Hiring Coaches

Question
Hello Pat,

We are in the process of building a skating rink.  We intend to have roller hockey, etc.  What do we need to know about hiring coaches?  Are there any things we need to worry about?  We have been contacted by several people who want to fill the positions, but are unsure what exactly to watch out for or search for.  We just want the best for the kids and our rink's reputation.  Thanks.

Answer
Hi Heather,
    Congrats on building a skating rink.  I hope it's very successful.

   When hiring coaches I would make sure they give you some background.  Find out where they have taught, how long they have taught and why they left that rink.  Find out if they've taught private lessons, coached competitive skaters and if they've taught kids classes before.  Experience in any or all of these catagories is always a plus.

   I would also make sure they are certified by USARS (USA Roller Sports)  That's the governing body which deals mostly with the competitive skaters and their coaches.  They should have a current certificate to prove that they are actually certified.


   It would also be a plus if they are registered with RSA (Roller Skating Association) but not absolutely necessary.  The RSA deals mostly with achievement tests for skaters who want to advance from a beginner level to a Gold Medal level of skating.  This is a good program to be involved with but not as important as the USARS certification.

   You may find that some coaches are only registered with the RSA.  That means they have taught but not dealt with any competitive skaters.  They mostly teach people to just get better and would be fine for someone who is just going to teach kids skating classes and non competitive private lessons.

   These 2 types of coaches that I mentioned above are for teaching artistic skating such as dance skating, figure skating, free style and kids classes.  

   These types of coaches are good to have along with specific hockey coaches.  They can teach the kids to skate which will feed your hockey team/ speed team etc.  

   Hockey coaches are also certified by USARS.  Certification of a hockey coach is not as important, right away, as it would be for the coach who would be giving private lessons or kids group class lessons.

   You may come across someone who has taught hockey but is not certified.  That's ok if he gives you some good back ground and has the skills to match.  If the hockey team becomes a competitive team he will have to certify through USARS at some point in order to have the team compete against other rink teams.

   You can get info about certification and many other things at the USA Roller Sport web site.   
        http://www.usarollersports.org/

The web site for RSA is:   http://www.rollerskating.org/
They also have a lot of good information for rink promotion etc.

If I can give you any information on building kids classes and promoting, let me know and I'll be glad to share how I build my kids classes from 0 to 75 kids.

Kids beginner, intermediate and advanced classes are very important to a rinks business.  They feed your public sessions and help get the word out that you are in business.

It takes time to build but it can happen.

Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with.

There's really nothing to worry about, just make sure the artistic coaches have current credentials and a good background.  Coaches are hard to find so be happy that you have people wanting to work there.

Pat