As the end of the 2024-25 season draws near, coaches will be looking forward to a break from coaching on the water. But when should coaches be looking toward next season? When is day 1 of next season? From my perspective, day one of next season is the day after the championship.
That's Too Soon!
No doubt some coaches will have worked themselves to the bone, coaching 30+ hours a week on top of their full time job. However, preparing for next season does not have to be as arduous as it sounds. Here are some things I like to do right after the championship:
- Exit Survery - give all stakeholders an annonymous survey so they can give honest feedback about the season they just had. Act on the feedback!
- WWW - What went well? Take time to reflect on what went well and what could have been better.
- Take Stock - Whats your rower/cox/coach rentention rate?
- Review Goals - take time to review team goals and individual goals. Did you help the rowers achieve their individual and/or team goals?
- Paperwork - Organise and catalogue your paperwork so you have it to hand for next season.
- Data - If you're like me and collect data on your athletes, now is a good time to process it and look for trends you may have missed or stop recording data you didnt use.
- Set Dates - Set a return date for your athletes so they know how long they will be off for, and so you know how much time you have to make your plan(s). Don't for get testing dates!
- Maintain Fitness - Invite returning athletes to maintain their fitness over the summer with a minimum of three workouts a week. Alternatively, start from zero and rebuild when they return.
- Recruit Coaches - After point 2 above is complete, evaluate if you need more coaches working with you next season to lighten the load. If so, start recruiting and look for CPD opportunities.
- Recruit Athletes - don't count on athletes just showing up, get out there and recruit for next year if you already have not.
Need Help?
If you need help setting up any of the above, or perhaps are not sure what sort of questions to ask in the survey, get in touch with me! I would be happy to help you get ready for the next season. To get you started, check out this blog about power profiling athletes for the season ahead.