When swim coaches ask their students to dig deep and train hard, they are
not asking them to do more than they themselves did earlier in their lives.
Aaron Dahl began coaching while he was still a competitive swimmer in high
school. It was training with eventual Olympians that inspired him to choose
coaching as a career.
A 1996 recipient of a Bill Morphy memorial scholarship for excellence in
the field of coaching, Dahl advises prospective coaches to "think about your
decision seriously. Swim coaching is not a part-time hobby....A full-time
coach spends between 30 and 60 hours per week working, depending on the swim
meet schedule."
Location can shape a swim coach's schedule. Erin Estes coaches a U.S. swim
team at an outdoor pool in a very small rural mountain community. Her summer
practice sessions of two hours per day, five days a week slim down to three
days per week in the winter. But don't think they can wait for warm weather!
"We swim in 106 F to 20 F weather conditions," Estes says.
Estes sometimes agonizes over the number of hours needed to be an effective
coach. "I have to try really hard to actually make time for myself to do what
I love -- and that means swim. It is very easy to spend 12 hours a day on
deck teaching and coaching and not leave enough time for myself to work out."
Taking that kind of break sometimes can create emotional conflict. "You
feel like you're letting all the swimmers and parents down," says Estes. "But
you have to grapple with the fact that if you do not take some downtime, you
won't have anything left to give."
And giving is something that coaches are expected to do, on a number of
levels. "You are a coach, administrator, advisor to the board, counselor and
most often it seems, a diplomat," says Dahl.
He adds that dealing with the parents of swimmers can also require a coach
to tap reservoirs of patience not normally needed.
"Dealing with swimmers who don't care about their progress is just about
my least favorite aspect of this line of work," Dahl says.
Perhaps because she loves the sport so much and wants to share it, Estes
finds it particularly hard when she encounters a talented swimmer who is unable
to commit to its rigors.
"One young man who is truly talented hit the age to be attracted to other
sports. The hard part is seeing his talent and knowing that he could achieve
such a feeling of self-esteem and success if he would just commit."
Commitment to a sport they absolutely love is a common thread which runs
through the lives of these swim coaches.
"Don't want to do it for money. Do it because you want to help young people
achieve their dreams," advises Jonty Skinner, head coach for the United States
Swimming Association.
As a competitor, Skinner held the world record in the 100-meter freestyle
from 1976 to 1981, and in 1985 was inducted into the International Swimming
Hall of Fame. Skinner went on to coach such Olympic gold medalists as Troy
Dalbey, Summer Sanders, Angel Martino and Amy Van Dyken.
"It's not always about winning," says Estes. "Most importantly, coaching
is not about you and the status that it brings to you -- don't get cocky.
Remember, you are in it to help kids, adults and special needs people.
"With competitive swimmers, it is the success of accomplishment
and meeting and beating time and emotional goals. With special athletes, even
a small amount of physical movement may be the athlete's success, emotionally
and physically, for a year. It really is all about them -- not you!"