Todos os respeitamos, todos fazemos o que ele diz ainda que algumas vezes não nos apeteça fazer ou mesmo concordar mas independentemente, fazemos o que ele diz. Alguns são muito bons outros nem por isso mas são sempre treinadores.
We all love our coaches. Whether they are old or new school each coach has their own idiosyncratic way to impart their knowledge. Triathlon coaches are indeed a funny lot. With no time outs or quarter time addresses to make they must use every second of training time. We take a look the lovable triathlon coach and what makes them tick.
Hollywood loves a coach. Who could forget Samuel L Jackson playing the inner city basketball coach Kenneth Carter, who shapes the minds and habits of his team by locking them out of practice until their grades improve? Or the iconic Billy Bob Thornton, whose half time speech during the film ‘Friday Night Lights’ has to be heard to be believed. This of course rallies his players and shows just how much a coach can influence a team or individual.
Triathlon coaches are a different breed. After all, there are no time outs, half times or opportunities to motivate the troops once they are out on the road. So in essence, the triathlon coach’s job is done well before the gun goes off, possibly shooting in the leg any designs for a movie with a triathlon coach as the central figure. But the triathlon coach can still be a charismatic figure and undoubtedly a huge influence on an athlete. But they come in many different forms and I might be taking a little poetic license in looking at such revered triathlon coaches such as the eccentric old school, the ex pro turned coach and the high performance science geek that fell in love with the sport or more importantly, the science behind it.
The old school Coach
The eccentric old school coach has been around for about as long as the sport has. The old time coach is often a griselled individual, skin tanned from endless summers and time spent on the pool deck. They are jack of all trades, getting down and dirty by taking all the sessions their athletes do. Whether it is the swim, bike or run, the old timer has seen it all and coached about a million sessions of each. They believe in high mileage and strength through repetition.
Often these guys (they are generally guys) will like to train with their squads. They ride old school bikes with names like Repco and Centurion. They still race selected events and when they do it is always in gear that you would have seen in the ‘80s. For those so inclined, brand names like Firenze, Tinley and Spank would ring a bell. Forget trying to impress them with any new technology. Aero helmets, speed suits and the latest NASA inspired widget will not impress these guys. They would much rather their charges slogging it out on the road than smashing the AMEX in a bike shop.
A typical set for them is a good old brick session. Smash it out on the bike and then go nuts on the run. The athletes can come away feeling they have done a full race some mornings. Their race strategy follows a ‘damn the torpedoes’ approach because that’s how we did it in the old days. But inside these guys beats a heart of gold and love for the sport and their athletes.
Ex Pro turned coach
The ex-pro turned coach is one slick hombre. Still ripped to within an inch of their lives even though they claim to have retired, the ex pro is a hard taskmaster. Generally they have a raft of semi frightened but super impressed athletes falling over themselves to get the praise from them. They are uber cool and represent the new breed of calculating, scientifically orientated and are a virtual compendium of triathlon knowledge and advice. This new breed of coach is also e-savvy and does a lot of their best work via emails and internet. But their knowledge is generally first rate and up to date.
You can’t miss them at races either. Their look is super chilled and they still look like they could get out there and smash it to bits any time they wanted to. They will embrace technology and some slick marketing know how. Often these guys will design custom race suits and kit long before they hang out their shingle to coach. The cool thing about the pro turned coach is that they are giving back to the sport.
Their squads are the ones who have full team kit, visor and cool shades. They all match and look a million dollars. It would be quite easy for the ex pro to slip into retirement but giving back to the sport via a dedicated bunch of athletes is a worthwhile proposition. Plus there is the opportunity for a few tall tales at races and awards nights.
Science geek turned coach
The science geek turned coach is a favorite. Totally obsessed with times, splits and anything that will make up some free time. These coaches are across all forms of technology. You might find them at ease with the latest edition of New Scientist as you would find them reading Triathlon & Multisport Magazine. Their training is science all the way with none of the vagaries of the old school about it. Key terms such as wattage, power meter and the like are used with varying degrees of success.
The computer trainer becomes a must have item and everything is measured to within an inch of its life. From calories to kilometres everything this coach does is planned, mapped, tabled then graphed. Updated emails are then dispatched to the data hungry athlete. Often, conversations will be in another language.
New inductees to this style of coaching will soon be seen racing into shops to buy Blackberrys and then living up to the mantra of Blackberry owners – check screen, scroll, then check again. This scenario is played out in cafes, during meetings and, dare we say it, on the bike at a convenient moment, for they never know when an important snippet of information may be shot out from planet coach.
The over the top coach
The last coach is the ones that are just over the top. The over the top coach is excited by everything and when asked how they are will often tell you they are ‘killing it’ or ‘life is brilliant’ etc. They are the labradors of the triathlon world in that they are always happy and people are happy to see them. They are aggressively happy some days and this is always a challenge to the surly athlete who hates to rise early and be greeted by a coach is doing verbal calisthenics as he or she is so happy to see everyone.
They are a lot of fun and need to be taken with a bag of salt, for their unwavering enthusiasm will no doubt propel even the most cynical athlete through some had sessions.
But all coaches share the same love for the sport and where would we be without them? They are a dedicated, informed bunch and look after their charges like they were their own. I write this in tribute to the fine work they do at all levels
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