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Serve As Reasons Why I Have Discontinued My Membership. |
The following represent some of the reasons why I am no longer a member
of US Diving. While pondering and weighing the pros and cons of membership,
I came to the conclusion that the list of cons was far larger than the
pros, thus the justification for my decision. What I tried to do below
was list the cons from both the coach's and diver's perspective. While
reading the lists, keep in mind that membership like mine is for summers
only. In my area, that season lasts almost 6 weeks.
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| 1. Membership is too expensive for what is given in return.
2. Freedom to choose what is best for my program has been taken away. 3. Most opportunities have turned to mandates. 4. Certification has taken the place of Education. 5. Too much time and expense to become Safety Certified. The test didn't change the 3 or 4 times I took it. Some items on the test were not coaching related or didn't apply to many coaches that didn't have the availability of the equipment referred to on the test. 6. Additional Red Cross certifications are unnecessary for those who have to have a lifeguard on duty. 7. As a paying member, I am not allowed to vote. 8. The organization is set up for the elite senior finalists and their coaches. 9. The primary focus is on winning International Gold Medals. 10. Age Group requirements seem to be set by coaches that don't even coach at that level. 11. What good are those requirements when divers lose interest in the sport at a very young age? 12. Too much money being spent on training centers when the idea hasn't gone over very well and funding questions still remain unanswered. 13. Since the LRP has surfaced, I would be held accountable for ownership in a process that I can not accept. That makes the Mission Statement confusing to me. 14. In the past the organization was not successful helping various coaches get equipment installed in their facilities. 15. Blame has been placed on coaches like me for the USA's lack of International Gold Medals and I don't even coach at that level. That logic eludes me. 16. I have lost faith, confidence and trust in the National Governing Board. |
1. Membership fees too expensive for a couple of summer
meets. This doesn't include travel expenses or meet fees. 2. No discounts for multi-diver families. 3. Skill level requirements are too difficult for the younger ages. 4. The option of choice for the diver is limited. 5. Young divers can only choose from a limited, selected dive list. 6. Divers want to learn how to do different dives and not be drilled in a form of dive-arobics or skill progressions. 7. Dives on that list have dd's that aren't the same as in the dive charts for all other divers. 8. This question is often asked: "Why don't the older divers have to do a back or reverse dives tuck?" 9. At 14 a diver can select any dive from the tables. This apparently means that they have mastered all of the skills taught previously. It is also the age where many begin the awkward physical stage in their growth development. 10. The activity and coaches are too serious. Where's the fun? 11. I'm not good enough yet to go to Regionals, my season is over. 12. I can't practice because my coach left for a meet with our better divers. 13. Young divers want to dive in High School. Why would they want to join US Diving? The same rules don't apply. 14. High School divers want to dive in College. Why would they want to join US Diving? 15. If they are not a Junior or Senior elite diver, why should any diver join US Diving? |
Articles on this site were written to inform US Diving people that there
are problems when trying to institute programs such as the LRP. There are
many unforeseen consequences. Unfortunately those consequences occur at
the grass root and age group levels. This is why I have continued to argue
over the last 3 1/2 years.
There were times that points were made with some sarcasm. That was purposely
done to emphasize a particular point. There were also times that I may
have been well off the mark. That happened because the information I had
was either incorrect or sketchy. In any case, the articles on this site
represent my feelings of what transpired over these few years. I have voiced
my opinion which was the original objective and am happy I did even with
the lack of success I apparently had.
I may have made a mistake in emphasizing the grass roots level since
it seems to have been defined as entry level diving. This would be
the lesson stage prior to enrolling in the Junior program. However, I was
referring to the Junior program on down to the recreational swims.
I
believe that this is the grass roots of diving. Many kids get exposed
to diving in lessons and go on that same summer to compete at the Association
and maybe Regional levels. The newly exposed diver rarely makes it to Zones.
I have changed my program objective to find divers for the local high schools.
I have found a few kids who have learned 11 dives 2 years prior to entering
high school. It will be interesting to see their progress over the next
few years. They appear to be enthusiastic because of the success with the
number of dives they have learned. They also appear to be looking forward
to diving in high school. I don't believe that their skills would be any
different if they were involved in US Diving. In any case, they will have
more actual experience with dives they will need in order to compete at
the high school level.
At this point, I'm not sure what to do because most of this has fallen
on deaf ears. This endeavor has lasted over 3 years and may be coming to
an end in June 2001 when I retire. 4 to 8 years is projected by some before
we see the type of changes I have been advocating. If those changes can
be made, why would it take that long to make them?
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