Register for the 2019 URCA Conference here! Welcome to the first ever URCA Podcast! In this show, we'll learn from some of the best and brightest minds in ultimate to help YOU become the best coach you can be. In this episode, I interview Cate Roscoe about her upcoming URCA Conference Presentation, "Teaching the Forehand." Cate Roscoe is a longtime ultimate player, coach, and organizer on the US west coast. In our interview, we discuss her upcoming URCA conference presentation, “Teaching the Forehand.” We also explore her background in coaching as well as other important lessons she has learned through coaching, coupled with her professional career as an educator. When teaching such a complicated motion, you want to keep it simple. Find cues that control multiple reference points. There’s so many moving parts with a forehand, it can be difficult to instruct. Here's a great example cue, courtesy of a young girl from Cate’s youth league: “it feels like you’re trying to put your elbow in front of your hand.” Another one that Cate loves, is “bend the opposite knee.” These cues allow the athlete to focus on only one motion or action associated with the throw, rather than the individual aspects of coordinating a snap from the shoulder, elbow, and wrist. Giving a clear focus for the thrower will result in more efficient self-organization and learning on the part of the thrower. Other Fun Nuggets: Relational Equity: The idea that all members of a team provide some value to the team. This article provided by Cate explores this in more detail. The target audience is teachers, but the applicability towards ultimate training is obvious. For example, a tenet of relational equity is the concept of multidimensionality- there are many routes to success for a team, and everyone is going to find at least one path that they are successful on. By acknowledging your player’s strengths, you not only encourage good behavior in the individual and provide an example for teammates to follow, but you also highlight what value this player brings to the whole team. Clicker Training: Yes, the same clicker training used in guiding behavior in animals can be applied to humans! Here's the NPR segment Cate mentions. This really only works in 1 on 1 situations when you have a highly motivated learner. Cate has found clicker training to be quite successful in developing math skills in her students. This training method can be applied to ultimate: if you are teaching a new player to throw a flick, it may be beneficial to offer the thrower a reward that is not simply watching the result of the throw. You can use clicker training to reward good habits, even if the throws themselves are not pretty. Thanks for listening! If you have any comments or questions about the podcast, please email me at jack@ultyresults.com! I really hope you can find some value out of this show. I enjoyed putting it together, and am looking forward to hearing back from anyone who took the time to listen! Intro/ Outro Music: "La Rue" - Cortex