As I mentioned, I’ve started to help out with a Chicago high school ultimate team. Since most of my posts aren’t even ultimate-related and are mostly about how sad my life is (which, *foghorn*, but I’ll still post some of those so you can laugh with/at me), I decided I’d chronicle my foray into assistant coaching in a series called “Put Me In Coach”, title inspired by my benched friend, Sarah “Put Me In Coach, I Promise I Won’t Get Skied By Someone a Foot Shorter Than Me Rocking a Rattail” Rosenwinkel.
I’m working with Pritzker High School up on the northwest side. From what I’ve learned, this is the team’s second year. I believe we’re taking 20 guys this year. I’ve only been to two tryouts so far, so I don’t have super detailed, in-depth observations and thoughts about each of the guys, but overall, it seems like a great group of athletes. From what little I’ve seen of them with a disc, I think it’s going to take a lot of work, but the speed, hops, and hands are really promising. If we can get their disc skills ready by league play, I think we could be pretty good.
Our first few tryouts seem to have been comprised mainly of calisthenics and running. We start with something like a dynamic stretching and warm-up routine, and move on to abs, air alert, and some running. Today was the first time I saw them practice with discs, actually. The level of fitness is… not where it needs to be. I watch them and I feel myself Goose-ing out. I don’t think they’re going nearly hard enough. I don’t think they’re running fast enough. I don’t think they’re pushing themselves hard enough. But obviously, those are things I can’t know. But again, our fitness level will get there.
This is the part where I begin to feel a little spoiled. At Illinois, we practiced at the Complex Fields in the fall and spring. During the winter, we move indoors to the Armory and Irwin.
The Complex Fields were amazing. Just looking at this photo makes me feel all tingly inside. Even though these fields couldn’t drain for shit (which made rainy weeks and weeks following them extremely dirty ones), they were generally quite lush and well kept. If they weren’t particularly fancy, at least we got to practice on these amazing, wide open, grassy fields.
Two days a week (Am I losing my mind/memory? We had Irwin twice a week, right?), we got to practice indoors at Irwin. It was turf (a chunk of my ass is somewhere among the recycled tire bits) and I could never breathe in there, but we had an amazing opportunity to use this gorgeous space to play when most other teams don’t have that kind of privilege. It’s a big deal that we got to have all that disc time during the winter.
Two nights a week we were in the Armory, where we were able to do track practices and use the middle space for disc time. Again, another great facility we were privileged to use. (Even if just the sight of the track makes me taste vomit.)
And this is where the kids practice: On a blacktop in the enclosed area, from the fence to about the middle of the stairs. I’m pretty terrible with distances, but it’s barely even half a field long. Width-wise, it’s maybe 20, 25 feet across, and there are bike racks against the side of the building. When we move indoors for abs and running, the kids run through the halls and up and down the stairs, and they do their abs in front of their lockers. They have to compete with teachers and students still trying to get around the building, and other teams also doing their running through the halls and stairs. It’s kind of hectic. Needless to say, discs get real torn up, and discs fly out into the street A LOT. It’s a huge difference, going from the U of I facilities to sharing a blacktop with a boy’s rugby team who has no respect for your space (oh, sounds familiar…). I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like once we start doing more throwing, or how we’ll scrimmage or anything like that. I think one of our things this season is taking a Wisconsin Hodags approach — we’re just going to be more disciplined and in better shape than any other team out there.
Right now, everything needs a lot of work. Fitness, disc skills, attitude. Maybe it’s because we don’t get much time with the disc, or when we finally get outside after abs and running it’s already dark, or maybe it’s just because they’re playing in shorts and t-shirts and it’s freezing outside, but they seem to be in a real big rush all the time. They’re more interested in learning how to do enough to make it look sorta kinda like what I’ve demonstrated to them, and not learning how to do it right. I’m trying to find a balance between stopping them when they get out of hand/hectic/frazzled to recenter and refocus them, while also letting them play through the kinks and figure it out themselves. I haven’t seen a consistent number of guys or a consistent effort. Hopefully when the roster gets locked in, we’ll start to get more consistency.
That said, this is an interesting group of guys. I find it fascinating that kids their age hold each other so accountable for what happens. Maybe it’s because a lot of them went through ROTC or something, but they all count out loud together for stuff like throwing and stretches and all that. It’s cool. A lot of times you can’t get kids to talk, but they do it quite naturally. I also think it’s cool that they support and push each other without getting all teenage on each other. Even on our thirtieth try to get 13 in a row for cut-to’s, I never once heard, “You suck!” or “Quit sucking!” or “You are the worst!” It was all, “Keep your throws flat!” “Throw in front of the cutter!” “Run through!” “We can do this!” That type of thing. Firm and critical, but never negative. I liked that. Another thing I liked is that the more experienced guys took the new guys under their wings almost immediately. When we paired up to do partner throws, experienced guys immediately pointed across the group to a new guy and said, “You wanna throw with me?” I dug that. There was one kid in particular who was really struggling with throwing a flick. On two separate occasions during cut-to’s, without my prodding (I couldn’t do it myself because I closed out practice today and our head coach had to leave early), two different guys took this kid aside and helped him with his flick. LOVED IT. I’m hoping that this means we’ll work to become a really tight, cohesive unit come championship time. A group who works hard and pushes each other to work hard, all the time. I’m amped.
My first impression of the experience is that it’s awkward, fun, and I’m ready for the challenge. It’s awkward because I’m a woman coaching all teenage guys. The head coach is a male (and their teacher), and the other assistant coaches are also dudes. It’s kind of a weird dynamic, but I’m settling into it. It’s also weird because about 90% of them are taller than me and look older than me. *foghorn* One hilarious story though, today we had an odd number of guys so I had to partner throw with one of the kids, and let me tell you, I am SO RUSTY. I whiffed on legit the first three throws he threw to me. They were right at my chest, I tried to pancake them, and I just whiffed. I made hilarious “missing the disc” faces and squealed. It was a *foghorn* situation. And then I turfed three straight throws to him. It was just horrendous. He was kinda laughing like, “lols, our assistant coach is terrible at frisbee.” But then I got my legs under me and I was looking like some kind of a champion.
Not to mention, I just don’t have a very authoritative voice. Especially when I’m trying to address a big group of people, outdoors, by the Metra tracks, with the wind blowing. It’s a mess. I can’t shout. I’m bad at it. And I’m just kind of unsure of myself speaking in a team context. I’m a great debater, honestly. I was kind of a boss at it, no big deal, and I never get nervous about speeches and presentations, no matter the audience… but shift it over to sports, and for whatever reason, I have a lot of issues speaking up. I just get unsure of myself and what I’m about to say and I have to think things over in my head before I can say them and that just results in awkward silences… it’s terrible. And I hope I get better at it.
I’m anxious to get past the tryouts and calisthenics and get into the disc skills and strategy. Of course, conditioning is still going to be a big part of everything once we get moving, but it’ll be so much more exciting to get discs involved. I’m also anxious for it to start getting warmer outside, because I swear, I’m wearing Under Armour and like four layers of clothing and I’m still freezing out there. I don’t know how those kids get by in shorts and t-shirts, honestly. And we’re lucky it’s been dry, too! *knock on wood*
This will be challenging because it’s “real”. Teaching someone how to play at spring or summer league isn’t “real” to me. Yes, I’m teaching them how to play the game, from basic skills to rules to strategy, but whether or not they master it or even learn it, we’re all just there for fun. At the end of the day, even if we lose, no one really loses. These kids want to win a city and state championship. I love that that’s our goal. I love that they seem really hungry for it. So we have to teach them the rules, the basic skills, and strategy, and it really matters. We’ve only got a short period of time to get them to master those things, or else they can’t achieve their goal. I’m excited for it all to really get rolling, and I think we have a lot to learn from each other. So geeked!