Skating Clinic advice

[pegasus99]

Hey all -

I've been asked to help plan the Adult MIF Clinic for Summer. August, specifically.

I've been a skater in clinics for years but I've never planned one. They used to just happen on their own for the adults, as the "traditional" adult coaches would handle them. Then we got a skating Team and the team began taking over Clinics. Now we get in outside coaches and choreographers, for a fresh perspective and a new take on skills. (Which every skater needs, as we all know!)

Thing is, I don't know many outside coaches, and those I do know might come with some.. "drama" isn't the word but perhaps "questions" is. Every rink comes with politics but it seems that our rink is hamstrung by divisive politicking that hampers skaters and I'm just done with it but that's another rant. In the meantime, I need a solid coach who is good with adults who can teach MIF skills ranging from Pre-Bronze to Silver. And by Solid I mean "Works with Adults as Figure Skaters and Athletes." Most of our adults haven't tested Pre-Bronze but are perfectly capable of doing so, and I'm working on Silver MIF.

I need advice on how this happens. I'd love to have some Injury Prevention Off-Ice before the on-ice portion. Any advice is welcome.

Thanks!

[FigureSpins]

Sent you a pm. 

Go easy on the off-ice prior to the on-ice.  We wiped our skaters out with a modified (!) cross-fit workout beforehand. 

Are you planning this on the Club's behalf?  If so, you have to loop in the rink management in the planning stages.

Definitely include a shared meal where adults can socialize.

[AgnesNitt]

This was my experience:

So, maybe you want to set up a seminar at your rink for some reason. Bring in an olympic coach, do it for the club, have a fun party. Here is my advice.

1.Start planning 6 months in advance.

2....for a summer seminar. 'Cause the rink won't have ice free during hockey season.

3. Prol'ly for July because hockey training starts in August

4. And most people will be on vacation in the summer, so scale down your attendence expectations accordingly.

5. Get the availability of the coach in advance with her/his open days.

6. Costing is important. Does the coach have a minimum fee that you'll have to pay regardless of the hours?

7. Get permission from the skating director for the coach to teach privates on freestyle.

8. If you aren't doing this for the club, contact the club to see if they want in on the action.

9. You may find that if you're bringing in a famous coach that the local rink will have some loud, opinionated coaches who won't like bringing in an outside coach because that coach will 'steal their students'.  So yes, the rink will have the same coaches circulating the same opinions and techniques even when you're trying to bring in an International, World, or Olympic coach to bring in some new techniques and knowledge.

10. Set up ice time. If you are a regular at the rink you may be able to get a discount. I got 15% and considered myself lucky.

11. Touch base with the coach as time passes.

12. Get confirmations and payment from the attendees. I didn't have to worry about this.

13. Set up private lessons for the coach and make sure the cost etc is made clear to skaters wanting privates, and that they will have to pay even if they cancel.

14. As you get close to the date, make sure the ice time is on the schedule.

15. pay the ice time the day before the seminar (or earlier depending on your rink policies)

16. When the coach shows up, hand them a completed check immediately. Include mileage (AOT, .55 a mile)

17. Be there to introduce the private students to the coach,

18, Make a short introduction to the skaters before you get on the ice.

19. Have a good time!

After doing this, I have several extra suggestions.
20. See if the visiting coach will allow a local coach to assist. If the class is large, or people fall, it's good to have an extra coach to demonstrate to people who missed what the visiting coach is saying or help those who can't keep up. I really, really wish I'd done this.

21. Make sure everyone who is getting a private lesson shows up with checks or cash for the right amount. Don't offer to help them out. Make that clear up front. If they don't have a check or cash make sure you have a back up plan.

22. Your club may screw you over. After I went to enormous efforts to work with my local club and they discussed it, they didn't even bother to call me to tell me they didn't want to participate.

23. Your skating director may not allow the visiting coach to teach on freestyle. You have to sort that out too.

24. You have to have a plan if a skater doesn't pay beforehand or pay on the day of the seminar. If it's a club seminar, that's the club's problem. If it's the rink's seminar, it's the skating director's. If you're setting it up privately--(no club or rink support) you nee to think very very hard about it. My experience is if they don't pay before, they won't pay after,

24.

[AgnesNitt]

I want to add, that the coach I hired was booked 6 months in advance. He's well known, but not TV famous and he had seminars in Europe. It's possible you may need to look at NEXT August.

[ChristyRN]

Sent you a pm. 

Go easy on the off-ice prior to the on-ice.  We wiped our skaters out with a modified (!) cross-fit workout beforehand. 

That was modified??   

[FigureSpins]

That was modified??   

Um, yeah.  According to a friend who does CrossFit regularly, that wasn't a full workout.  Sorry, sorry.

[ChristyRN]

Um, yeah.  According to a friend who does CrossFit regularly, that wasn't a full workout.  Sorry, sorry.

Full CrossFit would kill me!

[pegasus99]

Thanks for the tips!

We're in the Illinois area, so I'm not sure if we can bus someone in from that far away.

I know we have the ice, that was determined before I was even approached, LOL.

[Doubletoe]

I don't think you necessarily need coaches who have worked with adults, since all of the moves on the adult tests are also on the standard track tests.  In fact, I think it could be a good thing to have a coach who sets standard track passing standards for the adults.

To me, the most important thing is to get a coaches who specialize in MIF and accompany a lot of skaters to MIF tests in the area so that they see what is and isn't passing and know what the common errors are.