How to start a beach volleyball program at your club BEACH, ANYONE?

Securing a beach facility might seem easy, but it often has many unforeseen hurdles.  Is the sand/beach a public/private location? (Some recreation center, schools and beaches have sites with potential sand courts. Is lighting available?)  Are there rental costs/reservation fees?  Does the city/park district have certain restrictions or requirements?  Can you help facilitate sand courts by going through your municipality’s government?  What equipment does the facility or beach already have? (Some facilities will require special posts/standards.) WHERE WILL YOU TRAIN/COMPETE?

 Volleyball nets  Court lines  Volleyballs  Medical kit  Antennae OTHER THINGS TO CONSIDER:  Restrooms  Shelter/Shaded areas  Parking  Lighting ON-SITE NEEDS

 How many athletes will your program be able to accommodate? (This will probably be dictated by court space)  Will there be tryouts?  What ages will the program work with?  What gender will the program be offered to?  Will the program be used as an instructional/developmental program or will it be High Performance based?  Who will the coaches be? A summer membership option for non-club players is available through Badger Region WHO WILL PARTICIPATE?

 Recruiting players  If you are an existing club, you have a large number of potential athletes already in your club. Be prepared for VOLUME!!!!!!!  If you are a new club or are willing to take on players from other clubs that don’t offer a beach program you have options:  Put notices and information in the local newspaper  Distribute information through area schools  Hold a tryout camp or tune-up clinic  Use social media to your advantage  Word of mouth is a very easy way to let people know what is going on  Talk to people at indoor club volleyball tournaments  Talk to people at area establishments that already offer sand leagues (community centers, YMCAs, area beaches, bars/restaurants, etc.) The Badger Region will allow players to transfer clubs if they want to play a summer session with a club that offers a beach program. Players must be in good standing with their club to do so and get a release to do so. WHO WILL PARTICIPATE?

 Recruiting coaches  Send coaches to a clinic or two. This is a very different culture from the indoor world.  Provide resources. Compile a few fundamental drill progressions that would be helpful. It helps to develop a common language amongst staff  Get older players involved. Teach older kids to coach the game (that improves their ability to play the game) and it gets younger athletes excited to see older kids playing the game.  Teach officiating and scorekeeping to everyone (coaches and players). It will help as they prepare for their time at a sanctioned event. WHO WILL PARTICIPATE?

 Recruiting (and educating) parents  Lots of families need to be told, what to bring, how to register for events and how to check in. (Events are often quite casual and for some parents that is very hard to understand.)  There are numerous events out there that require different memberships/insurance to various groups. Learns what is needed for each event and pass it on to your club’s families.  Remind players there is a growing opportunity to play sand volleyball in college/later in life. Help parents understand the amazing value of this great sport and opportunity they have here. WHO WILL PARTICIPATE?

 Base your schedule on the budget you have, not the budget you want to have.  Schedule practice/training/conditioning sessions (Have a clear cancelation policy if weather is bad. Consider having an indoor facility as a back-up.)  Schedule competitions/tournaments  Consider having athletes participate in the USAV Beach events  USAV Beach High Performance (HP) Tryout  2015 USA Volleyball Junior Beach Tour  2015 USA Volleyball Central Grand Slam July at North Beach in Racine.  2015 USA Volleyball Junior Beach Tour Championships PREPARING A SCHEDULE

 Advice from up-and-running beach programs:  Try to avoid scheduling training sessions during other camps/clinics that take place within your program or where your athletes do other practices.  Consider what time of day you want to practice. Morning are nice when it is not too hot and the facility is not crowded with adult players. But parents will find it hard to get their kids to 10 a.m. practice if they have jobs.  When do you want to start. If you wait until after Nationals (late June/Early July), your club will miss a good window of opportunity to get outside and train. (We only have so much good weather here in Wisconsin.)  Do you want to start before school lets out? How will training session be impacted if you start before the end of the school year? PREPARING A SCHEDULE

 USA Volleyball website (  2015 USAV Junior Beach Tour (Under “Beach”)  Championships Info  Championships Results  Tour Schedule  Tour Results  Age divisions  Tour Rules  Junior Rankings  Jr. Beach High Performance Overview (Under “Beach”)  Beach Development Camps (Under “Beach”)  Beach Volleyball Rules (Under “Education”) OTHER RESOURCES

 The USAV Junior Beach Tour offers tournaments to boys and girls ages 10 to 18. The age divisions are 12U, 14U, 16U and 18U in Open and Club categories.  Teams are comprised of two male or female players, no coed teams are allowed. Each player receives a T-shirt. Uniforms are not required. The top three finishers per division per gender receive a medal.  The Molten Elite Beach Volleyball BV5000 will be used for all events.  Tournaments normally begin at 8 a.m. local time and check-in begins at 7 a.m.  Players will have the opportunity to earn bids (invitations) to the USAV Junior Beach Tour Championships. Open events give three bids per division per gender. Grand Slam events give five bids per division per gender. Participants in the Club division do not earn bids.  The USAV Beach Junior Rankings System allows participants to earn an increased number of ranking points at USAV Junior Beach Tour events. USAV JUNIOR BEACH TOUR

 Badger Region Volleyball Association Brian Sharkey  Terry Paulsen (Tournament Director)  USA Volleyball Beach Veronica Sanchez CONTACT INFORMATION