Every Saturday morning I ride with the junior team, coaching them on their long ride. I ride alongside them taking leadership by guiding them through the different intensities they need to hit, showing them what formation to ride in, and helping ensure they follow the rules of the road.
But this past Saturday, I decided to ride behind them in the car. My first inclination was to bark orders at them from the window to make sure they were doing everything properly. But then I realized it wasn’t needed! They had learned what I wanted them to know. They knew how to ride on the road, stay together, and complete their workout.
It was a proud coach moment for me!
I realized in that moment that as a coach, when we teach our athletes properly, there is a time to sit back and watch them execute. I realized that on race day as well as during some practices, we need to be willing to sit back and trust our athletes. Trust that they absorbed the information and allow them to execute the technique and skills they know.
The feeling as I rode in the car is much the same feeling I feel on race day: a sense of pride. It’s a pride that comes from knowing the work we’ve done together as athlete and coach, working hard together, to be able to achieve a goal. Seeing them execute on race day and seeing it all come together is a sweet feeling.
This is really a reflection from a coach to an athlete. This is how we feel when we see you go out there and execute like we’ve taught you to do. So as we head into spring races, know that your coaches are right there alongside you! We’re excited to sit back and watch you execute like we know you can.
