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A Coach's Reflections on His First Trip to High School Nationals
-by Alex Campbell
I recently made my first trip to USAPL High School Nationals as a coach. I have only been to one USAPL national championship and that was the rather small police and fire nationals. I was taking my first team of three young men, who also had never been to a national meet, to high school nationals and I wanted to do the best job that I could coaching them, but I knew it would be a learning experience for all of us. Were we ever in for the shock of our lives.
We were coming from Tennessee which is just a blip on the powerlifting radar. We had twelve people at the first USAPL state championship in five years in 2005. When we stepped into that huge hotel ballroom which was totally consumed by the meet site, we were a little in awe. The warm-up area alone was bigger than the meet site of any powerlifting competition I had been to before. I tried to hide my shock so the kids would not become more nervous. All the scoring was computerized and the sheer number of competitors (well over 300) was just astonishing.
When the day came to compete it was even more intimidating. Just navigating gear check and weigh-in was a huge fiasco as the hall was crammed with lifters of multiple ages and sexes all trying to weigh in at the same time but in different areas. Once weigh-ins were over it got even crazier. The warm-up room was a mass of sweltering humanity. There were three platforms for warm-ups, which I at first thought was insufficient, but turned out to be perfect they way the flights were arranged. It was a challenge just to listen to all three announcers. Figure out which one was calling for the proper platform, time the warm-ups, and get the proper rest between warm-ups. On the first and third day of competition the warm-up rooms were difficult to navigate. On the second day of lifting when the largest classes were competing, the warm-up room was so full of people that I had to actually knock people out of the way to get my lifter to the platform. It was controlled chaos, but it was still great fun. I really do not know who was more nervous, my lifters or me, but we managed to make it through. Despite my inexperience, I think the warm-up room went pretty well, but we had not even gotten to the reason we were there, to compete on the platform.
The atmosphere of the high school nationals has to be felt to be understood. The hundreds of spectators, the hundreds of competitors, the madness of weigh-ins and the warm-up room, the strictness of the judging, and the competitiveness of the teams are nearly overwhelming at first. However, the camaraderie of the lifters, the helpfulness of other coaches, the kindness of the judges, and the honor of the chance to compete make it all worth it. The biggest effect has been on my three first-time lifters. When they came back their eyes had been awakened to the world of powerlifting that was so different from our little state. The realized the depth and quality of the national competition of the USAPL. They were more determined than ever to work hard and get back out there and compete again. They have encouraged other students to lift hard and earn their way to nationals as well. Most importantly, they have realized what powerlifting really is about: setting goals, working hard, achieving new heights, and having fun.
It may be hard to believe, but I would argue that I learned more than my lifters. First, a coach has got to keep their composure no matter what. If the coach appears scared or upset the lifter will become scared and upset. So, the coach sets the tone for the lifter. Second, the lifter should be the center of attention. No matter how small the detail, the coach should take care of it and allow the lifter to concentrate on his job, just lifting. Third, one coach cannot do it by themselves. You have to have another person or two to help handle all the duties of watching the other lifters' results, putting on and adjusting gear, securing the warm-up platform at the proper time, turning in attempts, taking gear off between attempts, calculating attempts into kilograms, giving encouragement, instructing on form adjustments, explaining rule infractions, and a plethora of other duties. I know now that I have been to my first high school nationals that I will be a better coach next time. Just never lose sight of the real reasons that people become coaches: to help kids achieve their goals and dreams, to teach that overcoming adversity is important to life not only sports, and to be a good sport no matter where he or she finishes.
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