I am a duece bowler and for the last few years have been toying with idea of coaching. I love the game. When I practice and I see people bowling I ask them if they are in a league. If they say no, I ask them why not? I do not work for a bowling alley, I just want more people to bowl. That is why coaching seems like a very rewarding choice. A schedule change this year has freed up my Saturdays and evenings, so coaching is becoming a reality. I have been bowling so long now I forget how I learned. I know made mistakes because I was my own coach. If I were to look back and watch a vid of myself I would probably be shocked at my flaws. My objectives this year are to teach balance at the line and to develop a consistent release. This is derived from great timing I know this. Of course to the older kids I will be teaching how to keep score. i am appalled at how many adult bowlers do not know how to manualy keep score.

My first drill is to have them just swing the ball, reach out and shake hands. Then as the ball comes down in the backswing slide forward. I believe that a four step appraoch is the cornerstone top consistency. Not that a five step approach or even 6 or 7 steps cannot be successful, they are built around four step timing. I figure if I go backward last step next to last step etc I can build a consistent swing with great timing.

I will be working with kids of all ages and most will be using aconventional grip. I hope to be part of High School teams coaching staff this year.

Any advice from the certified coaches out there? Am I on the right Track? Any drills to help teach balance/timing? I practice at home all the time I use a can of soup as a ball and go through my approach. Any other ideas I can pass along. I will be working with kids between 5 and 17.

Also, I was considering going through USBC and becoming certified. What is the cost usually? Do you have to maintain certification by attending further training? I am sure USBC can help me, but hearing it from the people who have done it means so much more. I am sure each one is happy they went through the training, but I am sure there things, if done differently may have been more beneficial.

Thank you everyone, for helping me out. I am sure I speak for everyone in this forum, when I say if it were not for the coaches and their valuable information this site would not be what it is today.

Ciao,
Ron

If you are serious about coaching, which it sounds like you are, definitely go to the certification classes. If you are just starting out, you will need the Level 1 course. Luckily I think this is available over the internet now. http://www.bowl.com/coaching/level1.aspx which appears to be $60. Then you will want to look for a Bronze Class. http://www.bowl.com/coaching/bowlers/BronzeClass.aspx which is $275. Even though you have been in bowling forever, surely you will learn something from these classes, or at least reinforce what you know to give you the confidence you are doing the right things.

Luckily a couple of the centers around here really support the coaches. They give us free personal practice and when we do private lessons they don't charge lineage. And they are willing to accommodate us when we hold larger all day clinics.

I am hoping to attend the Silver conference in KY next month.

As bryhardt writes, certification classes would be worthwhile. There are many nuances involved in teaching others how to bowl. There is often a tendency for many bowlers to try and teach their own style in a "cookie cutter" fashion. This may or may not be appropriate. A class will help you learn how to apply principles without adherence to one style. A good coach must be able to work with strokers, tweeners, crankers, no-thumbers, beginning juniors and 200+ veterans. It is doubtful that one could learn how to do this without some instruction on how to teach. Classes such as the USBC courses and the Ritger Academy classes provide exposure to differing ideas and methods which enable the coach to work with all levels. And, don't be misled by average. Just because someone averages 240 doesn't ensure that he/she knows how to teach. Neither does a 190 average mean that the bowler can't teach as well if not better than a deuce bowler.
Okotte

Ron I will second what has already been said, the biggest thing you learn in these classes is how to teach what you already know and ensure that you are teaching the proper technique for each bowler.

The best advice I can give you is never stop learning new things, like my coach Ron Clifton always says "You don't know what you don't know".

I have been a silver level coach for some years now and have taught people to bowl better than I can myself (especially now that I can't bowl lol), and I still learned many things from helping Brian Voss, Bob Learn and Kelly Kulick last weekend at a youth bowling camp. Brian showed me how to teach the proper timing and cadence that all of the top pros use regardless of style, this is basic bowling, but much of the basics have changed since I got into coaching 15 years ago. So what I'm saying is don't be afraid to learn new techniques, nothing is written in stone, and keep you ear to the ground and try to be on the cutting edge with these changes as much as possible.

Best of luck, let me know if I can be of further help.

A subscription to Bowling This Month magazine will help you stay on the cutting edge of today's game.

Jim,

I have been looking at Ron Clifton's web site for some time now. This guy makes a lot of sense to me. I have missed some opportunties to go to his clinics due to work schedule. Nobody at my center has heard of this guy, of they have not heard of John Jowdy either. I was hoping I could get enough interest for him to come out and do a clinic. right now it is just me.
Teaching what I know has never been a problem with me. That it my strongest suit at my job. My biggest challenge is not giving to much information too fast. That is why my focus as a coach is to build a strong foundation. That foundation is having a solid and consistent approach/slash release. I am pushing 50 years old. (Man that sounds old coming out of my mouth)LOL I feel like I am 30. I have been bowling for a longtime and have alot of info stored in my head. Knowing at what rate to release this information is the difficult part. I am sure I will make mistakes, like anything else there is a learning curve. I really do love this game. I want it to make a comeback and become a mainstay once again. I have an obligation to pass along my passion and commitment to the younger generation.

Ron, your ambition is commendable. Keep at it. Hard to believe that folks in your area don't know who John Jowdy is... wow!
There are some books out that might help. Try to find "The Pro Approach" by Larry Mathews as well as "Teaching Bowling" by Robert H. Strickland. Additionally, while you might not be able to go to Ron Clifton's location, he does give clinics around the country and he was in the Northwest this past summer.
Also, in the Tacoma/Seattle area Bob Rea is to be found. Bob is the leading coach of the Ritger Academy and he also gives clinics all over, he is available for private lessons as well as clinics. His lessons would give you insight into teaching methodology. When you take a lesson from a Master coach you don't just get pointers for your own game, you get insight in to things to look for and how to apply this to others.
Okotte

There are only a handful of true bowlers in my area we have about a dozen really good bolwers and most of them either work at the bowling alley or are family members of the owner. Bruce Russell is the owner and toyed with the tour back in the seventies. Injury forced him to take over the family business and he only bowls once a week three games he does not practice, but hold s a 230+ average a few years back he shot 858 on a roll off night. 279-300-279 across three pairs. He is still using the same ball he used 10 years ago. He is smooth. Never hear his ball hit the lane. I am positive he knows about Clifton and Jowdy as does some of the other workers there. We do have about 30 bowlers who average duece but most of these guys are self taught and only bowl as a social/drinking gathering. I personally limit my alcohol intake, infact if you catch me drinking you can bet I have givin up for the night. Sometimes that actually works in my favor, cause I have taken the pressure off myself to score.

Bruce is a great bowler but he does not like not being the top dog. He has led the league in average all but 1 year in the last 12-15 years. He is not the kind of guy to help someone be better than him. My confidence level this year is so much better than it ever has been. I feel like I can beat anyone in my house on any night. Bruce still imitates me though. He just does not make many mistakes. He has been giving me a ration this year. He is kidding of course but Friday, he told me I could no longer practice in his house. Right now he and I are the only ones with zero handicap. He is at 234 and I am at 230. I really want to pass him up, even if for only one week.

I have been toying with bowling far too long. I have been a good player with only a half-hearted attempt. This season I wrote down on a piece of paper that I look at daily, "This Is My Year". I have never went out and professed that to myself in fear it would not be. I have always beieved in goal setting writing them down etc. The one goal that I set out to accomplish is to have my open frames % under 5% including splits. I am curretly at 6%. Last year it was 15%.

I will be checking into Bob Rea. I have the Pro Approach. I have Stricklands' other book Steps to Success. Both of these have been helpful. I will be looking into his other book too. I will be starting the online course from USBC sometime next week and want to get my Bronze level from USBC. I feel like this a great start to giving back to bowling what bowling has given to me. I do not know if that makes sense to anyone, but I am at a point in my life where I feel like I owe something back.

Thanks again Okote,

Ron