Dr. Chris Bertram is an Associate Professor of Kinesiology at the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada. Dr. Bertram specializes in how human beings learn, and specifically how to create more optimal learning environments by tapping into flow states that lead to the ultimate goal of stress-resistant skill acquisition. As an academic, Dr. Bertram has published numerous scholarly articles in a wide range of human performance areas and has been featured in the Vancouver Sun, the Globe and Mail, and the New York Times. As a coach, Dr. Bertram has headed the UFV Cascades golf team for the past 14 years. In that time, his teams have won multiple National Championships and he has received numerous coaching awards at both the provincial and national level. As a high-performance expert, Dr. Bertram also works with Canada Snowboard in the role of Skill Acquisition Lead and Flow Coach, and does consulting work with various national teams through Canada’s Own the Podium program.

0:00 - Intro

2:15 - Childhood/growing up

6:30 - Coaching girls vs. coaching boys

12:10 - Top 3 characteristics of great coaches

17:34 - What is fun for you at a high level?

22:40 - Making mistakes in sport

28:45 - What is flow state?

34:10 - Flow state vs. mindfulness

37:10 - Flow state technology and drones

47:00 - The importance of flow state

55:10 - The journey of winning a championship

57:55 - Book recommendations

Tommy is the founder of Dr. Tommy John Performance and Healing Center in San Diego, California. With Master Degrees in Health and Exercise Science from Furman University, Dr. Tommy John brings over 17 years of health experience to the table. At the completion of his studies he played professional baseball for three years with teams such as the Schaumburg Flyers, the Tyler Roughnecks and the LA Dodgers. After his career was abruptly ended from a rare infection in his throwing shoulder, he developed his own baseball performance company providing over 11,000 baseball training sessions for baseball enthusiasts from ages six to thirty. Additionally, he expanded his practice of personal training, sports performance training and rehabilitation for all types of soft tissue injuries.

0:00 - Intro

2:04 - Growing up

7:00 - Kid-driven improvement

10:00 - Early sport specialization and intrinsic motivation

11:40 - Injuries in youth sports

15:20 - Disinterest and burnout

23:27 - The importance of free play

27:00 - “Elite” youth sport athletes

32:55 - Top 3 characteristics of great coaches

38:30 - Winning at all costs?

44:45 - Parent expectations

46:00 - Reversing the trends in youth sports

49:39 - Tommy’s patients

52:00 - Book recommendations

David Turner is the Coaching Children & Safeguarding Lead at UK Coaching, the region’s lead agency and charity for sports coaching. David co-authored the latest UK Coaching/NSPCC Safeguarding & Protecting Children workshop that 25,000 coaches attend annually, and the "First Steps into Coaching" workshop and resource aimed at getting parents from the stands and into coaching. David currently serves as the Lead Throws Coach at Loughborough University.

0:00 - Intro

2:09 - Growing up

5:25 - Sport specialization

9:12 - Attrition in the UK

12:57 - How organizations can make kids love the game more after the season than before

21:01 - David’s role in UK Coaching

23:24 - Abuse prevention

27:14 - Importance of multisport participation

30:37 - David’s work in coaching children

35:40 - Decline of free play

37:34 - Coaching tenure with Hollie and Becka

46:06 - Differences between coaching boys and girls

48:20 - Playing outside of comfort zones

52:02 - Shaving 5 years off the coaching learning curve

54:01 - Books and resources for coaches

56:50 - 10,000 hour fallacy

1:00:00 - Importance of lifelong learning

1:01:10 - Reaching David

Nick grew up in Wales and completed his undergraduate and masters degrees in the UK, before coming to Canada to complete his PhD at the University of Alberta in 2002. He is currently a Professor and Vice Dean (Research). Nick began coaching when he was 18, and spent five summers in the US working for Major League Soccer camps. He currently coaches at youth and adult levels in Edmonton. For fun, he runs ultramarathons, with his favourites being Sinister 7, Canadian Death Race, and Blackfoot Ultra.

0:00 - Intro

2:20 - Growing up and free play

4:45 - Challenges that youth sports parents face

9:05 - Multisport participation

15:56 - How organizations can try to reverse attrition rates

23:20 - Top 3 characteristics of great coaches

25:15 - Clare Drake and practice tips

28:49 - Nick’s research on free play and coaching

33:00 - Focusing on long-term athlete development

36:55 - Positive Youth Development (PYD) resources

40:20 - Role of organizations and coaches

42:50 - Youth sports attrition

45:05 - Positivity among youth sports parents

50:14 - Engaging parent meetings

55:15 - Book/resource recommendations for coaches and parents

59:05 - Tips for shaving 5 years off the coaching learning curve

1:05:18 - Connecting with Nick

With over 25 years of experience in player development and a long history as a coach with USA Hockey, Ken Martel was named technical director of USA Hockey’s American Development Model in May 2009. He is charged with helping provide a framework for associations nationwide to follow for optimal athlete development.

0:00 - Intro

1:34 - Growing up

2:26 - Issues parents are facing in youth sports

7:40 - Hockey parents and scouting

10:45 - Great characteristics of coaches

14:11 - Importance of continued education for coaches

20:31 - Ken’s USA Hockey work

24:15 - Rolling out the ADM Model

27:28 - Experiencing and reversing 60% attrition

33:47 - Differences between USA Hockey and Hockey Canada

38:14 - Multisport opinions and strategies

45:58 - Personal sport specialization history

48:34 - World Juniors and World Championships

52:16 - Success of Finland’s hockey organizations

55:50 - Maintaining sport culture

58:09 - Official attrition in America

1:00:42 - Ken’s proudest accomplishment

1:02:54 - Book recommendations

1:04:44 - Tips for coaches to shave 5 years off their learning curve

1:07:50 - Connecting with Ken and USA Hockey

Gordon MacLelland is the CEO and founder of Working with Parents in Sport (WWPIS) which he set up after 20 years as a teacher and coach to all age levels from 7 year olds to adults. He has a BA/Hons degree in Sports Science from University College Chester and a PGCE from Lancaster University. He is a qualified teacher and has been Director of Sport at an independent prep school in the UK for the last 10 years, and has worked in schools in both the UK and New Zealand for the last 16 years. Gordon is the author of two books, "Great Sports Parenting" and "Engage - How to Build Positive Relationships with Your Players' Parents". He is now a father and the early sporting experiences of his two children prompted him to set up the company as well as write the books above. When he speaks he brings a wealth of experience to working with parents, gathered through 20 years as a teacher and coach as well as a parent currently involved in children’s sport.

0:00 - Intro

2:10 - How Gordon’s organization has evolved since last year

5:03 - Shifting from dealing to engaging with parents, followed by tips

8:12 - Discussion about a viral baseball team video in Chicago

11:00 - Restricting competitive play to older groups

17:41 - Moresports experience and free play

20:00 - The importance of the behaviour of coaches

25:38 - Organizations supporting parents

29:29 - Defining fun in sports

32:50 - WWPIS’ objectives over the next 3-5 years

35:40 - Teaching both sports and life skills

36:25 - The importance of coaches continuing to learn after becoming certified

40:00 - Gordon’s take on the LTD model

42:00 - Early blooming kids and their “elite” label

43:39 - Reversing early sports specialization in the UK

48:25 - Kids loving only one game

50:47 - Books and other resource recommendations

52:17 - What coaches can do to shave 5 years off their learning curve

53:22 - Importance of coach mentorship and reflection

55:34 - Contacting Gordon and WWPIS

Peter Gray, Ph.D., research professor at Boston College, is author of Free to Learn (Basic Books) and Psychology (Worth Publishers, a college textbook now in its 8th edition). He has conducted and published research in comparative, evolutionary, developmental, and educational psychology. He did his undergraduate study at Columbia University and earned a Ph.D. in biological sciences at Rockefeller University. His current research and writing focuses primarily on children's natural ways of learning and the lifelong value of play. His own play includes not only his research and writing, but also long-distance bicycling, kayaking, backwoods skiing, and vegetable gardening.

0:00 - Intro

2:53 - Growing up

10:54 - What led you to being interested in free play?

23:30 - How rapidly has children’s play declined recently?

32:36 - Work with Lenore Skenazy

33:59 - Where is the happy medium of play with regards to safety?

38:20 - Discussion of the ideas and work of Dr. Michael Hynes, about free play in schools

43:07 - Examples of free play in sports, and what kids want

50:07 - Characteristics to have as coaches or teachers

55:03 - Impact of screen time on free play

1:01:51 - Shouldn’t 2-5 year old kids be playing outside instead of on screens?

1:06:10 - Are perceptions of danger a result of social media?

1:09:35 - Top book recommendations

1:10:43 - Emphasizing fun and free play to parents and coaches

1:13:20 - Street hockey ban in Nova Scotia

1:14:50 - Resources

1:18:00 - Age that kids can go out

Bryan Barlow is a motivational speaker and a passionate, highly-requested and recommended soccer referee. He is also a father, pilot, golfer, writer & Emmy award-winning TV producer, and husband of long-time best friend Lori Barlow. He is no stranger to center stage, so it was no surprise when his little “Offside” project went viral the summer of 2018.

Making a bold statement is one of the fundamental pillars of impactful marketing, and Barlow took his own advice a few years ago, offering $100 for anyone who captures referee abuse and posts it on the Offside page. They've received more than 6000 videos to date and are the only grassroots campaign discussing the negative impact fan behaviour has on youth sports.

0:00 - Intro

1:40 - Youth sports growing up

5:30 - Creation of the “Offside” page

10:50 - Referee attrition in the USA

17:20 - What have organizations done to improve the issue?

24:20 - Identifying the “2%”

29:05 - Parent outrage videos and what is the worst sport in that area?

32:30 - Wrestling outrages

35:00 - How can organizations retain their officials?

38:35 - Officials' pay and rewards

42:00 - What can we do to help young officials get better and be prepared?

47:00 - “Offside” training modules

52:00 - Just love watching them play

54:40 - Book recommendations

55:20 - Resources

58:00 - What can organizations do to make children love the game more?

Since 1985 John has been working for the National Governing Body of the sport, USA Volleyball (USAV), now as Director of Sport Development. He currently serves as the staff liaison for Disabled Programs, USA Deaflympic Teams, Starlings USA, National Parks and Recreation Assoc., the YMCA and over 30 other affiliated organizations working with USAV. He is Secretary of the NORCECA Technical and Coaches Commission, and Director of Development for World ParaVolley.

He was Team Leader for the 2000 USA Olympic Beach Volleyball Teams in Sydney, which brought home one gold medal, and for the 2004 USA Paralympic Women’s Sitting Volleyball Team in Athens, which came home with the bronze medal.

In 1995, Volleyball Magazine’s special Centennial issue named him one of the 50 most important people in the sport in the past 100 years. In 2013 the American Volleyball Coaches Association inducted him as their 60th member of the AVCA Coaches Hall of Fame.

0:00 - Intro

3:30 - Mentorship

6:45 - Mistakes in games/biomechanics of the game

12:40 - Different approaches to training

18:30 - Past vs. present John Kessel

21:50 - 2 most important skills in volleyball

25:15 - How coaches can handle learning

30:00 - The idea of “needing” to make practice look good

36:00 - A volleyball club that does it right

38:31 - Monetization model in volleyball

42:30 - John’s recommended video “Backwards Bicycle”

45:45 - Jump shoes and the mechanics of learning

47:40 - Top 3 characteristics of great coaches

52:30 - When did you specialize in volleyball?

53:05 - Book recommendations

53:50 - Definition of fun

58:00 - Resources

1:01:45 - What can coaches do to shave 5 years off their learning curve?

1:04:44 - How do we get kids to love the game more after the season ends?

Pete has been a varsity wrestling coach for 15 years and has faced the struggles every new coach has to go through. His first year coaching, the entire varsity team consisted of 8 kids and didn’t win a single match!

Over 15 years, his program has come a long way: two NY State Champions, 11 All-State Wrestlers, 22 Individual Section Champions, 50 All-Section Wrestlers and many dozens of All-League athletes.

For Pete, coaching is a passion and a labor of love. Now, with years of experience under his belt; dozens and dozens of books on coaching theory, sports psychology, performance nutrition, team building and motivation read and on his bookshelf; thousands of dollars' worth of clinics, seminars and classes attended and PLENTY of trial and error, Pete is out to ensure that coaches don't have to struggle with their questions on their own anymore!

0:11 - Guest intro

2:18 - Personal youth sports experience/growing up

6:30 - Favourite memory

10:28 - His start to coaching

12:20 - What would you have done differently if you could go back?

16:10 - His teams philosophy

23:56 - Win smarter

27:35 - Engaging parents

31:00 - Core values

44:00 - His standards

48:00 - What can coaches do to help kids love the game more at the end of the season than they did at the beginning?

52:40 - Resources

56:30 - #1 tip for new coaches to shave years off their learning curve