My beginnings…..
I could see my breath in the cool air up in the hayloft, as I worked on my wrist shot strength. I was using a contraption that my dad made, after learning about how Theron Fleury developed his shot. The design was a hockey stick that had a rope tied onto the bottom of the shaft, where the blade was. The rope ran through a close line pulley anchored to a wood beam and attached to a milk jug filled with rocks on the floor. As I took practice shots (reps), the milk jug would add resistance, and as the theory goes, it would increase the strength in the shot. Although I did not make it to the NHL, I did have a decent wrist shot for a 12 year old. I am not sure the mechanics of this exercise generated a high percentage of carry over effect to an actual shot on the ice. I am sure that the habit of doing this exercise along with shooting pucks in the garage, country mile runs, sit-ups and push-ups at a young age(pre adolescence), developed a hard work ethic in order to train for life.
Some, after reading that, might assume I had a crazy hockey dad who pushed me too hard. Not true at all. My dad did encourage me to do certain exercises and practice, but he was not driving beside me with a megaphone, trying to motivate me to run. He would give me all the opportunities I needed, and drove me to the rink, but he was not fanatical or controlling. He told stories of his success of a young runner and that always inspired me to pursue athletics and encouraged me by exposing me to high level sports games and athletes.
My story of strength starts on the ice as a farm kid in a country town. Some of my earliest memories at age 3 are of ice-skating. I remember as a 3-4 year old going skating with my dad on the lake in the back yard, or at the local rink. One time I was watching someone fly by us on the ice, skating in a fast circle around the rink, and something in my brain just clicked. I thought to myself “I can do that,” and just like that, I left my dad’s hands and started flying down the ice by myself. I still remember that moment clearly. Ultra satisfaction. Although I probably remember myself skating better than I actually was, it was a special moment and the beginning of a young hockey player. Those foundational years as a hockey player, ages 5-13, shaped my athletic and training future for the life ahead of me. I am not saying that hockey is necessary for everyone, but some form of athletic pursuit at a young age definitely helps in all areas of life, transferring well into adulthood. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-12-19-mn-3448-story.html If you want to develop your full potential as an athlete, you need to start young. Check out his researching showing that most of your fast muscle twitch fiber is developed during teen years.
At age 5 when I entered organized hockey, I remember watching David Van der Gulik fly around the ice like a young Wayne Gretzky. Very impressive at a young age, he ended up being drafted later on. It is interesting at age 5, in our first year of organized hockey, there would be that much of a skill gap, especially since I had been skating a lot by then. Makes you wonder about the “born with it” argument? We both played rep in Atom division at age 12, and already the gap was separating more with David on the A1 rep team and myself on the A2. There was also an A3 team and a noticeable difference of skill level between the 3 teams, as was demonstrated during pre season games. I remember going to the “wall” during those try outs. I felt like I was going to have a heart attack when they “bag skated” us at the end. I kept pushing through and when I told my dad that I felt like I was going to have a heart attack, he had a good chuckle. During these years, I was signed up to extra clinics such as “Power Skating” and Goalie camps. I even did at couple of summer camps with CAHC that Ryan Walter ran. One year newly drafted Ryan Smith was in attendance.
I remember when I was about 12-13 years old, going with my parents to a convention, and training in the hotel gym. A fit muscular man was training in there and said to me “Good for you for starting young, you won’t regret it!” Boy was he right!
Concepts to ponder:
- Start training, playing, or competing young. If you are old, start now at least.
- Unlock your kid’s potential by starting young.
- The habits and effort you exert in childhood will pay dividends later in life.
- Is drive natural from birth? Or is it fostered/encouraged?
Stay tuned for the next chapter…
