Hello, Community!
This month’s article is dedicated to an all important ingredient of most sports, speed.
“The best race of my life….The best technique, the fastest. And I did it at 30.” – USA track & field phenom and Olympic Gold Medalist, Carl Lewis, on winning the 100 meters sprint in the then record time of 9.86 seconds at the 1991 World Outdoor Championships, in Tokyo, Japan. Lewis’ record in the 100m stood for nearly three years.
“Every time one of us runs fast it makes us step it up even harder. Who knows how far we’ll take it?” – USA track & field Olympic Gold Medalist, Sanya Richards, who in 2006 set a U.S. world record in the women’s 400 meters race in 48.70 seconds.
“I’ve always felt that long, slow distance produces long, slow runners.” – British Olympic Gold Medalist and middle-distance runner, Sebastian Coe. He was the first man to break the 1 minute 42 seconds barrier in the 800 meters.
Speed in most sports is such a critical factor, and for student-athletes making their way from high school to college athletics it is a valued talent. As one college coach noted, “We can teach our sport but we can’t teach speed.” While this may not be true for all coaches one can understand what was meant by the statement. Speed counts. If you are fleet of foot consider it a gift, but if you are not there is modern day training to help athletes improve their individual speed. As more and more youth begin sports and develop athletic skills at very early ages (think three and four year olds), and as competitive sports become even more competitive, there has been a growth of experts and businesses whose focus is to try and help athletes improve speed, strength, timing, technique and many other skills and attributes.
Our guest article is by Aaron Thigpen, founder and owner of Gamespeed Sports in Pleasanton, CA, part of the greater San Francisco East Bay Area. Aaron is a native of southern California, attended Saddleback High School in Santa Ana, CA, and graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelors Degree in Public Administration. He has completed Masters Coursework in Athletic Administration from California State University, Hayward (now called East Bay), and holds many sports-related certifications: USAT&F, ACE, SPARQ, Lifeguard, CPR, First Aid, Title 21 First Responder and Scuba Open Water.
Thank you Aaron, for supporting excellence in sports for student-athletics, not only in the training and expertise you provide, but also as a leader and so importantly a believer to many student-athletes in surrounding local communities who strive to take sports to the college level and Get There.
Raising the bar for high school student-athletics and creating opportunities for student-athletes takes community.
Sincerely –
Jennifer Oliver
Founder
SportsHopes
Guest Article: Pursuit Of Speed – Starting On The Right Foot – Aaron Thigpen
About the author –
“With nineteen years of experience as an athletics coach, trainer and educator I have worked in many areas of athletic administration. The scope of my experience includes being a sports speed specialist, trainer, prep and collegiate sports coach, director of fitness programs at commercial gyms and instructor of physical education courses at the high school and college levels. As owner and founder (1995) of Gamespeed Sports (www.gamespeed.net) Performance Training in Pleasanton, CA, my daily duties include designing and implementing performance enhancement programs for adolescent, collegiate and professional athletes in a variety of sports.”
“Besides prep athletes I have been involved in no less than twenty-one (21) NFL draftees including Dwight Lowery of San Jose State (4th round NY Jets) and Kevin Robinson of Utah State (6th round KC Chiefs) in 2008. Also in 2008 I was involved in the preparation of four major league soccer draftees, Andrew Jacobsen (2nd round DC United), Luke Sassano (3rd round NY Red Bulls), Matt Hatzke (4th round LA Galaxy) and Nick Hatzke (Houston Dynamo). Add to this list NCAA DIV I college athletes (60+), pro baseball athletes (30), basketball (2), golfers (2 junior), tennis (4), track and field Olympians (4) and rugby athletes, and you see a wide range of clientele.”
“As a performance trainer for over nineteen years I have published articles, developed instruction media, appeared on local cable shows and made numerous local and international speaking appearances. As an over-forty athlete I currently hold three Masters American records, the first two in the 100m at 38 years of age (10.34) and at 40 years of age (10.60) and the third in the 60m at 40 years of age (6.84). Other honors include being an eight-time Masters U.S. National Sprint Champion and 100m World Silver Medalist (M40) for Team USA in 2007.”
“In my open career I was on the listings of the top twenty percent of U.S. sprinters from 1985-2002. From 1991 to 1995 I was on the listings of the top ten percent in the U.S. in the 60m. I was a member of eleven United States National teams, also a three-time U.S. Olympic trials qualifier and a U.S. Championships qualifier for over 15 years.”
The Pursuit Of Speed: Starting On The Right Foot –
I would like to discuss two facets of Speed training: First, its importance and how it can take an athlete’s performance to another level, and second, how to go about finding a competent trainer.
Speed kills (the competition), to the swift go the spoils, however you want to say it, it is true. Speed in most contests is the determining factor, whether it is beating out a base hit, driving to the hoop, controlling a ball or crossing the finish line, sports generally comes down to get there first.
Why Speed Train?
Indicator of your athleticism: Timed 40, timed shuttle, why do coaches have these tests? Like it or not faster athletes generally have greater coordination, balance, agility and explosiveness. Coaches know this to be true on the whole. This screams to a coach, “I have an athlete!” You cannot have good speed without having these attributes. Just look at the faster athletes around you. Whether in a tryout, combine or testing arena speed says to coaches, “This is an athlete I can work with!” Why? Because a coach’s job is to teach the sport-specific skills such as hitting, dribbling, tackling, etc. It is not usually a coach’s job to teach speed. Coaches have confidence in making a fast athlete into the player they want, so faster athletes are higher-up on the food chain.
Improved athleticism leads to improved play: As an athlete gets faster they become more coordinated, balanced, and explosive. With that comes the ability to learn and perform skills of more complexity and difficulty. It enables athletes to do the things most athletes cannot. An athlete becomes a playmaker, and speed can directly influence the outcome of games. The more athletes with speed a team can field (or improve) can increase that team’s chances of determining or controlling the outcome of a competition.
Speed training encompasses a wide variety of athletic skills that improve your total game: A good speed program will incorporate running technique, acceleration, jumping technique, balance and agility, and strength and power training. All of these facets transfer to a wide variety of sport specific skills. As an athlete speed trains they develop into a better all-around athlete. This can be taken into every sport played.
Speed training can introduce other forms of training that improve development.
Resistance, Over-speed, and Plyometrics are some techniques used in speed development.
Resistance:
Resistance training is running or sprinting with weighted towing devices such as sleds, tires or running up hills or in the sand.
Resistance training develops leg power, drive and improves stride length.
Over-speed:
Over-speed training is using terrain or devices that assist the body in moving faster than what the athlete can generate on their own. Rubber tubing, partner pulls or running down hill are forms of over-speed work. These techniques develop better leg speed.
Plyometrics:
Plyometrics refers to the muscular stretch reflex ability of an athlete’s body. Running in itself is a Plyometric activity, but most training is focused around types of jumps or hops. Single-leg or double-leg jumping, jump rope, box jumps, etc., are such exercises. Plyometrics help to build the speed/power connection for more explosive movements.
High School Sports Programs Today –
Most high schools are trying to incorporate these modern-day sports training fundamentals, but often the training is implemented by people who do not have the expertise to fully understand and implement them correctly, so there is a higher risk of injury and less success with a given program. Some schools hire outside trainers as specialists in this field, but even these specialists should be screened thoroughly. If a coach is going to implement their own program have a professional come in and assist with the design and development of the program, monitor the program and train the coaches to do the exercises correctly. Most professionals can provide services for a modest fee if they are used as a resource, as compared to coming on board as full-time staff.
How to find a trainer:
Do your homework. Many people waste valuable time and money because they do not understand what speed training is, do not understand what is needed, do not understand what to expect and/or have unrealistic expectations.
Qualify your needs:
Define your speed. What I mean is determine what you need. Do you need first-step explosiveness, acceleration, top-end or multi-directional speed? Look at the sport you are playing or coaching and define how you want speed to manifest itself in play and target an expert who can help in those aspects. As an example, for soccer athletes try to target a specialist who has been a soccer player or has extensive experience with soccer players, so that the specialist has an understanding of needs and training for those needs.
Qualify your trainer:
What I once did at camps or as a favor for friends back in the early eighties is now a booming business in today’s high-powered sports performance industry. As an old-school guy I have mixed emotions. While there are more opportunities for athletes to obtain proper training and improve their game, the commercialism of performance training has resulted in a proliferation of inadequately skilled and un-informed trainers trying to make a buck.
There are many ways to qualify your trainer. Search for a good mix of experience, reputation and education. In my opinion, experience and reputation may outweigh some education. Education provides a foundation of scientific knowledge but the trainer must have real time practical knowledge. The latter will be seasoned and know how to apply and communicate various techniques to help you. Having worked with numerous athletes allows such a trainer to troubleshoot much more effectively than one teaching from the book. Also, look at your athlete and determine what is most appropriate, a novice or a more seasoned expert? It can depend on the age, type, and sophistication of training your athlete needs. If training needs are simple a less experienced trainer may be appropriate.
Some questions to ask:
1. What is your background – educational and practical?
2. Did you participate as an athlete or coach? Was it in my sport? At what level?
3. How long have you been doing it? Part-time? Full-time? (Five years part-time is different from making a living at it for five years.)
4. Who have you worked with locally that is like me? How long did you work with them? Can you describe the type of training you did with them? What was their result?
5. Can you provide me with three referrals?
6. What types of training methods / equipment do you typically use? Are they all used with every athlete? (If they do the same training with everyone then they may not have the capacity or ability to personalize your training.)
7. Will I work with you (head trainer) or an associate? What is your associate’s experience?
8. Will I be training in a group or one on one? If a group what size?
9. How many sessions does it normally take to see improvement?
10. What is the process? Sign-up? Check-in? Cancellation?
11. What gear do I need? A good trainer will generally want to make sure you have the right footwear.
12. Ask the noted referrals how safe the training sessions and equipment are.
A qualified trainer should be able to speak extensively and clearly on all of the above subjects. Locating a trainer by reputation is usually one of the best ways to find a good trainer. Word of mouth is great but still qualify them, and always keep in mind that just because someone is popular does not mean they are good or good for your purpose.
The importance of speed training in the development of an athlete is unquestionable. It can be a powerful tool in helping athletes enjoy and obtain their athletic goals. However, keep in mind the decision to undergo speed training is an investment that deserves taking time and energy to do the research needed in order to ensure maximum benefit of your time and energy.
Aaron Thigpen can be reached at: (925) 737-0700 / aaron@gamespeed.net
SportsHopes – Updates:
February 2009 marked the beginning of the SportsHopes Tiny Scholarship Program. The goal of this program is to help provide nuts and bolts to HAAL high school student-athletes who are on the high school to college pathway and who have financial need. In February 2009, thanks to members of the San Leandro Chamber of Commerce, one NCAA registration ($60) was funded and inputted for one HAAL 11th grade football player. Thank you for your generosity. A goal of SportsHopes is to support the funding of many more Tiny Scholarships by partnering with community and by fund-raising. If you can partner please email as noted below. The Tiny Scholarship Program will be used for NCAA registration, ACT/SAT registration/on-line training, college application fees and related nuts and bolts. Generally these fees are within the $50-$100 range each. HAAL high school student-athetes can request a Tiny Scholarship starting in the spring of their sophomore year of high school, or parents/guardians, coaches and high school administrators/counselors can recommend a recipient.
Email: TinyScholarship@sportshopes.org
ACT/SAT Test Dates for Spring/Summer 2009 – Juniors, if you haven’t tested yet now is the time to get registered for your first test so you can re-take the test if needed prior to end of December in your senior year. Some colleges require Subject Tests and Writing Tests. Check out the links for deadlines. (Thank you Don Dyer at CSAPrepstar):
ACT – http://www.actstudent.org/regist/currentdates.html
SAT – http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/calenfess.html
Thank you to local resident Kelli Gault-Abatangelo for her assistance in research for this SportsHopes publishing.
SportsHopes welcomes news from the HAAL community with regards to high school student-athlete athletic accomplishments, high school student-athlete college signings and scholarships, and high school student-athlete community service. Email: news@sportshopes.org
It is a goal of SportsHopes to publish a monthly article that will “highlight” information to high school parents and guardians, student-athletes, superintendents, principals, athletic directors, coaches, teachers, administrators, businesses, city halls and service organizations, that will help high school student-athletes who want to go to college and who want to play sports in college Get There.
SportsHopes is a volunteer org based in HAAL with the goal of applying for 501(c)3 status in 2009 in order to best serve the HAAL student-athlete community. If you are an expert with regards to 501(c)3 filings and can volunteer application assistance please email: joliver@sportshopes.org
The Hayward Area Athletic League (HAAL) consists of nine northern California high schools in the greater S.F. East Bay Area:
Arroyo, Castro Valley, Hayward, Mt. Eden, San Leandro, San Lorenzo, Tennyson, Bishop O’Dowd Catholic and Moreau Catholic.
If you would like to be removed from future SportsHopes publishings please email: goodbye@sportshopes.org
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