Level-3 Coach Workshop

OVERVIEWOverview created by:

Rob Hurd, Cappy Capper, Betsy Alison, Guy Fleming & Kim HapgoodUS Sailing Master Instructor Trainers

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The New Course Progression• December 2012 National Faculty Meeting, the

level-1 working party came up with several new safety topics to add to the progression.

• Their plan was to add that content to level-2 since there was really no more room in a jammed packed level-1 course.

• Level-2 working party was not sure that would enhance the racing portion of the course

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The New Course Progression• Solution:– Take the new topics, add in the non-racing

portions of old level-2, and create a new course, which is now entitled Level-2 Instructor in the same 2-day format

– Take the racing portions from old level-2 and create a new one-day level-3 coach workshop

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The New Course ProgressionLevel 3 Coach Course Syllabus (17 hrs)Certification Qualification Components

• Must be either L2 Instructor certified or Level 2 IT recognition of completion pending

• Show up, participate, and receive a positive evaluation from CT• Pass On- Line Tests (20 Rules Questions and Strategy & Tactic

Essay)• Complete US Olympic Safe Sports on-line certification.• Current First Aid, CPR, & US Sailing Membership

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Level 3 Coach Workshop ScheduleDay 1 (8 hrs, 45 min)

8:30 – 9:00 Arrival & Registration9:00 – 9:45 Team Building9:45 – 10:45 Team Management 10:45 – 11:00 Break11:00 – 12:15 Logistics12:15 – 1:00 Lunch1:00 – 2:30 Racing Rules2:30 – 2:45 Break2:45 – 4:15 Strategy and Tactics4:15 – 5:00 Drill Design and Development5:00 – 5:15 Wrap up and Homework Assignment

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Level 3 Coach Workshop ScheduleDay 2 (8 hrs, 30 min)

8:30 – 9:00 Team Building9:00 – 9:30 review of Homework/Lesson Plan9:30 – 12:30 On the Water Drills12:30 – 1:15 Lunch1:15 – 2: 15 Race Tuning2:15 – 2:45 Race Management2:45 – 3:00 Break3:00 – 4: 00 Regatta Etiquette4:00 – 5:00 Course Debrief/Individual Debrief.

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Level 3 Coach Certification Workshop

Certification Qualification Components (17 hrs, 15 min)Certification Qualification Components

• Must be either L2 Instructor certified or Level 2 IT recognition of completion pending

• Show up, participate, and receive a positive evaluation from CT• Pass On- Line Tests (20 Rules Questions and Strategy & Tactic Essay)• Complete US Olympic Safe Sports on-line certification.• Current First Aid, CPR, & US Sailing Membership

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Level 3 Coach Workshop Syllabus1. Managing your team (1 hour)

• Skipper and crew relationships• Diverse skills • Boat familiarization • Assigning combinations• Use of film and video

2. Logistics- Level 2 Manual , pgs 144-147 (1.25 hrs.)• Preparing sailors for travel • Crisis management on the road• Packing a Trailer (power and sail)• Legal requirements for trailering (power and sail)• Long distance towing to another venue• Long distance sailing to another venue• Coaching Tools

3. Racing rules (1.5 hours)• Mock rules quiz • Teaching rules scenarios • Protest procedures and preparation

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Level 3 Coach Workshop Syllabus4. Strategies (1 hour)

• Wind strategy, weather, and current • Daily regatta planning

5. Tactics (30 min)• Start• Marks • Finish

6. Drills (45 min)• Share your best racing drills

7. On-the-Water Drill (3 hrs)• CT run drills as designed from the homework project

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Level 3 Coach Workshop Syllabus1. Tuning (1 hour)

• Fine tuning scenarios• Class association tuning guide listing • Visual keys (pictures and video online)

2. Race Management Procedures (30 min)• Flags• Starting sequence• Sailing instructions, NOR’s, and official notice board

3. Regatta Etiquette (1 hour)• Sportsmanship• Contact with regatta officials• Coaching insurance

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Managing your Team

• Key concepts– Skipper and Crew Relationships– Diverse Skills – Boat Familiarization – Assigning Combinations– Use of Film and Video– Taking care of themselves

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Managing your Team: Skipper- Crew relationships

• Skipper responsibilities• Crew responsibilities• How to move together.• Swap helms. When and how

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Managing your Team: Diverse Skills

• Running practices with boats of different abilities can be tough.

• Get the more talent sailors to work with the less talented.

• Create levels (varsity and JV) if practical in your program

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Managing your Team: Boat Familiarization

• Keys: Most often used when competing in Sears Qualifiers– Boat Info– How to rig the boat– Control lines; what do they all do– Specifics of the boat– Land and water drills to get to know the boat– Land and water drills to improve boat-handling

skills (

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Managing your Team: Combinations

• Who sails with whom?– Alternate combinations – Set pairs for the season– Some combination– What is the norm at your club?

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Managing your Team: Video

• This is a hot topic and b/c it is so easy to film all or some of a practice, many coaches are doing it.

• Need to decided what platform you will use to film and how you will make they footage available to the sailors

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Managing your Team: Taking care of themselves

• Weight control• Eye and skin care• Dehydration & Heat Emergencies• Hypothermia

Traveling to a RegattaBuild a lesson plan that has the coaches involved in the planning of a travel event for a junior program, high school, or college team. The following are some ideas on logistics for pre-trip planning, departure, while at the venue and returning home.

Logistics

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Pre- Planning• Regatta and Team selection:

How do you pick teams (summer, college, high school)(Have candidates select an event to actually go through the process)

• Knowing the Venue: Launching, Transportation, Housing, Boats, Attractions

• Traveling: Transportation/cost/ how are you getting• Housing: Is housing provided or do we need to find a hotel?• What’s the launch like (docks/ramps, beach, crane)• What is parking going to look like ?

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Communication

• Find the most effective way to communicate with your sailors and parents.– Email, Facebook, twitter etc.

• Who is responsible for what? – Coaches, volunteers, chaperones responsibilities

• Have a meeting with all coaches, parents and sailors– Have ETA’s, make responsibilities known, review the

programs policies– both parents and sailors should be made aware of

expected responsibility and behavior on trip

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Departure• If your boats are on a trailer

• Review your programs policies, are you responsible for the boats or are the sailors

• Double check all tie downs• Are the sailors taking private trailers or are you using the programs?

• When are you departing and when are you Arriving• Check NOR for report times.• Does your housing/hotel parking lot fit a van/trailer

• Coaches responsibilities• When are you responsible for you sailors?• Review your programs rules for traveling regattas• Who are chaperoning the sailors? Whose responsible for the sailors behavior?

• What does a coach need to bring?• All personal gear, ready for all weather conditions • A toolbox with boat equipment• Everything you need to coach effectively (rulebook, NOR, binoculars)

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At the Venue• Transpiration time from lodging to venue • Trailer storage while at venue• Coach boat overnight storage: in-water, on-

shore?• Meals, extra food for coach boat• Gas, where to get it locally• Spare parts, nearest West Marine• Nearest medial care facility• Other issues: ?

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Returning Home

• When are you departing?• Should depart after the award ceremony• Make sure you leave enough time in travel plans to make reservations

after award ceremonies

• Is all the equipment secured for travel?• Check trailer and equipment for departure like when you traveled to the

regatta

• Get everyone home safe and alive!• Make sure everyone has a way to get home, no sailor left behind!

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Teaching the Racing Rules

• Keys:– Make sure you understand the rules– Make sure you know the difference between the

RRS, the ISSA rules, and the ICSA rules, especially when dealing with RRS 42

– Teach your kids to “use the rules as a shield not a sword.”

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Racing Rules: Factors

• People don’t lie; everyone sees the situation differently (School Bus example)

• There are always five things happening in a protectable situation.– (1) What you saw, (2) what you wanted to see– (3) What the other guy saw, (4) what the other

guy wanted to see.– (5) What actually happened.

• Are you right? Can you prove you are right?

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Racing Rules: Basics

• You are always in one of three situations, that established Right-of-way (ROW)– Opposite tacks (RRS 10)– Same tack, overlapped (RRS 11)– Same tack, not overlapped (RRS 12)

• Everything else is a limitation on the “right-of-wayness” of those situations.

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Racing Rules: Learning tools

• Rules Quizzes. Make a few up before the season to use when it is appropriate. Make them tough, as the situations spark discussion.

• Run a protest hearing after class using a situation that happened during practice. Have three kids act as the protest committee.

• Make sure you have a “set of toys” to help your sailors “see” the situations.

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Racing Rules: Protest Procedure

• There is nothing wrong with filing a protest and going through with a hearing. If you sailors feel they were wronged, encourage them to file the protest. BUT FIRST:– Have them explain the situation so that you can

gage if they are right or wrong and advise them of the best course of action (File or withdraw)

– Spend some time in practice talking about protest procedure, how to file a protest, and how to accord themselves well in the room.

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Strategy

Establishing a Game Plan

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Strategy

• Executing Strategy = Playing the Course• Using Elements to “Control Own Destiny”• Determined by (not limited to) :– collection data/information on the course area– factoring in where in the event/regatta you are– weather forecasts/conditions– confidence in boat speed and handling

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Strategy

• Pre-start Preparation– Read weather forecast to determine possible

effect at race time– On water gather information on:• Wind: shifts, strength, patterns, puffs• Geographic considerations• Current effects• Wave patterns both up and down wind• Course configuration; line set

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Strategy

• Make a Game Plan for each part of the race– Start– First Upwind– Downwind

*Continually assess most recent data while racing and compare to that in original game plan. Does the plan need to change????

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Strategy

• Strategy is a fluid concept. • Strategy changes as factors change.• It is a plan that is completely under the control

of the sailor due to observations and analysis• If a sailor has a game plan, and makes a

decision based on that game plan both mistakes and successes can be debriefed by coach and sailor.

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Strategy

• On water coaching tips:– Encourage upwind and downwind splits during

prep time– Ask sailors to brief you on their “Game Plan” prior

to the start– If they are missing a key element(s), ask questions

to help lead them to the missing information– Revisit their plan post-race to help them self-

analyze

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Tactics

Tactics are actions you use in one on one boat interaction. They are the moves you employ to position yourself in relation to another boat, boats or the fleet. Applying good tactics to a situation allows you to control your own destiny rather than be controlled. Those decisions and actions are directly related to what your strategic game plan is.

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Tactics: Overview

To help students make good tactical decisions, break the race course into eight sections:– Starts– Windward Leg– Windward Mark Rounding– Leeward legs– Reach legs– Leeward mark rounding, Single and Gate– Jibe mark rounding's– Finishing

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Tactics: Starts

• All tactical decisions start with taking a look at overall strategy then add in how other boats effect the sailors choices when they have one or more boats to the scenario. – Starts: What to think about at these times throughout the starting

sequence. Times examples of things to think about• 5 Minutes - staying focused on staying clear of other boats• 3 Minutes - where will be the most traffic on the line • 2 Minutes - looking upwind staying clear of other boats• 1 Minute – where is the fleet lining up, boat end, middle, pin• 30 seconds – owning your spot on the line with other boats around you• 20 seconds – holding your position on the boat to windward, keeping hole to

leeward• 10 second – staying in the move forward position with other boats• Pull the trigger and go

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Tactics: Windward Leg

• Build scenario’s using stagey and rule situations to help the students understand their tactical options – Port starboard crossings on the windward leg

• I am on port approaching a starboard tact boat;

• Can I cross?• I can Tack• I can duck • I can slow and hold my line

• I am on starboard approaching a port tact boat;• I can hold my course• I can tack

Use these questions on multiple boat situations

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Tactics: Windward Mark

• Entering the three boat zone and in the boat zone, put four questions up, you are on;

• Starboard vs Port• Port vs starboard • Overlapped on starboard• Overlapped on portExample of scenario; I am on port approaching the windward mark just entering the zone and there a starboard tack boat fetching two boat lengths out from the zone; • Can I cross and go past the layline tacking above the boat fetching?• Can I tack on the boat fetching and not interfere with her • I know I can slow down or duck and let her pass and then tack

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Tactics: Leeward – reach legs • Just as in the windward leg, build on scenario’s using strategy and

rule situations to help the students understand their tactical options – Port - starboard crossings on free legs

• I am on port approaching a starboard tact boat;

• Can I cross?• I can jibe• I can duck • I can slow and hold my line

• I am on starboard approaching a port tact boat;• I can hold my course• I can Jibe

Use these questions on multiple boat situations

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Tactics: Leeward Mark Roundings• Just like with windward mark rounding's, have the them entering

the three boat zone and in the boat zone and put up four questions, you are on;

• Starboard vs Port• Port vs starboard • Overlapped on starboard• Overlapped on portExample of scenario; I am on port approaching the right side of the leeward gate mark just entering the zone and there a starboard tack boat one/half a boat length out from the zone also heading for the right mark; • Can I cross and or duck and head for the other mark of the gate?• I can jibe and round the mark Key Note: Make sure your students know the definition of an overlap on a free leg of the course.

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Tactics: Finishing

• What to think about when you are ahead of a boat and what to think about when you are behind has you approach the finish.

• What to think about the favored end and how other boats might effect my ability to finish there

• Clearing the line at the finish Use all of the scenarios for the finish, some situations are similar to a windward mark rounding;

• Starboard vs Port• Port vs starboard • Overlapped on starboard• Overlapped on port

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Drills

Drills and how to use them 30 minutes

Support book: Drills made Easy

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Drill design • Have the coaches use the following formula for their lesson plan

and what drills to use:• Warm up drills (getting the blood flowing)• Core drills (drills that help with main goal of the day)• Cool down drills (fun drills to end the practice)

• Each lesson plan should have multiple options of drills to use for each one of these areas

• There are a number of sources (books, internet) for finding drills, sharing and experience is an effective way to grow the number of drills you have available to use

• Have each area be discussed in a brain storming session. Have the coaches list their instructional goals first and then the drills they would use to accomplish those goals

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List of Good Drills

• Determine a core goal for the day;• Boat handling, starts, mark rounding's, etc. If the core goal was boat handling:

• Make list of warm up drills• Tacks on the whistle, figure eight, circle up, etc.

• Make list of core drills• stop start, 720s, multiple tacks on a short windward leg, etc.

• Make list of cool down drills• rudderless sailing, sailing backwards, etc.

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Making the drills work together

• With the established core goal the basis for drill design within your lesson plan, sequence your drills to make them seamless and more productive.

• Drills should work so that warm up goes directly into core without a lot of downtime

• For example, if your core is starts, design the warm up session so that it ends up at the start area. If you are team coaching, split duties so that the start area is being set up while the warm up drills are being conducted.

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Key points to make so drills work

• Detailed on shore pre-brief with the sailors • Keeping the drill simple so it keeps the sailors

engaged and don’t run drill to long • Don’t be afraid to make adjustments on the

water when conditions change or execution and or performance of sailors is not working

• Detailed on shore de-brief with sailors. The more you review on-water drills, the better the sailors will execute and perform in the future

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Race Management Procedure

Race ManagementWhat Beginning Racers Really

Need to Know

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Race Management Procedure

• Signal Flags Typically Used• Basic Course Configurations• Common Race Committee Procedures– Starting– Finishing– Changing Course– Shortening Course– Abandoning/Postponing/Cancelling– Definitions and How to Find Applicable Rules

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Signal Flags

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Signal Flags

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Course ConfigurationsTypical Formats

• Triangle• Modified Triangle• Windward/Leeward• Modified W/L• Olympic/Gold Cup• Trapezoid• Use of a Gate• Distance or Point-to-Point

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Conduct of a Race

• Part 3 of RRS– 4 Pages in the Rule Book– 12 Rules (RRS 25-36)– Easy to find the answers– Some “Definitions” help us understand Conduct of

a Race (i.e. Starting, Finishing, Racing)

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Appreciation for Race Management

• Use available resources to educate sailors about “what it takes” to run races

• Have sailors participate in Race Management• Familiarize with Rule Book sections applicable

to Conduct of Races• Familiarize sailors with flags and signals• Walk them through typical NORs and SIs and

how they relate to and impact racing

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Regatta Etiquette

• Key factors:1. Sportsmanship2. Contact with Regatta Officials3. Coaching Insurance

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Regatta Etiquette: Sportsmanship

• Every coach has stories of sailors they enjoy competing against and those they do not.

• Talk about the qualities you admire in sailors and those you do not.

• Remember, you are judged more by the actions of your sailors than their results. Don’t lose focus of that and hold yoru sailors accountable when they deserve it.

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Regatta Etiquette: Contact with Race Officials

• Betsy just talked about race management; most of the people running races are volunteers. Make sure you treat them properly.

• When working with juniors, it is sometimes easier if you approach the RO rather than your kids.

• I like to introduce myself at the start of the day and offer to help if they need it. That often helps form a good bound and the PRO now knows who on the coaching side they can count on.

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Regatta Etiquette: Coach Insurance

• These days there are a lot of private coaches.• If you are in that field, are you properly

insured?• Everything is always fine until it isn’t and when

it’s not, it is not good at all.

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Tuning

Basic How To’s

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Tuning

• Once sailors become comfortable sailing their boats, especially in their boat handling and sail trimming skills, they will look for ways to go faster

• This “need for speed” can be addressed by introducing them to the concept of tuning their boats to gain an “edge”

• The coach should teach them How to tune a boat, NOT do it for them

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Tuning: Pre-sail Boat Tuning

• Use established Tuning Guides from sail makers and manufacturers

• No need to “reinvent the wheel” when the R&D has already been done – use as baseline

• Show sailors how to use tuning guides in conjunction with tape measures to measure applicable settings and change as necessary

• Log settings and values each time• Mark settings as appropriate

Tuning

• Create own data base of information– Record information on a regular basis– Relative to each boat or to fleet– Compare to tuning guide– Create own tuning guide (especially if one does

not exist for your fleet or sails)– Use as basis for discussion and comparison

between fast and slow boats

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Boat Tuning Combined with Sail Trim Adjustments

• All their controls and sheets should be clearly marked with "scales" or some form of reference marks so they can continually reproduce their fast settings.

• Relate to “sail trim land demo” of cause and effect. Encourage them to look at the sail before making an adjustment so that they can actually see the change

• Periodically have sailors watch other sailors from off the boat –perhaps with the coach in the safety boat

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Tuning: Two Boats

• Upwind and Downwind Tuning– Two boats sail side by side, each trying to go as

fast as possible. When the boats are going equal speed, then one boat remains "constant" while the other boat changes things -- one at a time -- to experiment with different settings.

– If boats are uneven when training, have sailors talk to each other about settings to share information. Have slow boat make one change at a time to try to match speed of other boat.

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Tuning: Tips

• For Coaches:– Have sailors set up on water positioning to

facilitate good straight line tuning– From behind the boats, it is possible to see small

differences in sail trim, weight placement, and steering techniques which you can relay to the sailors. You may want to also observe from abeam to see fore/aft pitch, vang tension, mast bend, etc.

– Observations should be documented. Note taking and videotaping are great tools for a coach to use.

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Tuning: Boat Speed Factors

• Upwind Sail Trim and Tuning – Proper sail trim.– Proper weight placement (body position) and

hiking.– Proper steering techniques.– Proper centerboard position.– Proper rig adjustment

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Tuning: Boat Speed Factors

• Downwind Sail Trim and Tuning – Proper sail trim.– Proper weight placement (body position).– Proper steering techniques.– Proper centerboard position.– Proper rig adjustment.– Pumping and ooching techniques and when they

are permitted.

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Tuning: Boat Speed Factors

• Tacking and Jibing– Body positions and movement.– Proper sheeting.– Exchanging hands.– Proper centerboard position.– Roll-tacking and Jibing.

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Tuning: Boat Speed Factors

• Communication (in non-singlehanded boats)– Coordination of crew movements.– Clear verbal signals relating to boatspeed.

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