The OSP Coaching Hour call-in show began as an experiment. We wanted to see what would happen if we gathered a group of shooters and instructors for a monthly teleconference. We were hoping that we could capture some of the old school clubhouse magic that sometimes happens when shooters congregate outside the skeet field or the range house, sharing what they’ve learned. Since we began hosting the monthly shows in November of 2001, that magic occurred immediately and has continued to amaze us. It has become a staple of our coaching technique.
As instructors, we’ve learned an immense amount. The Coaching Hour has pushed us to constantly research the best avenues to peak mental and physical performance in sporting clay, and in life itself. It has been a great motivator to find new ways to talk about the same basic concepts. In partnership with the other shooters on the Coaching Hour, as we all find more ways to describe these concepts, the light bulbs begin to switch on in many more heads.
The show has become a very structured and focused way of capturing the best of a range house discussion. The format allows us to condense the most important aspects of those conversations, while whittling out the unnecessary or unimportant jibber jabber. It also provides immediate feedback. For example, many of our students don’t have time to call in and listen to the show on Tuesday nights. But they can’t wait to get the CD to listen and learn about what we covered. Others might be trying something we gave them in a clinic, and if they are confused and having trouble putting it into effect, they can call us up and we’ll talk about it on the Coaching Hour. Other shooters who may have overcome that same obstacle can contribute to the discussion and shed new light on our instruction.
In another big discovery, we found that although the shooters were listening carefully during the live show, they would hear the information being discussed, but they wouldn’t internalize it until they had listened to the recorded CD of that Coaching Hour several times. And every time they reach a new level, they interpret the information differently. What was said on the Coaching Hour means something different.
That’s why we decided to put the Coaching Hour transcripts into print. This book covers all of our conversations in 2003. Here, we go into more depth regarding the subjects of visualization, training regimens, pre-shot routines, self-talk, mental performance and keeping a log.
We invite you to share in the insight, humor and inspiration of our round table of shotgun shooters. And should the urge strike you, pick up the phone and give us all a ring, because the conversation continues.
