A Weekend Amongst the Big Wigs!!!

On Wednesday January 16th I had the wonderful opportunity to fly to Colorado Springs and attend the Coaches Accredidation Program for USA Volleyball and the High Performance Clinic with the likes of Hugh McCutheon (US Men's National Team), Jenny Lang Ping (US Women's National Team), Bill Neville, John Kessel, Doug Beal, and the opportunity to meet and listen to Karpol former Russian National Team Coach. Karpol's talks were interesting in highlighting the way volleybal is taught and the progression or "Plan" as he calls it that the players go through from age 7 to Adult. I enjoyed his insights and look forward to seeing how the Russian way can be formatted for use in the US or specifically in Georgia.

Also at the High Performance Clinic I was given the oppotunity to meet and hang out with some of the top coaches in the country both at the club and collegiate level. I met the likes of Anne Kordes (Saint Louis), Kevin Hambly (Illinois), Patti Rolf (Marquette), Christy Landry (Northwestern), Rick Nold (Jacksonville State), and various other coaches from around the country.

Another important aspect of the trip and which I am writing while sitting in the airport waiting to return to Atlanta, is the issue of High Performance in the Southern Region. I now feel like it is time for us to have such a program and I was given the oppotunity to talk to John Kessel, Tom Pingel, and Heath Hoke about ways or options that have worked in other areas. Any of you who have ideas or would like to help me in getting this project underway please feel free to get in touch with me. I think this program will go a long way in giving the girls more options in terms of exposure and to see there is much more to volleyball than Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia.

Well time to hop on the plane so I gotta go. Irony is that skies are all clear in Colorado Springs and it only snowed a little bit. I am now flying into Atlanta where it usually never snows and it apparently has done just that while I have been gone. Maybe it will warm up upon my return.