move up, I wanted to be in a position to help them be their best. So I took the OCA level 1 competition course last fall and started on the path of coaching a young competitive team. Being partially retired (code for between jobs) I had some time on my hands and thought it would be interesting to develop a tool to help me with coaching. Now there are other applications out there for the iPhone and iPad, but I thought I could bring something fresh to the table because I saw those other applications as more about the stats than about coaching (my opinion only). While the stats are important, I wanted to create something that would help coaches coach. Stats are a part of that, but only if they can be leveraged to help with team and player development, learning strategy, and improving from game to game and season to season.
Okay, so that is the philosophy that drives Curl Coach development. I am going to spend a (very) little time on the technical aspects of developing, and then get back into how the app evolved and continues to improve. First, developing on apple platforms requires an architecture called Model-View-Controller or MVC for short. The M in the case of Curl Coach is the database of data that is required to managed players, venues, competitions and do all of the game charting. The V is the actual screens (and parts of screens) that you as a user interact with to enter information, do game playbacks, get reports, etc. Curl Coach has dozens of views that combine to provide the required functionality.
Some of these views are built in to iOS, buttons, date pickets, etc. whereas others are custom views (the sheet, the scoreboard, even the rocks) that have special properties and abilities built into them. Finally, the C part is used to collect up a set of views and to connect them to the Model.
When I develop as a one-man shop, it is very much about working on whatever interests me next. In the case of Curl Coach, the first piece was the sheet. A custom view that would draw the rings and all of the lines, and that could manage a set of sub-views that could draw the rocks. Once I had that, I added the ability to add a brush and move the rocks around, and from there the ability to extract all of those rock positions and movement and save them in the model. From there I built out the parts of the model to create players, pull them into teams, as well as creating venues and pulling all of that together into a competition, creating games, and starting to chart. I also developed some very simple reporting ability, more to verify that all of this data was actually getting saved properly and could be extracted later. Then I started using it to chart real games, and started running into real issues.
First came the realization that charting a game is HARD. It takes concentration and full time attention, and a charting app has to be simple and as easy to use as possible.
My first real issue came in the second end when I realized that the rings were the wrong way up, I spent much of that game holding my iPad upside down in order to be able to chart anything Another early problem came when the skip placed the brush (and I followed suit), and then promptly changed the brush once they got to the hack. I had no way to undo that brush. Many, many other issues came up, and each of them led to some kind of change or refinement to the application. Anything I could do to make charting easier, faster, more automatic, I did, that's how the application got automatic sheet rotation, turn, and difficulty. I also started talking to real coaches at my local club, and started refining the reports. One coach liked to look at shoot accuracy based on brush position, so that went in.
Another asked for the objective stats (force efficiency, etc.) so that went in. Once I was ready I got reached out over Linked In and connected with a Colin Sinclair of high performance coach based in Toronto who agreed to Beta test the application with his Seneca college varsity team at the Ontario provincials, and provided a whole bunch more feedback.
That is pretty much how Curl Coach evolved, a lot of hours of development and testing, and a lot of looking for ways to make charting as easy as possible while also providing the tools that can help coaches communicate with their teams and help drive real improvement over time. Indeed Curl Coach continues to evolve. In discussions with both Bill and another high performance coach, there was an interested in what the team does after an opposition miss. The shots selected (and executed) are often critical to who will eventually win, so the next version of Curl Coach includes a report that pulls out opposition misses and lets you look at what the team did about it.
Similarly, Bill believes that all Elite teams have to spend a lot of time thinking about shot tolerance, so the next version of Curl Coach will add, what I believe is the easiest way to track tolerance as part of charting a shot, and with that will come a new set of curling statistics and analysis to help teams improve both shot selection and shot execution.
I intend to continue to evolve Curl Coach to enhance the number of tools and abilities it provides to help coaches develop their teams and players. I would like to thank Bill for giving me this opportunity to talk about my journey (so far) and hope curlers everywhere take advantage of the off-season to recharge and, come the fall, get back to the ice ready for some great curling.
If you'd like to contact Stephen directly, his e-mail address is support@chatorr.ca and his web site is found at http://www.chatorr.ca/support/About_Curl_Coach.html! A purchase of the current version of "Curl Coach" puts you in line for all future additions and upgrades at no charge (that's like "free")!
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Doing What You Know You Can Do - When You Need To Do It
In my last post I promised to answer a question posed to me by an excellent coach and friend. It was about "peaking", that seemingly elusive of all team and individual characteristics and there's no event that's more under the microscope to determine whether an athlete is performing optimally than at the Olympics. We have witnessed athletes who after years and years of dedicated, purposeful training, fail at the quadrennial mountain top of events. There are as many reasons for that as there are grains of sand on a beach. I don't know about you but I hate to see that happen to any athlete. I want the gold medalist to have won the medal, not for an opponent to have lost it and there's a huge difference between the two.
In my own words, I say it this way. When you leave the playing area, you want to be able to say that your opponent had to bring his/her/their "A" game and drain the tank to win. If that's the case, then you shake hands and leave the playing suface with head and heart held high. When that's not the case, then you need to be a good actor and make everyone around see you as a class act even though inside you feel like crawling into a hole. Outwardly there's no difference but inside you can't wait for the next training opportunities to learn from the loss and never to let that happen that way again!
To make every contest one in which the oppnent needs that "A" game and drain the tank is the utopia in sports as it spells consistency. Remember, as I've stated on numerous occasions, many of them on this site, you can never leave your skills at home so if you didn't perform well, it had to be for reasons other than a lack of skill. They were all there but there was a breakdown. You just didn't use them well but let's not go down that road today.
This is not going to be a long post as I'm going to differ to two excellent articles, one penned by Greg Wells of the Canadian Sport Centre who has an superb on-line piece on peaking (aka "tapering) and the other from the magazine "BC Coaches Perspective" (summer 2013 edition) authored by Laura Watson entitled "The End of 'Peak by Friday Coaching'" so I'll just add a few anecdotal comments beginning with one that I have espoused before and I'll use my recent experience with Canada's national senior teams as we trained to compete in the most recent World Senior Curling Championships in Fredericton, NB as an example. I asked each athlete, in the last week or two prior to leaving for the New Brunswick capital to concentrate on thier "real selves" and not be so concerned about their "performer selves". In other words, deal with any issues that may be a distraction at the WSCC. If there's a misunderstanding with a family member, friend, co-worker etc., try to resolve it or at least begin the process. If there's a project that could be completed, complete it. If there's someone with whom you've wanted to speak about a matter, take the time to do so. In other words, leave no loose threads at home so that when you arrive at the venue, curling is the only thing that matters!
Without stealing the thunder from Laura Watson's article in "BC Coaches Perspective", when you are the type of coach that "empowers" athletes rather than "direct" athletes, their ability to perform when best performance is needed the most is enhanced. You'll read about both types of coaches in Laura's brief but powerful article.
Another point I'd like to make at this time is to say that it's my view that over the years, the standard of training for our elite teams has been to play as many events as time, inclination and resources allow. I've seen more than one team come to the playdown portion of the season totally exhausted and mentally burned out. They still had their skills but their ability to use them was dimenished to the point that forcing the oppostion to bring their "A" game and drain their tank was only a dream. And there's no formula to be applied to all teams. I admit that some teams might need that weekend-to-weekend schedule of events but I'm equally convinced that there are way more teams who follow that training regimen who should not! Just another reason to have a certified coach on board! Remember, train, don't strain and take your eyes off the prize and focus on the process!
OK, enough of me, enjoy Greg Wells article at (www.ausport.gov.au/sportscoachingmag/planning/tapering_the_real_art_and_science_of_coaching) and Laura's in "BC Coaches Perspective".
In my own words, I say it this way. When you leave the playing area, you want to be able to say that your opponent had to bring his/her/their "A" game and drain the tank to win. If that's the case, then you shake hands and leave the playing suface with head and heart held high. When that's not the case, then you need to be a good actor and make everyone around see you as a class act even though inside you feel like crawling into a hole. Outwardly there's no difference but inside you can't wait for the next training opportunities to learn from the loss and never to let that happen that way again!
To make every contest one in which the oppnent needs that "A" game and drain the tank is the utopia in sports as it spells consistency. Remember, as I've stated on numerous occasions, many of them on this site, you can never leave your skills at home so if you didn't perform well, it had to be for reasons other than a lack of skill. They were all there but there was a breakdown. You just didn't use them well but let's not go down that road today.
This is not going to be a long post as I'm going to differ to two excellent articles, one penned by Greg Wells of the Canadian Sport Centre who has an superb on-line piece on peaking (aka "tapering) and the other from the magazine "BC Coaches Perspective" (summer 2013 edition) authored by Laura Watson entitled "The End of 'Peak by Friday Coaching'" so I'll just add a few anecdotal comments beginning with one that I have espoused before and I'll use my recent experience with Canada's national senior teams as we trained to compete in the most recent World Senior Curling Championships in Fredericton, NB as an example. I asked each athlete, in the last week or two prior to leaving for the New Brunswick capital to concentrate on thier "real selves" and not be so concerned about their "performer selves". In other words, deal with any issues that may be a distraction at the WSCC. If there's a misunderstanding with a family member, friend, co-worker etc., try to resolve it or at least begin the process. If there's a project that could be completed, complete it. If there's someone with whom you've wanted to speak about a matter, take the time to do so. In other words, leave no loose threads at home so that when you arrive at the venue, curling is the only thing that matters!
Without stealing the thunder from Laura Watson's article in "BC Coaches Perspective", when you are the type of coach that "empowers" athletes rather than "direct" athletes, their ability to perform when best performance is needed the most is enhanced. You'll read about both types of coaches in Laura's brief but powerful article.
Another point I'd like to make at this time is to say that it's my view that over the years, the standard of training for our elite teams has been to play as many events as time, inclination and resources allow. I've seen more than one team come to the playdown portion of the season totally exhausted and mentally burned out. They still had their skills but their ability to use them was dimenished to the point that forcing the oppostion to bring their "A" game and drain their tank was only a dream. And there's no formula to be applied to all teams. I admit that some teams might need that weekend-to-weekend schedule of events but I'm equally convinced that there are way more teams who follow that training regimen who should not! Just another reason to have a certified coach on board! Remember, train, don't strain and take your eyes off the prize and focus on the process!
OK, enough of me, enjoy Greg Wells article at (www.ausport.gov.au/sportscoachingmag/planning/tapering_the_real_art_and_science_of_coaching) and Laura's in "BC Coaches Perspective".
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Mail Bag
As any "ink-stained wretch" (aka journalist) will tell you, it's not the writing that's the challenge so much as coming up with a topic of interest to readers. Questions from the readers remove that issue and make the writing purposeful and therefore somewhat easier. As you can see by the title, that's the case today.
I recently received some "interesting" questions from a coach who works extensively with "little rockers" and a competitive bantam team. I want to congratulate this coach's efforts, especially with the "little rockers". They are our future. I felt his questions were ones that might have a broader appeal than a simple e-mail response on my part. That said, here are the questions and my responses to them.
#1 What are the biggest mistakes & myths you see in curling training? What are the biggest wastes of time?
I have heard more than one expert refer to our sport as the "technocentric" sport (my spell checker does not recognize "technocentric" but I think you get the idea). As seen by others outside curling, we are obsessed with our curling deliveries, obsessed! Clearly, those outside the sport of curling see us as way over the top regarding the technical aspects of the game. Generally, I agree but I'm quick to add that one's curling delivery is his/her signature skill. It's what defines us in the sport and no, we do not have to all look the same as we deliver the curling stone. I have written about this in a number of articles in "A Pane in the Glass: A Coach's Companion" so I'll be succinct here when I say that your delivery needs to meet three criteria in my view. It must be straight, simple & silent (the title of the very first article every penned by yours truly). But here's the "waste of time" part, it does NOT have to be perfect! I feel very strongly that too many aspiring, high performance athletes spend in inordinate amount of time trying to perfect the curling delivery! Each one of us, given that we got a good start in the game by receiving instruction from a certified instructor so that we do not make obvious mistakes, has a very "serviceable" delivery inside of us. The goal of a good instructor/coach is to help you let that delivery "out" and make you aware of why it's the best way for you to deliver a curling stone, not because anyone else does it that way, but because it's the best way for you to do it! There may be some physical challenges with which the athlete is dealing. Those must not be ignored and many times it will result in an accommodation to those challenges that make the delivery look a little different. Just remember, slide straight, keep the delivery as simple as possible and make the release silent!
There are so many other aspects of your skill set that need attention, mostly on the "warm side of the glass". If you're spending hours upon hours searching for that perfect delivery, you're short changing areas that are just, if not more important that your curling delivery. For example, how much time have you spent developing the skills necessary to preserve and protect that curling delivery you've worked so hard to attain in training so that it will not break down in competition? Hmmm, little or none? I rest my case!
Since this coach works mostly with athletes at an early stage of development, I'll also add what I hope is obvious. Each of those little rockers and bantams are changing physically and for some, in dramatic fashion. Their curling delivery will change regularly and sometimes, in one of those "transition" phases where co-ordination is a little behind physical development, that curling delivery might look pretty ragged. Not to worry, everything will catch up!
I'll touch on another myth in curling, at least in my opinion and I've written about this recently. It's about the selection of a coach. The myth is that any elite player with an enviable track record will make an equally outstanding coach by default. That elite player might indeed become an elite coach but it won't be because of his/her playing career. It will be for other reasons he/she will learn as his/her coaching career flourishes. There are playing skills and there are coaching skills. Full stop! (See "The Anatomy of a Curling Coach" [3/1/13] on this site.)
#2 What are the biggest mistakes novices make in the curling delivery? Even at the elite level, what mistakes are most common?
When I see recreational curlers, either in a clinic setting or in games at their curling facility, I see one aspect of the delivery that causes more missed shots than any other. It's the use of the sliding device! Most curlers use their brush as their sliding device although some use other means (i.e. stabilizer). If a novice uses his/her brush, usually they start with the brush in a reasonably good position (i.e. the head of the brush is approximately opposite the leading edge of the stone). That head-opposite-stone relationship keeps the athlete "square" to the line of delivery, a really good thing when one is starting out and not a bad idea for the remainder of one's curling career I might add! The problem comes as the athlete slides forward, that head-opposite-stone relationship begins to break down to the point that for many novices, at the most critical time in the delivery (the release), the brush head is now well behind the stone resulting in an upper body "bent out of shape" (twisted) to the point that "square-to-the-line-of-delivery" is just a memory. Delivering the stone along its intended line is now a challenge that rarely succeeds.
To compound the problem, many times, in fact most of the time, the curler will not realize that the relationship between brush head and stone as broken down (enter "visual recording"). When the athlete sees it, he/she will believe it!
I'll mention another issue with novice curlers and it's the sliding foot. When the novice slides he/she should be able to feel that the weight of the body is evenly distributed on the slider (side-to-side & front-to-back). When a novice does that, two really good things occur. First, it's virtually impossible to "drift" (another challenge that seems to present itself to novices). Second, the velocity that's generated from the hack will be maintained for a longer period of time thus making weight control easier.
I'll make one statement re. elite curlers. Some elite curlers are that way not because of their curling delivery, but rather in spite of it. No, wild horses will not draw out who I feel falls into that second category so don't even ask but there are several in my view.
Recreational curlers need to understand that what they see on TV is the end product of several years of dedicated training, not always under the watchful eye of a certified coach/instructor and the athlete participates in a very narrow competitive environment. As a result, he/she has customized the delivery, brushing etc. to meets those very specific, narrow needs. What you don't see on TV are the long hours of practising with the basics that were taught to him/her at a very early stage of his/her career.
Listen to the advice of your certified coach and when you watch TV, enjoy it for what it is!
#3 What are the key principles for better, more consistent deliveries? What would the progression of exercises or drills look like?
I like this question for what it "assumes". It assumes the curler will practise, what a novel idea! So let's "assume" that the curler will take some time to work on the consistency that seems so elusive to so many. To be sure, there is a very small minority of athletes in a sporting endeavours who practise infrequently who will, by their standards, achieve acceptable results. In my four categories of curlers (recreational, serious, competitive and elite) only recreational curlers get away with this premise/rationale. I have great respect for recreational curlers but to be honest, they really don't give a "tinker's damn" if they play well or not. They have the time of their life on the ice with people with whom they enjoy curling and the w's & l's also don't enter into the picture. Despite my encouragement to spend some time improving their skills with the goal of enhancement of the experience, it mostly falls on deaf ears. It's simply not high on the priority list so Bill, get over it.
For those in the remaining three groups, practise, meaningful and based upon sound training principles (as taught by a certified instructor so that practise doesn't end up making the curler simply very good at doing the wrong thing) is the key to consistency. There's no short cut! If there was, I think I'd know about it but to date, it doesn't exist!
The second portion of this question refers to exercises and drills. I'll touch on one I like and hope readers who have not already done so, will purchase a copy of "A Pane in the Glass: A Coach's Companion" to learn about others. I feel placing paper cups on varying lines of delivery with the athlete (with or without sliding device 7 without a stone) trying to knock the cup(s) down with the sliding foot is very beneficial!
While I was answering the questions sent to me by the bantam coach, I had another coach ask about "peaking" and whether I had an material on the subject. I said I didn't per se so I'd do some research on that topic and report back. I'm into the research and will report back in my next post. Stay tuned!
I recently received some "interesting" questions from a coach who works extensively with "little rockers" and a competitive bantam team. I want to congratulate this coach's efforts, especially with the "little rockers". They are our future. I felt his questions were ones that might have a broader appeal than a simple e-mail response on my part. That said, here are the questions and my responses to them.
#1 What are the biggest mistakes & myths you see in curling training? What are the biggest wastes of time?
I have heard more than one expert refer to our sport as the "technocentric" sport (my spell checker does not recognize "technocentric" but I think you get the idea). As seen by others outside curling, we are obsessed with our curling deliveries, obsessed! Clearly, those outside the sport of curling see us as way over the top regarding the technical aspects of the game. Generally, I agree but I'm quick to add that one's curling delivery is his/her signature skill. It's what defines us in the sport and no, we do not have to all look the same as we deliver the curling stone. I have written about this in a number of articles in "A Pane in the Glass: A Coach's Companion" so I'll be succinct here when I say that your delivery needs to meet three criteria in my view. It must be straight, simple & silent (the title of the very first article every penned by yours truly). But here's the "waste of time" part, it does NOT have to be perfect! I feel very strongly that too many aspiring, high performance athletes spend in inordinate amount of time trying to perfect the curling delivery! Each one of us, given that we got a good start in the game by receiving instruction from a certified instructor so that we do not make obvious mistakes, has a very "serviceable" delivery inside of us. The goal of a good instructor/coach is to help you let that delivery "out" and make you aware of why it's the best way for you to deliver a curling stone, not because anyone else does it that way, but because it's the best way for you to do it! There may be some physical challenges with which the athlete is dealing. Those must not be ignored and many times it will result in an accommodation to those challenges that make the delivery look a little different. Just remember, slide straight, keep the delivery as simple as possible and make the release silent!
There are so many other aspects of your skill set that need attention, mostly on the "warm side of the glass". If you're spending hours upon hours searching for that perfect delivery, you're short changing areas that are just, if not more important that your curling delivery. For example, how much time have you spent developing the skills necessary to preserve and protect that curling delivery you've worked so hard to attain in training so that it will not break down in competition? Hmmm, little or none? I rest my case!
Since this coach works mostly with athletes at an early stage of development, I'll also add what I hope is obvious. Each of those little rockers and bantams are changing physically and for some, in dramatic fashion. Their curling delivery will change regularly and sometimes, in one of those "transition" phases where co-ordination is a little behind physical development, that curling delivery might look pretty ragged. Not to worry, everything will catch up!
I'll touch on another myth in curling, at least in my opinion and I've written about this recently. It's about the selection of a coach. The myth is that any elite player with an enviable track record will make an equally outstanding coach by default. That elite player might indeed become an elite coach but it won't be because of his/her playing career. It will be for other reasons he/she will learn as his/her coaching career flourishes. There are playing skills and there are coaching skills. Full stop! (See "The Anatomy of a Curling Coach" [3/1/13] on this site.)
#2 What are the biggest mistakes novices make in the curling delivery? Even at the elite level, what mistakes are most common?
When I see recreational curlers, either in a clinic setting or in games at their curling facility, I see one aspect of the delivery that causes more missed shots than any other. It's the use of the sliding device! Most curlers use their brush as their sliding device although some use other means (i.e. stabilizer). If a novice uses his/her brush, usually they start with the brush in a reasonably good position (i.e. the head of the brush is approximately opposite the leading edge of the stone). That head-opposite-stone relationship keeps the athlete "square" to the line of delivery, a really good thing when one is starting out and not a bad idea for the remainder of one's curling career I might add! The problem comes as the athlete slides forward, that head-opposite-stone relationship begins to break down to the point that for many novices, at the most critical time in the delivery (the release), the brush head is now well behind the stone resulting in an upper body "bent out of shape" (twisted) to the point that "square-to-the-line-of-delivery" is just a memory. Delivering the stone along its intended line is now a challenge that rarely succeeds.
To compound the problem, many times, in fact most of the time, the curler will not realize that the relationship between brush head and stone as broken down (enter "visual recording"). When the athlete sees it, he/she will believe it!
I'll mention another issue with novice curlers and it's the sliding foot. When the novice slides he/she should be able to feel that the weight of the body is evenly distributed on the slider (side-to-side & front-to-back). When a novice does that, two really good things occur. First, it's virtually impossible to "drift" (another challenge that seems to present itself to novices). Second, the velocity that's generated from the hack will be maintained for a longer period of time thus making weight control easier.
I'll make one statement re. elite curlers. Some elite curlers are that way not because of their curling delivery, but rather in spite of it. No, wild horses will not draw out who I feel falls into that second category so don't even ask but there are several in my view.
Recreational curlers need to understand that what they see on TV is the end product of several years of dedicated training, not always under the watchful eye of a certified coach/instructor and the athlete participates in a very narrow competitive environment. As a result, he/she has customized the delivery, brushing etc. to meets those very specific, narrow needs. What you don't see on TV are the long hours of practising with the basics that were taught to him/her at a very early stage of his/her career.
Listen to the advice of your certified coach and when you watch TV, enjoy it for what it is!
#3 What are the key principles for better, more consistent deliveries? What would the progression of exercises or drills look like?
I like this question for what it "assumes". It assumes the curler will practise, what a novel idea! So let's "assume" that the curler will take some time to work on the consistency that seems so elusive to so many. To be sure, there is a very small minority of athletes in a sporting endeavours who practise infrequently who will, by their standards, achieve acceptable results. In my four categories of curlers (recreational, serious, competitive and elite) only recreational curlers get away with this premise/rationale. I have great respect for recreational curlers but to be honest, they really don't give a "tinker's damn" if they play well or not. They have the time of their life on the ice with people with whom they enjoy curling and the w's & l's also don't enter into the picture. Despite my encouragement to spend some time improving their skills with the goal of enhancement of the experience, it mostly falls on deaf ears. It's simply not high on the priority list so Bill, get over it.
For those in the remaining three groups, practise, meaningful and based upon sound training principles (as taught by a certified instructor so that practise doesn't end up making the curler simply very good at doing the wrong thing) is the key to consistency. There's no short cut! If there was, I think I'd know about it but to date, it doesn't exist!
The second portion of this question refers to exercises and drills. I'll touch on one I like and hope readers who have not already done so, will purchase a copy of "A Pane in the Glass: A Coach's Companion" to learn about others. I feel placing paper cups on varying lines of delivery with the athlete (with or without sliding device 7 without a stone) trying to knock the cup(s) down with the sliding foot is very beneficial!
While I was answering the questions sent to me by the bantam coach, I had another coach ask about "peaking" and whether I had an material on the subject. I said I didn't per se so I'd do some research on that topic and report back. I'm into the research and will report back in my next post. Stay tuned!
Monday, June 3, 2013
You Do This At Your Own Peril
This has been a tough week or so for coaches of elite teams. The Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League released the entire coaching staff from their coaching duties, a move that has brought more than its share of scepticism here on the left coast of Canada!
More recently, the curling world was notified that Team Ulsrud had decided to part ways with their long time coach Ole Ingvaldsen. I'm not here to judge the validity of these decisions but one thing is certain from where I sit, when you change coaches, you do so at your own peril!
In the case of a professional team making a coaching change, the stakes are different from that of an amateur curling team as the money involved is so vastly different. So why does a professional team, regardless of the sport, make such a change?
In some cases, you hear that the coach "has lost the room". That curious phrase refers to the team locker room and indicates that the coach's words are now falling on deaf ears as he/she tries to inspire the team to greater heights of performance by inspirational locker room verbiage. Occasionally, key players will have issues with the coach's style, and all that comes with that, at which time the seeds of discontent will have been sown among the rest of the roster. In most cases, as has happened with the firing of the New York Rangers (NHL) head coach, John Tortorella, the team simply has not performed to expectations (Coach Tortorella's ascerbic attitude, especially with the NY media, didn't help his cause).
The dynamics are also very different for a professional teams as there are two layers of administration that just don't exist with an elite curling team, notably the team owner(s) and the general manager. This unholy alliance of owner, GM & coach can be a curious one.
Owners come in all different flavours. Some just like to own a professional sports team and leave the front office and on the field/ice/court decisions to the GM and coach respectively. The owner happily just sign the cheques! Professional sport team owners have D-E-E-P pockets!!!! Then you get the Jerry Jones (Dallas Cowboys [NFL]) of the world who feel that ownership gives them all the rights and privileges of GM, coach and players. To say Mr. Jones and his like are "hands on owners" would be like saying a hurricane is a stiff breeze. Thankfully, most owners of professional sport teams fall somewhere in the middle. Then you have the NFL's Green Bay Packers whose owner is the City of Green Bay. Yes, each resident of Green Bay, WI can say he/she is an owner.
General managers are now much more prominent in the triumvirate than ever before, to the point that some teams are known more for their GM than owner or coach ("Can you say Sir Alex Ferguson, formerly of Manchester United of the English Premiership?")!
For those reading this who might be unfamiliar with the roles and responsibilities of a GM, it's his/her task to "put the team together" by signing players to contractual obligations. The coach then takes those players signed by the GM and tries to make them greater than the sum of their parts. Occasionally, one person will take on both roles, GM & coach but that is relatively rare in modern times as it's a burdensome responbility. One doesn't have to be a genius to figure out that if a GM and coach work well together and have the best interests of the team at heart, along with an understanding and supportive owner, you have a winning combination. And the best part is that the players will recognize the harmony among the three and usually respond in kind.
There is a "pecking order" among owner, GM & coach and that's it, owner, GM & coach. You'll notice that the coach is at the bottom of the totem pole. In the case of the Vancouver Canucks, the owners of the team are a family, the "Aquilini" family and the GM is Mike Gillis. The coaching position is currently vacant but for the last seven years was filled by Alain Vigneault and his staff. When a new GM comes on the scene, usually he/she wants to choose the coach with whom he/she will work. That was not the case in Vancouver but now it will be as GM Mike Gillis searches for a new head coach.
There are many Canuck fans who feel, as do I, that the person doing the firing, in this case the aforementioned Mr. Gillis, should have been the one to leave but if that were the case, it would have to be the Aquilini's who did the firing and that didn't happen and in fact, when Gillis went to the family with the idea of a coaching change, the family clearly agreed.
When a team replaces the coach, it's a risky move due to the message it sends. Alain Vigneault was recently recognized by the NHL's "Coach of the Year" award. I don't think he's lost his coaching skills since that award was bestowed upon him. In fact, he's very likely a better coach now from a skills, experience and knowledge perspective. Did he "lose the room"? There was no indication that had occurred. Historically when that's the reason, the "leaks" are numerous. So I feel we can stroke that off the list. Do the players simply need to hear a different voice? That might hold some water.
Coaches have an expiration date. It's a daunting task to keep the challenges in practice and games fresh. Sooner or later, the message, valid and as fresh as it can be, starts to fall on those deaf ears. It's really difficult to turn that truck around!
Sometimes, as in the case of Coach Vigneault, the Aquilini's and GM Gillis felt the culture surrounding the team needed changing. Do you replace 10 or so players or the coach? Clearly it's easier to change the culture by replacing the coach but is that the "message" you really want to send because there will be players who will see the coaching change as a validation of the attitude/culture the players espoused. I feel when the coach and his staff are of such a quality that they are quite likely the best you might have at the time, it's a better message to retain the coaching staff which then tacitly let's the players know it's their performance that's the problem.
History has shown that franchises that hire an excellent coaching staff and stick with them through thick and thin, in the long run, the team does quite well thank you very much!
I cite teams like the Dallas Cowboys and their long time coach, Tom Landry. In the NHL there's one team that has had the same coach for its entire existence. That team is the Nashville Predators and that coach is the diminutive Barry Trotts who for all the world looks more like your local bank manager than the coach of a professional hockey team. The point is that the Nashville Predators are not thought of as a real challenger for Lord Stanley's mug but they are a competitive team. Fans going to the games know they are going to see a team with a legitimate chance to compete for the "w" and take a serious run at the playoffs even though they don't make the post season games every season. The players seem to like playing for Coach Trotts and his coaching staff and the management of the team appears to be able to assemble a group of athletes who perform well. Hello!!!!
In the case of the Vancouver Canucks, given the success the team has had in regular season in spite of the goal tending fiasco with Cory Schneider and Roberto Loungo coupled with the early exits from the playoffs in recent years, a case could easily be made that Coach Vigneault and his staff were the only ones in the organization that did a good job, perhaps an excellent job that they were the ones who were relieved of their duties.
Look, every coach knows that when he/she signs a contract, at some point he/she will be replaced. It's just the nature of the beast. And, as some will contend, the coach is the most responsible for the "culture" in which a team operates (along with the owner, GM and even the fans), if it's agreed that the culture must change, well, do the math, as stated above, it's a lot easier to change the coach (and his staff) than 10 players! And back one last time to the Vancouver situation, many feel if there WAS a solid reason for the coaching change, that might be the one.
Even though I've painted the coach as something of a poor third party in the organizational triad, if the league needs an element of change (as with the "head shot" issue with the NHL) if the league gets the coaches on board, the players will follow as it's my belief that no player acts contrary to the dictates of the coach and remains an active player for very long. Even in professional sports, the players will do what the coach instructs them to do. There are head shots in the NHL because the coaches have not acted against them! Full stop!
On the day of the publishing of this post, there are only four teams, interestingly enough, the last four Stanley Cup Champions, remaining in the NHL playoffs. There are a number of coaching vacancies in the league and a number of both rookie and experienced coaches from which to choose. It's going to be an interesting few weeks as teams make their selections.
But most of you reading this are from the world of curling and coaching at the highest levels in our sport follow a very different set of guidelines. For example, we might be the only team sport where the coach is selected last. Usually the team has been formed and then a coach is sought. I hope that will change over time. The sooner a team aligns itself with a certified coach, the better that team will function and the more efficiently it will function. I don't want this post to be a diatribe on the value of a certified coach but suffice to say we now have athletes in our sport who have always had a coach. The days of the elite teams going it alone are over!
My post of 3/1/13 ("The Anatomy of a Curling Coach") delved into the perils of selecting as coach, a recently retired elite player, thinking that the value of someone who has been there, done that and has the T-shirt is a wise decision. Clearly that's a choice that's fraught with peril. I won't regurgitate the details on this matter. I'll leave you to read the post.
Team Ulsrud has decided that the team has plateaued. It simply needs to hear a different voice. If you have seen the team play of late, it's clear that something that was once there, is gone. I don't know what it is, although I do have my suspicions, but the team feels a different voice is in order. But, they've replaced their coach and his enviable track record, with a retired player. Since that former, very successful and likable player retired, he may indeed have spent time getting certified. If so, then it's a good decision. If not, well, Team Ulsrud, you have rolled the dice. I hope luck is on your side!
Right now, there's a crisis in coaching in curling. Simply put, there are many more elite teams than there are elite coaches. There just aren't enough to go around. I feel one of the reasons is that the impetus for many coaches is their son or daughter who wishes to play competitively as a junior athlete. When the athlete ages out, the certified parent/coach stops coaching. We need more of those coaches to continue. Even though your son or daughter may not have chosen to continue down the competitive path for a variety of very good reasons, you're missing out on the opportunity to grow as a coach with a young adult elite team that would benefit greatly from your certification, experience and skills.
If you're one of those coaches whose coaching career stopped when your son or daughter aged out of juniors, please consider returning to the coaching ranks. I can tell you from personal experience that's its rewards are as much intrinsic as they are extrinsic! Contact me if you'd like to talk (billchpc@shaw.ca)!
Now that there are no Canadian-based teams remaining in the NHL playoffs, I'm pulling for those Penguins of Pittsburgh so Jarome Iginla can finally get the Stanley Cup ring that the Tampa Bay Lightning "stole" in 2004 (in game #6, Martin Gelina's goal was "in")!
More recently, the curling world was notified that Team Ulsrud had decided to part ways with their long time coach Ole Ingvaldsen. I'm not here to judge the validity of these decisions but one thing is certain from where I sit, when you change coaches, you do so at your own peril!
In the case of a professional team making a coaching change, the stakes are different from that of an amateur curling team as the money involved is so vastly different. So why does a professional team, regardless of the sport, make such a change?
In some cases, you hear that the coach "has lost the room". That curious phrase refers to the team locker room and indicates that the coach's words are now falling on deaf ears as he/she tries to inspire the team to greater heights of performance by inspirational locker room verbiage. Occasionally, key players will have issues with the coach's style, and all that comes with that, at which time the seeds of discontent will have been sown among the rest of the roster. In most cases, as has happened with the firing of the New York Rangers (NHL) head coach, John Tortorella, the team simply has not performed to expectations (Coach Tortorella's ascerbic attitude, especially with the NY media, didn't help his cause).
The dynamics are also very different for a professional teams as there are two layers of administration that just don't exist with an elite curling team, notably the team owner(s) and the general manager. This unholy alliance of owner, GM & coach can be a curious one.
Owners come in all different flavours. Some just like to own a professional sports team and leave the front office and on the field/ice/court decisions to the GM and coach respectively. The owner happily just sign the cheques! Professional sport team owners have D-E-E-P pockets!!!! Then you get the Jerry Jones (Dallas Cowboys [NFL]) of the world who feel that ownership gives them all the rights and privileges of GM, coach and players. To say Mr. Jones and his like are "hands on owners" would be like saying a hurricane is a stiff breeze. Thankfully, most owners of professional sport teams fall somewhere in the middle. Then you have the NFL's Green Bay Packers whose owner is the City of Green Bay. Yes, each resident of Green Bay, WI can say he/she is an owner.
General managers are now much more prominent in the triumvirate than ever before, to the point that some teams are known more for their GM than owner or coach ("Can you say Sir Alex Ferguson, formerly of Manchester United of the English Premiership?")!
For those reading this who might be unfamiliar with the roles and responsibilities of a GM, it's his/her task to "put the team together" by signing players to contractual obligations. The coach then takes those players signed by the GM and tries to make them greater than the sum of their parts. Occasionally, one person will take on both roles, GM & coach but that is relatively rare in modern times as it's a burdensome responbility. One doesn't have to be a genius to figure out that if a GM and coach work well together and have the best interests of the team at heart, along with an understanding and supportive owner, you have a winning combination. And the best part is that the players will recognize the harmony among the three and usually respond in kind.
There is a "pecking order" among owner, GM & coach and that's it, owner, GM & coach. You'll notice that the coach is at the bottom of the totem pole. In the case of the Vancouver Canucks, the owners of the team are a family, the "Aquilini" family and the GM is Mike Gillis. The coaching position is currently vacant but for the last seven years was filled by Alain Vigneault and his staff. When a new GM comes on the scene, usually he/she wants to choose the coach with whom he/she will work. That was not the case in Vancouver but now it will be as GM Mike Gillis searches for a new head coach.
There are many Canuck fans who feel, as do I, that the person doing the firing, in this case the aforementioned Mr. Gillis, should have been the one to leave but if that were the case, it would have to be the Aquilini's who did the firing and that didn't happen and in fact, when Gillis went to the family with the idea of a coaching change, the family clearly agreed.
When a team replaces the coach, it's a risky move due to the message it sends. Alain Vigneault was recently recognized by the NHL's "Coach of the Year" award. I don't think he's lost his coaching skills since that award was bestowed upon him. In fact, he's very likely a better coach now from a skills, experience and knowledge perspective. Did he "lose the room"? There was no indication that had occurred. Historically when that's the reason, the "leaks" are numerous. So I feel we can stroke that off the list. Do the players simply need to hear a different voice? That might hold some water.
Coaches have an expiration date. It's a daunting task to keep the challenges in practice and games fresh. Sooner or later, the message, valid and as fresh as it can be, starts to fall on those deaf ears. It's really difficult to turn that truck around!
Sometimes, as in the case of Coach Vigneault, the Aquilini's and GM Gillis felt the culture surrounding the team needed changing. Do you replace 10 or so players or the coach? Clearly it's easier to change the culture by replacing the coach but is that the "message" you really want to send because there will be players who will see the coaching change as a validation of the attitude/culture the players espoused. I feel when the coach and his staff are of such a quality that they are quite likely the best you might have at the time, it's a better message to retain the coaching staff which then tacitly let's the players know it's their performance that's the problem.
History has shown that franchises that hire an excellent coaching staff and stick with them through thick and thin, in the long run, the team does quite well thank you very much!
I cite teams like the Dallas Cowboys and their long time coach, Tom Landry. In the NHL there's one team that has had the same coach for its entire existence. That team is the Nashville Predators and that coach is the diminutive Barry Trotts who for all the world looks more like your local bank manager than the coach of a professional hockey team. The point is that the Nashville Predators are not thought of as a real challenger for Lord Stanley's mug but they are a competitive team. Fans going to the games know they are going to see a team with a legitimate chance to compete for the "w" and take a serious run at the playoffs even though they don't make the post season games every season. The players seem to like playing for Coach Trotts and his coaching staff and the management of the team appears to be able to assemble a group of athletes who perform well. Hello!!!!
In the case of the Vancouver Canucks, given the success the team has had in regular season in spite of the goal tending fiasco with Cory Schneider and Roberto Loungo coupled with the early exits from the playoffs in recent years, a case could easily be made that Coach Vigneault and his staff were the only ones in the organization that did a good job, perhaps an excellent job that they were the ones who were relieved of their duties.
Look, every coach knows that when he/she signs a contract, at some point he/she will be replaced. It's just the nature of the beast. And, as some will contend, the coach is the most responsible for the "culture" in which a team operates (along with the owner, GM and even the fans), if it's agreed that the culture must change, well, do the math, as stated above, it's a lot easier to change the coach (and his staff) than 10 players! And back one last time to the Vancouver situation, many feel if there WAS a solid reason for the coaching change, that might be the one.
Even though I've painted the coach as something of a poor third party in the organizational triad, if the league needs an element of change (as with the "head shot" issue with the NHL) if the league gets the coaches on board, the players will follow as it's my belief that no player acts contrary to the dictates of the coach and remains an active player for very long. Even in professional sports, the players will do what the coach instructs them to do. There are head shots in the NHL because the coaches have not acted against them! Full stop!
On the day of the publishing of this post, there are only four teams, interestingly enough, the last four Stanley Cup Champions, remaining in the NHL playoffs. There are a number of coaching vacancies in the league and a number of both rookie and experienced coaches from which to choose. It's going to be an interesting few weeks as teams make their selections.
But most of you reading this are from the world of curling and coaching at the highest levels in our sport follow a very different set of guidelines. For example, we might be the only team sport where the coach is selected last. Usually the team has been formed and then a coach is sought. I hope that will change over time. The sooner a team aligns itself with a certified coach, the better that team will function and the more efficiently it will function. I don't want this post to be a diatribe on the value of a certified coach but suffice to say we now have athletes in our sport who have always had a coach. The days of the elite teams going it alone are over!
My post of 3/1/13 ("The Anatomy of a Curling Coach") delved into the perils of selecting as coach, a recently retired elite player, thinking that the value of someone who has been there, done that and has the T-shirt is a wise decision. Clearly that's a choice that's fraught with peril. I won't regurgitate the details on this matter. I'll leave you to read the post.
Team Ulsrud has decided that the team has plateaued. It simply needs to hear a different voice. If you have seen the team play of late, it's clear that something that was once there, is gone. I don't know what it is, although I do have my suspicions, but the team feels a different voice is in order. But, they've replaced their coach and his enviable track record, with a retired player. Since that former, very successful and likable player retired, he may indeed have spent time getting certified. If so, then it's a good decision. If not, well, Team Ulsrud, you have rolled the dice. I hope luck is on your side!
Right now, there's a crisis in coaching in curling. Simply put, there are many more elite teams than there are elite coaches. There just aren't enough to go around. I feel one of the reasons is that the impetus for many coaches is their son or daughter who wishes to play competitively as a junior athlete. When the athlete ages out, the certified parent/coach stops coaching. We need more of those coaches to continue. Even though your son or daughter may not have chosen to continue down the competitive path for a variety of very good reasons, you're missing out on the opportunity to grow as a coach with a young adult elite team that would benefit greatly from your certification, experience and skills.
If you're one of those coaches whose coaching career stopped when your son or daughter aged out of juniors, please consider returning to the coaching ranks. I can tell you from personal experience that's its rewards are as much intrinsic as they are extrinsic! Contact me if you'd like to talk (billchpc@shaw.ca)!
Now that there are no Canadian-based teams remaining in the NHL playoffs, I'm pulling for those Penguins of Pittsburgh so Jarome Iginla can finally get the Stanley Cup ring that the Tampa Bay Lightning "stole" in 2004 (in game #6, Martin Gelina's goal was "in")!
Thursday, May 23, 2013
A Book & A Movie
For those who read my blogs regularly, and thank you for that, as you can see the posts are not coming at you at the rate they once were. There's two reasons for that.
It is, finally, the end of a long curling season and two, for those of you who visit Facebook will know, I have purchased a home (see photo) on the south end of Lake Cowichan about 1.5 hours north of Victoria. One of my lake neighbours is Elaine Dagg-Jackson (although she and husband Glen are only summer residents and are at the north end of the lake [I can hear her now, "There goes the neighbourhood"]). Now that the move in process is winding down, I've been able to put feet up and get caught up on some reading and watching a movie that has been on my "must see" list for a few months. I don't make it a habit of foisting my likes and dislikes upon others and as a result, I'm not one for saying, "Heh, I read this book or I saw this movie and you just have to read it and see it!". Well, in light of what I've just said, you do have to read "The Gold Mine Effect" and see, if you haven't already, "Seven Days in Utopia"! First, the book.
"The Gold Mine Effect" is the work of author Rasmus Ankersen, a Danish footballer whose professional career was stopped before it got started due to injury. When his elite football (soccer for those reading in NA) was over, he turned to trying to solve a mystery in the world of sports, notably why pockets of the world were producing world class athletes at a disproportionate rate. Why does a track & field club in Jamaica with no running track, save a grass oval, produce so many elite sprinters? And why do two towns, one in Kenya and the other in Ethiopia, produce so many of the world's great middle and long distance runners (it's not genes nor topography)? What's happening in Russia and Korea to spin out so many highly skills female athletes in tennis and golf respectively? And what's with the coaches (author Ankersen calls them "godfathers") in these "gold mines" that none played the sport they now coach? Ankersen wanted to know what the secret was in these gold mines. You'll be surprised to learn the secret (hint, there actually isn't one)!
Those of us in North America (athletes & coaches) are going to have our core beliefs sorely tested by what Ankersen uncovers (better tighten that chin strap once again)!!!
"Seven Days in Utopia" is the story of a golfer (Luke Chisolm [played by Lucas Black]) who, after a disastrous first outing on the pro tour lost his skill set, or at least he thought he did until, quite unexpectedly he wound up in a Texas town, population 373, called "Utopia" and met up with "Johnny Crawford" (played by Robert Duvall) who demonstrated that his skills had not vanished. But how Johnny Crawford did it will, quite frankly put a chill up your spine and make your hair stand on end. It's one of those "feel good" movies that seem so rare today. Warning; there's no sex, violence or computer animation! It's about the human spirit and how we "think" makes us what we "are"! You'll find out why the young golfer, Lucas, puts S-F-T on his golf balls.
There is a surprise ending, at least an ending that will make you wonder, "Did he make the putt?" and lead you to a web site for the answer. For coaches, it shows us that there are many more ways to help athletes than by taking them to the sport specific venue for some intensive, coach-directed training. But enough said, enjoy the movie. You'll not see the world quite the same again!
THE GOLD MINE EFFECT - Rasmus Ankersen ISBN 978-1-44342-057-0
SEVEN DAYS IN UTOPIA (available on iTunes & Google Play to buy or rent) starring Robert Duvall
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