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Deliberate Coaching: One Word of Encouragement

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I am feeling strongly about the absolute necessity of making skiing fun and encouraging.  This "ain't" an easy sport and "fun" often comes in the form of satisfaction rather than hooting and hollering down a slope of untracked powder.  We all need encouragement and we all want to be recognized when we are doing something well.  As coaches, we need to make this happen every time. Mara and Ruff winching into the winds of a blizzard. In the last post we discussed following up with our skiers after each race to ask them how their goals for satisfaction turned out.  We need to do one more thing each and every time a skier finishes a race.  Tell them one thing that they did well or improved.  This could be a technique, an effort, a mindset, a confidence, a sportsmanship, a smile, etc.  I dont suggest winging this, rather, thinking about it before hand and watching the skier will allow you to notice something genuine about that skier. If you are a team of mult
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What Will Satisfy You?

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Following the concept of "Goals of Experience" comes a critical question for your athlete to answer.  In general, it is not helpful for your athlete to be thinking that they can win every race.  What happens if they dont win?  There are probably kids out there who simply dont get overly discouraged and having the desire to win every time is perfectly fine, but my guess is there are more kids who may get discouraged.  I have taken to asking my Daughter "What will satisfy you when the race is over?".  Often, I suggest options for her to consider such as a certain technique focus, strong use of her legs, going harder that she thought she could, or being aggressive on a downhill.  I make sure to remember to ask her specifically when she has finished and I make that the reason to celebrate.  Nordic skiing is a life long sport.  It takes years to get really good - it's a long process and we need to celebrate these baby steps along the way.  Winning may never com
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Goals of Experience

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My Daughter and I just returned from a JNQ weekend at Bogus Basin, Idaho.  Classic on Saturday and skate on Sunday.  Saturday was a full-on blizzard - Winter at it's finest.  Sunday was calm and beautiful.  Sunday ended on a disappointing note for Mara.  Her results disappointed her.  This is where focusing on "goals of experience" becomes critical to the mind of the youth skier and the development of their career.  Let me explain ... Nordic skiing can be a fickle sport with respect to results.  Even if a skier has put all the work in you simply cant control slow skis, new snow, unfortunate start time, etc.  Focusing on the placement result will lead to discouragement.  Instead, I like to focus on an experience that will fit into a portfolio of experiences that will lead to more and more confidence in the skier.  Mara had two experiences this weekend.  On Saturday, she raced in a blizzard.  How do you warm up, stay warm, contend with fogged glasses, how do you class
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