#40: Gill1918 presents Joshua Thomas "What I Learned Coaching a Para-Athlete for the First Time"

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Welcome to the Gill 1918 Project, a podcast series by
coaches, for coaches powered by Gill Athletics.
Think of this as the Ted Talks of track and field coaching.
Short, insightful, and packed with valuable strategies to help
you grow as a coach. We'll bring in the once a year
track clinic straight to your ears daily.
Interested in creating your own episode?
Everyone's welcome to participate.

(00:21):
Check out the show notes below For more information.
Now let's get into today's topic.
Hi, everyone. This is Joshua Thomas, assistant
track coach at some great high school.
Today I want to talk to you about the process of coaching a
para athlete for the first time.So a little background about

(00:44):
myself, I started coaching in 2020, been coaching track for
about 5 years now and as a former athlete I never competed
in track and field. So I had to pretty much learn
how to coach shot put and kind of put it all together.

(01:09):
And the resume kind of speaks for itself.
But this year with being at Summer Creek Cross, a new
challenge that I've never reallyhad before and then as coaching
a pair of athlete for the first time, the challenge was
exciting, it was fun. However, it was a lot of

(01:30):
obstacles that we had to overcome, a lot of stuff that we
had to figure out in order to make sure that the athlete is
successful and then just make sure that everything is taken
care of outside of the athletic events.
So I'm going to share with you just a couple things if you ever

(01:53):
cross this bridge or have the opportunity to coach a para
athlete, just a few things to kind of keep in mind for you to
have success this past year. Marquez Barnes qualified for all
three events, the 100, the 400, and then also the shot put.

(02:13):
Shot put, he finished four Fest State and then for the 100 and
400 he finished six and which isoutstanding for his first year
being a freshman and this is hisfirst time competing in track
and field. So this is something that we
don't take lightly and there's obviously room to grow.

(02:37):
But the first thing that I wouldsuggest, the number one tip is
get as many connections as possible.
Coach Greg Jones at George RanchHigh School in Richmond, TX,
he's a dear friend of mine. He's been coaching pair of
athletes for the past couple years.

(02:58):
This is his second pair of athlete that he has at George
Ranch High School. And there was a lot of questions
that I had that I didn't know, you know, exactly what equipment
is needed for his shot put stand, the transport of his
equipment to track meets, thingsof that nature.

(03:18):
I really didn't have a clear understanding exactly how or you
know, how we're going to do certain things.
So I reached out to him and he gave me some great insight on
how to get those things done. So the biggest thing is just
building a network with coaches that have done it before and

(03:39):
kind of just pick their brain. The second thing that I suggest
is, you know, be creative as faras the training.
So dealing with a para athlete, their disability may limit them
to do certain things. So with that you have to find

(04:02):
different avenues to get the training done so they are
successful. So with Marquez, the first thing
that we did, because it was his first time, we got him in the
stand and we threw a lot. But with the throwing, we're
taking our time. We're making sure that the
technique is where it needs to be and kind of go from there.

(04:23):
Later on, we built in the shrimpschedule, getting him some
weights and getting him some other just little things to help
him out and enhance his performance to the best of our
ability. But those are things that you're
going to have to create and findout as soon as possible with

(04:46):
your para athlete. And I'll be honest with you,
just because they have a disability, they will surprise
you. I remember briefly Marquez was
in our weight room and we're doing bench press and he was
doing 225 for sets of four. And he's just a freshman.

(05:10):
He he is strong, powerful, but now knowing that going into the
summer, there's some stuff that we can do to maximize that as
best as possible. The third step would, and this
is just an any coaching profession, be positive.
Every day you get a chance to work with a pair of athlete,

(05:33):
it's a blessing. One most of the pair of
athletes, we all are aware of the different obstacles and
challenges that they have to deal with, but a lot of them are
extremely positive and they don't make excuses.
So that's a bright side of beinga coach and being able to coach

(05:55):
those athletes. But to be positive, you're not
going to have the same outcome every track meet.
And what I mean by that is I remember our first track meet, I
think Marquez hit around 18 feetin shot put throwing.
And then the next one, he kind of went through a slump.

(06:16):
And I think the best he got was like 1617.
And you have to pretty much navigate a kid through that, you
know, positively. Now, there are some come to
Jesus meetings. I mean, that's part of coaching.
But remaining positive gives them hope that, hey, trust the
process and everything. We'll go from there.

(06:38):
And then the last tool, the lasttip that I'll give everyone, and
this one is something that it took me quite some time to kind
of understand it. Treat them no different than you
would treat the other athletes. And it's human nature that you

(07:02):
see a athlete with a disability and you kind of have that soft
spot in your heart. And there's nothing wrong with
that. There's nothing wrong with that
at all. But they chose to compete in
athletics to be challenged. So with them being challenged,
you have to put aside their disability and treat them just

(07:27):
like everyone else. And it took me a minute to do it
because the simple fact I've never worked with a para athlete
before. So the athletic ability I always
believe will always come. It's the mental aspect of any
athlete. And Marquez was the type of kid

(07:48):
that wanted to be pushed, pushedto the point where it's like,
hey, I feel like I got better. And that first week for me, it
was like, hey, let's take it easy.
Because one, I just didn't know what I was getting myself into.
Now knowing the type of kid thatI'm dealing with, he wants to be

(08:10):
pushed. He wants to be pushed to the
limits. He wants to make sure that he is
maximizing his training sessionsand getting better each and
every day. And then I said that was the
last one, the one that just cameto my mind.
That is something that I think that dealing with a para

(08:31):
athlete, you got to prepare for.Go ahead and get a membership at
Home Depot, Lowe's. You're going to have to make
sure your toolbox is on porn. There's a lot of different
things that they require. Allen rants, screwdrivers, drill

(08:51):
bits, drills. You, you know, the whole 9 and
you have to be prepared to be available when needed.
I remember briefly going into regionals, we're looking at his
racing bike. Both of his tires were pretty
much shot just because of the practice, the wear and tear of

(09:14):
these of the season. So one practice I'm literally
you know, on the turf fixing hisbike for about an hour and a
half, you know, getting that stuff situated so that he it's
successful. So you just got to make sure
that you are prepared in every aspect.
I carry 2 backpacks with me every track meet we go to one

(09:38):
with just extra towels and chalkif him or any other athlete
needs it. And then one backpack,
especially for him with his in ground stakes for to secure the
stand, just extra equipment justto make sure that we're ready to
go. But that's pretty much how I

(10:02):
navigated my first year. Asked a lot of questions.
Build relationships with other coaches in the community.
They're friendly people because they all want to see athletes be
successful. And then on top of that, just be
creative with the workout. Find out what they can do.
Be positive is never going to work exactly how we always plan

(10:27):
every single day. But remain positive and then
treat them like everyone else. Don't have that.
And like I said earlier, it's human nature to have it.
But treat them like everyone else and you'll see the the buy
in and the success of that athlete once again, my name is

(10:49):
Joshua Thomas, assistant track coach at Summer Creek High
School in Humble, TX. You can follow me on Twitter at
Coach J Thomas 79. Hopefully you learn something
from this. I appreciate it.
Thank you very much. Hey gang, Mike Cunningham here.
Hey, I hope you enjoyed this episode of the Guild 1918

(11:10):
Project series. It's really my mission, my
passion to bring you massive amounts of value and I hope this
one hit the mark. The Gill 1918 Project is really
dependent on you if for you to build your own episode, to hear
your voice, to have your voice heard you have something to say
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(11:30):
So please get a hold of me, e-mail, text message, Twitter,
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Hope you enjoy today and we'll see you tomorrow.