Boardman Ohio- Coaching needed

[Edy13]

I'm new to the area, Boardman OH. Trying to get some info on possible coaches. If anyone is in the area and can share some firsthand info on who I can / should contact for quality lessons, it would be greatly appreciated. I am a complete beginner, if that matters.. I realize I can search online for someone in my area, but I'd like to try to get some feedback from someone who has firsthand experience with a coach, if possible.

Thanks..

[white_rabbitt]

@Edy13 Any luck finding a coach in the area? I'm in the Stow area and might be looking for some possible coaches soon.
If you have seen a coach, what were your experiences?

[Aslan]

I've been to Boardman. Over yonder near Pennsylvania. I had a crush on a couple Boardman girls back in high school and drove there to visit once.

[RobLV1]

Go to the USBC website, www.bowl.com, and click on the area at the top of the page where it says, "find a..." Go to Find a Coach, and put in your Zip Code. There are literally hundreds of certified coaches listed for Ohio. Make sure you find one that is either Silver Level or Bronze Level, even if you have to travel a little bit further. It will be worth it to you. Good Luck!

[Aslan]

Go to the USBC website, www.bowl.com, and click on the area at the top of the page where it says, "find a..." Go to Find a Coach, and put in your Zip Code. There are literally hundreds of certified coaches listed for Ohio. Make sure you find one that is either Silver Level or Bronze Level, even if you have to travel a little bit further. It will be worth it to you. Good Luck!

I'd go one step further and say that he should really try yo go for a silver level coach if one is nearby. The cost isn't going to usually be much more, but from what I've heard the silver level certification is a lot harder to get. There are LOTS of bronze level coaches out there and some don't even coach. Most pro shop owners will get the bronze level just to have the certificate on the wall and because they occasionally will give a lesson to prospective customers. But their main focus is running a successful pro shop. Silver and Gold (rare) level coaches seem to be very devoted to coaching. But there much fewer of them. Ohio is a big bowling area…so you might have better luck than some other areas.

[RobLV1]

If you go back to the original post, Edy13 is a self-proclaimed complete beginner. At that level, there is very little difference between a Silver Level and a Bronze Level coach. The main difference is that Bronze Level Coaches are trained to coach from the approach forward to the line (basics), while Silver Level are trained to coach from the line backward; in other words look at the position at the line and then determine what got the bowler there, and what needs to be corrected. For a beginning bowler, you always coach from the approach forward. Since all coaches have to go through the progresstion from Level I to Bronze, to Silver, and ultimately to Gold, any coach from Level I up is qualified to teach a beginning bowler.

[white_rabbitt]

Good info guys! Def will help in my search for a coach. Thanks!

[Aslan]

Since all coaches have to go through the progresstion from Level I to Bronze, to Silver, and ultimately to Gold, any coach from Level I up is qualified to teach a beginning bowler.

I could be a Level I coach. I took the class and could have easily passed the test. And I can't effectively coach based on my few attempts.

I was just saying that if you live near 30 coaches and two of them are silver...the cost of the silver coach is gonna be about $50/hour and the cost of the Bronze is going to be $40/hour...just eat the $10 because from what I've "heard"...Silver and Gold require a great deal more time/work/expertise than Bronze. Bronze is fine...I was just saying he might get more bang for the buck with a silver/gold.

Maybe that's a question I should ask you as our resident Silver level coach. What was the degree of difficulty (1-10) at getting Level 1, versus Bronze, versus Silver? I'm assuming Gold must be a REAL hastle since you haven't went that route (yet)?

[RobLV1]

Degree of Difficulty:

Level 1 - 5
Bronze - 7
Silver - 9

Gold is so all-consuming in terms of commitment, that I seriously doubt that I will even attempt it. My forte is more in writing than one-on-one coaching, though I do enjoy it occasionally.