Getting Coaches Info

[littlekateskate]

Okay here is where i need help. I am wanting to inquire about one of the coaches at the rink that I am interested in. But where they have posted "bios" about all the coaches all this one says is 27+ years experience ect ect. How can I find info out about a coach without asking around the rink. If I do that I am worried people will talk and of course figure things out. But I dont want to drop a coach without having some kind of idea what direction I am heading in.

I have tried google but nothing :( lol.. Ugh when the internet cant pull through for you.. The ultimate bummer :) hehe

[hepcat]

At my rink, you can talk to the skating school director. She can help you find a personality match, if that's what you're looking for. What type of information were you wanting to know about?

[littlekateskate]

Actual skating level completed, psa rating if that is even possible, prices, level of students, I guess just basic coach info.

[Virtualsk8r]

What about getting the coaches phone number and calling them? The questions you want answers to are the ones coaches get all the time when people are interested in taking lessons from them. The coach should be open about prices, etc. and you can check out their PSA rating if they won't tell you - with the PSA can't you?

No coach will take on a new student until the bills are paid to the old coach, and that coaching relationship has been officially severed - otherwise you break the coaching ethics code. But coaches will discuss potential situations with potential students fyi rather than as a commitment for lessons.

In this world of internet googling, and email reliance - people often forget the best approach is just talking to someone on the phone or in person!

[kayskate]

The general info you want is available through the skating school. Remember a coach who was a nat'l champ, etc is not necessarily a good teacher or has the personality that works for you. Once you get the info you need, you can always arrange for trial lessons to get to know some coaches that interest you. Make sure all of the coaches involved in your trial process know that you are asking for a trial lesson and are asking other coaches for the same. This may be a better approach than choosing one coach and wanting to change again.

Kay

[Virtualsk8r]

The general info you want is available through the skating school. Remember a coach who was a nat'l champ, etc is not necessarily a good teacher or has the personality that works for you. Once you get the info you need, you can always arrange for trial lessons to get to know some coaches that interest you. Make sure all of the coaches involved in your trial process know that you are asking for a trial lesson and are asking other coaches for the same. This may be a better approach than choosing one coach and wanting to change again.

Kay

Excellent advice! I've had lessons with World and Olympic medallists - who really didn't know what they were talking about. They knew how to perform the jumps but couldn't translate that into teaching someone how to do it.......and I've had lessons from coaches who were not greatj competitive skaters, and as a result learned to understand the jumps the hard way and were excellent at conveying that to students.

Also - national and elite coaches are generally more interested in their national/elite skaters rather than LTS graduates - because that's where the prestige is. LTS take 10 years to get to the really competitive stage and way too much effort for some of them. Instead, find a coach with good success at turning LTS/beginners into competitive skaters that move on to an elite coach....That's who taught the elite hotshots HOW to skate -- not the prestigious elite coach!

BTW my elite coach was always away at competitions when I was younger and not competitive.......so I missed lots of lessons anyway.....and I found that when he was around, I was just a way to pay the mortgage (we used to joke about what part of his BMW we paid for)..... because elite skaters often don't pay the bills as much as reliable LTS/ waiting to be competitive clients.

[littlekateskate]

Wow, everyone just keeps jumping to conclusions. IF people remember when i commented in another post about the "elite" coach i said he was at a different rink that my daughter doesnt take lessons from.

I am not out there trying to find some fabulous coach. I am just wanting to get more info on one of hte other LTS coaches my daughter has had before. Our club sites have little mini bios online about the coaches. But not this particular one.

Is there an actual way to get a psa rating online? I have contacted the skating director but heck she is the one who recommended the current coach. lol.. Anyway I was just trying to get info without asking around so my current coach wouldnt know before me talking to her.

[littlekateskate]

And to add note. I recieved email back from the skating school director. Whose only advice was to contact each coach directly to get their information. It was an anonymous letter i gave her my daughters basic information.

I actually thought she might rerecommend someone but she did not. I would reall hate to start trial and error and be back where i started.

[Isk8NYC]

Is there an actual way to get a psa rating online? No there are no online directories for the PSA. You could try calling the PSA directly. If you have a skating club at your rink, they might also have info on the coaches' ratings.

[Skittl1321]

And to add note. I recieved email back from the skating school director. Whose only advice was to contact each coach directly to get their information. It was an anonymous letter i gave her my daughters basic information.

I actually thought she might rerecommend someone but she did not. I would reall hate to start trial and error and be back where i started.

This is all our skating director can do either. She isn't allowed to recommend someone- she just will tell you the name of the coaches at the rink. There is a brochure with a bit of information about each coach, but not a lot. But to find out if they are a) taking students at that time, b) within your price range, c) good for your skill level, etc you have to approach the coach.

[littlekateskate]

I wish they would come up with a better system. It would eliminate alot of the trial and error in finding a coach. Its hard enough to switch a coach anyways.

We dont have a brochure but its a wonderful idea.

This same director was the one who recommended our current coach. She didnt know who i was in the last contact with her maybe if so she would have rerecommended someone i dont know.

[techskater]

Skating directors rarely recommend anyone because they don't want to be liable if it doesn't work out. Not every coach no matter who or what they are level-wise work for everyone. Any skating director with any sense wants to stay out of that potential sticky situation.

[twokidsskatemom]

Even if you get the psa rating ect, that doesnt mean its a good fit for your skater.You should watch lessons and see who you like and how they interact with the skaters.
You also might find some that dont even take skaters at basic levels.

[AshBugg44]

You should try to observe different coaches teaching. This will help you see their style of teaching and their general overall level of their students.

[Kristin]

I wish they would come up with a better system. It would eliminate alot of the trial and error in finding a coach. Its hard enough to switch a coach anyways.

This same director was the one who recommended our current coach. She didnt know who i was in the last contact with her maybe if so she would have rerecommended someone i dont know.

Yes, it is hard to switch coaches. We all have to do it at one time or another. :) Here are some things that I have done to make the transition smoother:

1.) Make sure your bill is paid in full with your current coach. You can't switch coaches without paying off the one you have.
2.) Watch other coaches' teaching styles with other skaters. Hopefully you will be able to see the coach you are considering work with several different skaters at different levels.
3.) Approach the coach you are interested in (privately) and ask if they have any openings or would consider teaching your daughter. Usually the coach will say that it is ok as long as your old coach is ok with the change. Agree to have a few trial lessons with the coach(es) you are considering.
4.) Talk to your old coach, explain that you would like to try out another coach to get some different perspectives on your child's skating. Make sure you talk to your old coach BEFORE you have any lessons with any new coaches.

Also, you could schedule lessons with several other coaches, not just one (have a few "trial" lessons) before making your final decision. Make sure all the coaches you have trial lessons with know that it is a trial period.

But before switching coaches, how does your daughter like her current coach? Does she look like she is having fun in her lessons? How do you think she will react if you make her change coaches? Because she is so young, my concern is that she will feel strangely about changing coaches (almost like losing a friend). Make sure that whatever you do, that you take her feelings into account, especially if you decide to do trial lessons with other coaches. Reason why I say this is because I have watched some parents make decisions about coaching/lessons without taking their kids' feelings into account (kids were under 6 yrs old) and the kids just get burned out in the end because it isn't fun anymore. I have watched kids who were 7 yrs old with an axel & 2 doubles just want to quit because their parents don't listen to them & turn the skating into work work work. I'm not saying you are like this; it's just an example of what I have seen happen.

[littlekateskate]

Kristin

That was wonderful advice to i am sure more than just me out there! Luckily one of the coaches I am hoping for I know my daughter loves! She has had this coach in lts before and progressed really well with him.

As for doing a coaches trial. It sounds nice and duable. When you guys do this how long do you make the lessons? Do you do half hour lesson once a week. I just think financially it could take some time to do trial lessons? How do you work with that.

[Skittl1321]

Kristin

That was wonderful advice to i am sure more than just me out there! Luckily one of the coaches I am hoping for I know my daughter loves! She has had this coach in lts before and progressed really well with him.

As for doing a coaches trial. It sounds nice and duable. When you guys do this how long do you make the lessons? Do you do half hour lesson once a week. I just think financially it could take some time to do trial lessons? How do you work with that.

When I did trial lessons I did one half hour lesson with each of 3 coaches I was considering.

I think if I "knew" I wanted a certain coach, I would ask that the first month be a trial basis, so if it didn't work out you could change without too many hard feelings.

[techskater]

I "knew" who I wanted as my coach when I started skating again, but I did tell her I'd like to "trial" for a month just in case it didn't work out. Eight years later....

[Kristin]

Kristin

That was wonderful advice to i am sure more than just me out there! Luckily one of the coaches I am hoping for I know my daughter loves! She has had this coach in lts before and progressed really well with him.

As for doing a coaches trial. It sounds nice and duable. When you guys do this how long do you make the lessons? Do you do half hour lesson once a week. I just think financially it could take some time to do trial lessons? How do you work with that.

I would keep the # of lessons & amount of time of each lesson the same as she is currently getting. So (for example) if she is getting two 30-min private lessons a week, then I would do the same thing with the trial coach as well, and stretch the trial period over the course of a few weeks. That way you can see how well she is doing with a different coach.

A trial period is exactly that: a period of time where you will be able to evaluate how well your daughter is absorbing the info as well as being able to see the progress in her skating. It doesn't happen in just one lesson.