who is a coach?

[aussie]

I was enquiring who of the people on this board are coaches?

and what do they see as the highlight of coaching and the role for teaching others?

i myself have fenced since for over ten years and coached for the last five, im still learning and will never stop learning.

i coach in all three weapons and train in all three.

i find the highlight of coaching is when a new fencer starts, especially children, and they are trying to learn a parry riposte. They get perplexed and stuck on trying to do it properly. But when they get it right, you couldnt wipe the smile off there faces, as they tell and show everyone.

thats what keeps me going, seeing the satisfaction in people once they have struggled to learn something and then finally get it, to them its heaven.

what are your thoughts?

[Dame d'escrime]

I'm in Heaven!

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You CAN teach old dogs new tricks.

[Peach]

I coach young kids in fencing, in an after-school program a couple of afternoons a week, and what makes me happy is when a child who isn't succeeding in school, who is the underdog, and who is not coordinated or a natural athlete, takes to fencing and is good at it.

I can't tell you how wonderful it is to give a kid that opportunity to succeed. There's nothing like it-- a child who struggles with reading and writing, who labors all the time in class just to survive, turns into a fencer with form, style, and imagination, who can take charge of a bout and out-fence someone a head taller than him. I teach them in regular academic classes at the same school as well, so I see them blossom elsewhere in their lives as a result of fencing.

My coach wanted me to coach at our club because he knows I'm a teacher, and I went through Coaches College a couple of times, but frankly when I'm at the club I want to be a fencer, not a coach or a referee or even a parent of a fencer, so I quit doing that. That's the down side of coaching--it steals my concentration from my fencing.

[attila]

HI

I teach a basic fencing class once a week and coach a dozen or so fencers the rest of the time. Somwhere in between I actually fence.

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"Kill the men, save the women, and by the gods, do not spill the wine"

[Purple Fencer]

Well, I may not be an official coach, but I think every one of us here who's been out on for a while has coached his/her less experienced teammates while at a tourney.

I was actually asked to coach one of our kids during his first DE bout at Jr. PCCs two years ago. I was flattered that his parents woudl ask me and I took it seriously. He didn't stop looking at the box, but I like to think I did some good. I still step into the role when a teammate's out there. They do the same for me, and nothing says that a first year guy can't give an experienced guy a pointer or two. it's happened.

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Sam Signorelli -- Boldly going forward...'cause I can't find reverse!

[oiuyt]

I coach the team at UMass.

The best part is taking a group of people that have never fenced before and may or may not have done organized sports before and watching them develop and grow into athletes over a couple of years.

-B

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"Oh but you can't expect to wield supreme executive power just because some watery tart threw a sword at you!"

[The Bayer Hunter]

It's heaven when you learn how to do something new. Nothing on this earth beats the feeling. Keep up the good work, Aussie.

[aussie]

it would not be so enjoyable without the students! all coaches do is direct their growth.