Fitter and Faster Coaches Corner

Dani Korman and Abby Brethauer were teammates at Kenyon College and won National Championships together! Since that time both women have gone on to have incredible success in the coaching ranks. While making significant impacts on the places they have coached, their experiences have been much more about cultivating meaningful relationships with the people they work with, the athletes they coach, and enjoying the process of development. Dani is now the Associate Head Women’s Coach at Cal Berkley, and Abby is the Assistant Men’s Coach at Princeton University.

In this episode we discuss a myriad of topics, ranging from coach education, finding a mentor, and the NCAA swimming experience. Listen to learn valuable lessons about beginning a career in collegiate coaching! Join host Mike Murray for a great conversation with two of the best young coaches in the business.

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NC State's Associate Head Coach Brian Barnes has extensive experience working with a variety of programs throughout his successful career in the swimming community. Over the past 2-decades, Barnes has led his athletes to a multitude of conference titles, NCAA All-American honors, and even American Record performances. Brian's unique journey through the sport afforded him the opportunity to work with legendary coaches along the way, including Richard Quick, David Marsh, Tim Welsh, Dan Ross and a young Brett Hawke! In this week's episode of the @Fitter and Faster Swim Camps Coaches Corner, Barnes talks about the intricate process of building a strong, successful team culture, where it begins by cultivating meaningful relationships with athletes, coaches, and key staff members. The discussion also centers on a philosophy of "belief," and how to inspire teams to understand the power of believing in what you're collectively capable of accomplishing, no matter the challenge.

Chris Everett is the Head Coach of Mercury Swimming, located in the Southern Tier of New York State, made up of mostly-rural, agriculturally based communities. Throughout the last 5 years, Chris has led athletes to success at Junior Nationals, Senior Nationals, and Olympic Trials!

Chris and host Mike Murray, were college teammates at St. Lawrence University! In this week’s episode the pair sits down to discuss what it takes to create a successful program in a relatively small market. Chris shares his vision for the future of Mercury Swimming, and some insights on how to develop strategies for building your club from the ground up, why high school swimming is an important ingredient for growth in smaller communities, and how he has evolved his coaching philosophy.

This week you will learn how to foster relationships locally to drive membership & revenue growth, while making important connections with the school districts, facilities, and key community leaders. Don’t miss this opportunity to lead, listen, and learn!

TJ Day is the Head Coach of STAR Swimming in Buffalo, NY. Day has been coaching at all levels for over 15 years, and most recently spent 4 years as the assistant swim coach at Carmel Swim Club in Carmel, Indiana. There, he coached for the High Performance and 11-12 squad as well as the boys Senior High School Team. Before his time in Carmel, Coach Day spent 10 years as the Head Coach of Boilermaker Aquatics in West Lafayette, Indiana. From 2003-2007, he served as a volunteer Assistant Coach at Purdue University. In 2006, Day voted by his peers the Indiana Swimming Senior Coach of the Year. He has also served on the staff of many Indiana Swimming camps, and been on multiple trips to the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado. In addition, Day was on the staff of numerous Team Indiana Zone and Mid-States Quad Teams. This week Mike and TJ explore what it means to teach with a passion for developmental excellence, while creating an atmosphere where every detail matters during practice. We also discuss strategies for long-term, senior level success. Don't miss this week's Coaches Corner!

John Carroll is the Head Coach of Blue Wave Aquatics in South Jersey; is arguably one of the best club coaches in USA Swimming History. Over the past four and half decades, He has coached an American Record Holder, two USA Olympians, and 38 USA Olympic-trial qualifiers spanning 1988-2016. John's swimmers have been selected to compete internationally at Pan-Pacific Championships, Pan-American Championships, World University Games, World Junior Championships, and NCSA All-Star teams. He has coached National and Junior National Champions and had countless swimmers achieve NCAA Division 1 All-American status. He has helped many swimmers reach their dream of competing in Power 5 Conference schools and has watched them grow into World Class citizens. This episode of Coaches Corner, John joins host Mike Murray for a conversation about why training toughness is a critical aspect of development for age group swimmers. John is a lifetime member of USA Swimming and a lifetime member of ASCA, a Level 5 certified Coach. He is the current president of NCSA board of directors. He has been involved in Middle Atlantic Swimming on the Board/Committee level for over 30 years; he is currently the Travel Chair.

Ellen Johnston has been developing highly successful swimmers over the past three and a half decades. During that time she has worked with the Westport YMCA Water-Rat Swim Team, faithfully serving the club in multiple capacities before becoming the Head Coach in 2011. In 2015, Ellen received the Larry Lyons YMCA National Coach of the Year Award, the highest recognition for YMCA coaches. She has twice been Connecticut Senior Coach of the Year and was nominated for the honor in 2008, 2009 and 2010. In this episode of the Fitter & Faster Coaches Corner, Coach Johnston shares her insights, experience, and advice regarding long-term, sustained success. The discussion covers all aspects of running a high-level, performance based team, including a deep-dive on senior swimming. This is an episode that young coaches won't want to miss!

Emmett Walling is the Head Coach & Aquatic Director at the Peddie School, an independent, private school in Hightsown, NJ. In this episode of Coaches Corner, Emmett and host Mike Murray discuss what it’s like working at Peddie, where the expectations for success in both the classroom and the pool are extraordinarily high!

Walling attended Indian River State College in Fort Pierce, Fla., before becoming a student-athlete at USC in 2009-10 and team Captain for the 2010-11 season, working with legendary coach, Dave Salo. Walling was part of Indian River’s 34th and 35th straight National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) crowns in 2008 and 2009. He broke NJCAA records in 2009 in the 50 free (19.43) and the 100 breast (53.83), earning Swimmer of the Meet distinction.

During Coach Emmett’s swimming career he established himself, as a 7 time All-American, well ranked among USC’s top ten in the 50/100y free and 100y free! Emmett graduated from USC in 2011 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Kinesiology – Human Performance. In addition to his prior coaching with CSA, Coach Emmett was most recently an Assistant Coach for the UC San Diego Tritons under Head Coach and the 2016 Rio Olympic Games Women’s Head Coach, David Marsh.

Will Bernhardt is the Head Coach & Aquatic Director at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Will’s life in coaching is one of the most versatile, interesting, and robust experiences in the profession.

Throughout his unique journey in the sport, Bernhardt has worked with some of the finest names in swimming, Salo, Looze, Welsh, Barnes, Bashor, among other coaching greats.

In this week’s episode of the Fitter and Faster Coaches Corner, Will and host Mike Murray sit down for an in-depth look at how to start your career in coaching; including the significance of making cold-calls, reaching out to big time programs, and not being afraid to take some chances!

This is an episode that all young coaches need to take some time and listen! Don’t miss out on some tips and tricks for getting a kick-start to your life as a professional swim coach!

Coach Mo talks about building a culture of achievement