Alaska Hoops Blog

In 17 days, practice starts for the Peterstown Lady Pirates.  The girls have it marked at school in the top corner of at least two classroom whiteboards.  I have composed a parent letter and gotten it approved.  The state coaching clinic has been held, the one where they read all the rule changes to coaches and officials.  The changes are pretty inconsequential, in my opinion.  The center circle line can be as small as a quarter inch, support sleeves must be white or the uniform color, and on the throw in, it is a ball control situation.  Not much new.

It;s gonna be fun!

The Peterstown Lady Pirate volleyball team is awesome!  They are undefeated and playing excellent vball.  We drove to Princeton WV to watch them compete against Pike View Middle School last week and got to see the athleticism on both teams.  I wonder which girls will also play basketball.  Peterstown players have good height and seem to play as a team, looking for each other and talking to one another during the match.  Practice starts on November 1, 37 days, we wait…

It is that sweet time of year when basketball coaches relax and only think about the sport ten times a day instead of a zillion.  I find myself thinking of past teams and the ways I could’ve coached them better or in one case, how glad I was for that group of girls to graduate and move on.  More often, I review possibilities for next season’s team:  specialty plays, practice formats, points of emphasis.  It feels like the present-wrapping stage of Christmas!

The week of summer practice for the girls at Peterstown Middle School just ended this morning.  I was impressed by the players’ dedication.  The gym had to be 100 degrees plus, we did drill after drill, and sweat was dripping down every face.  They learned to run a five-woman weave in about ten minutes, so add smart to the list of impressive qualities.  No one talked or bounced a ball while I talked and I heard zero put-downs between girls.  As I told them in the final huddle, “I feel sorry for anyone who isn’t us when the season starts!”

Team!

I was the guest speaker at the annual banquet of National Women in Insurance last evening.  It was held in Bluefield, WV at the old Commercial Bank building which has been restored as “The Lobby” and is available to host events.  My childhood memories of the bank were everywhere!

Before this dinner I didn’t know anything about WV’s branch of National Women in Insurance but they seem to be an worthwhile organization and quite active in the community.  Bobby Shields, president of the organization, was the hostess for the dinner.  She was awesome!

I was not awesome, but everyone was attentive to my little speech about Alaska and coaching basketball.  Several folks came up and visited and a few bought books!

Merri Hess was kind enough to accompany me and keep time so I didn’t talk too long!

If you are in the area, please come on out to the Monroe County Public Library in Union, WV on Saturday, May 7 for a book signing from 10 AM until noon.  I’d love to visit with other basketball fans, players, and coaches.

I am back in business and so excited – Go Lady Pirates!  The middle school season runs from November to February and I think I will be ready by then.  Peterstown Middle School’s colors are red and white so a complete redo of my Meade River School blue and white wardrobe is necessary(although I will always have the Lady Eagles and Lady Whalers in my heart).  Middle school players are so much fun.  I will have trouble waiting so long to start.

March Madness has inspired me!  I applied for the girls’ middle school basketball position at our local school.  At first I was so excited that I was bouncing, now I am just grinning.  The board meets tonight and I should know if I am hired tomorrow.

College has sure changed since I was a student.  It was a gorgeous evening, 70 degrees, and St. Patrick’s Day and still there were students in class at 5 PM!  Roger went with me to share Alaskan experiences to Dana Cochran’s English composition class.  Even though the classroom technology didn’t work, the presentation went fairly well.  It is hard to summarize the Alaskan experience, coaching, and writing tidbits in one hour!!! Students were kind and attentive, probably more than I would’ve been – oh wait, I probably would have been outdoors!  Thanks to Dana for her hospitality….

I had the best time on Friday afternoon at Mercer County’s Vo Tech Center.  Teacher Marietta Buckner invited me to speak to the nursing students but the group grew to include other classes as well, notably the cosmetology students.  Anyway, I told them a little about Alaska and the North Slope and they listened and asked very interesting questions.  It was a pleasure!

I think I need to take advantage of the student services offered by the cosmetology class – haircuts, waxing, pedicures, manicures, etc!