james herrera Options

[MikeCarruth]

Great reply, AMV15...thanks for weighing in, as this thread really needed a point of view like yours.

I was stoked to see you rockin the VitaMix. We've had ours for about 11 years, and it finally gave up the ghost a couple months ago (sitting in the cabinet waiting for eBay parts). Lyn got a Blendtec that she is very happy with, and we're using it every day for one thing or another. Good stuffs!

Turtle, the reason the thread blew up as it did is that your initial question was pretty combative "how did he become the bmx coach with no bmx history." and "Who is this guy? What happened to Sean Dwight? I personally think they need Dr. JRich, Romero, and bigbird as the coaching staff. "

You made a declarative statement that he had no BMX history, and you felt he needed to be replaced. May not have meant it as such (given that the written word can come of more direct than the spoken word), but pretty strong words.

Anyway, glad it's all straightened out now, and hope your question has been answered.

Best,

M

[Elvis]

I creep on vintage every now and then, most of us pros do whether we admit it or not so when I saw this post I got a little fired up to reply and in the 10minutes its taken to figure out my username/password combo I've ran through at least 10 responses in my head that could fill a book up, but ill attempt to keep it short and concise. So here goes...

And you made a nice response.

You made a really good point here as well: A lot of times the initial reaction is not the best one to use in responding. I say this as a weathered veteran of many Internets warz (both pro and anti LOL): Stop, breath, then post.

It was such a good point I didn't want it to get lost in the rest of your post, is all.

Don't thank me. I'm an Internets geniu3 and this is what I do.

[thebondtrader55]

I creep on vintage every now and then, most of us pros do whether we admit it or not so when I saw this post I got a little fired up to reply and in the 10minutes its taken to figure out my username/password combo I've ran through at least 10 responses in my head that could fill a book up, but ill attempt to keep it short and concise. So here goes...

James officially took over my entire coaching plan about this time last year, but I've known and worked with him on a number of things since 2007. The dude started on a bmx bike, raced in the 80's and went around the block with all the cycling disciplines before coming "home" I have also been around the block with coaches, great guys that taught me a lot, but in the 10 years since I turned pro and been "coached" I have NEVER had a coach with as much knowledge and expertise that he has, not just in training but in psychology and nutrition as well.

That being said, James' biggest strength as a coach is his ability to read and understand the athlete. He know what to say and when to say it... whether its during training on a good day or after you have a meltdown from a flat session (not that I ever would (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) ) Most importantly he knows how to prepare and manage his athletes in high pressure race situations. Ive been racing supercross since its inception in 2007, I'm one of the OG's in the ladies class and I've crossed that line in 2nd place multiple times and 3rd many many more. I credit my first ever SX World Cup win last October to James and his exceptional coaching. He got that monkey off my back being the first American girl to do it finally getting to that top step on the podium at an international event. I know Brooke and Nic feel the same after their stellar performances at the end of last year as well. I got a little teary last night when he was presented with the USOC coach of the year award, a HUGE honor to be placed not only on him but to BMX and our program.

In regards to nutrition? He's a vegan, im not. About 1/3 of my degree from BYU dealt with nutrition so I was a health nut prior to working with him, but he has definitely changed my thinking when it comes to being powered by plants and I have noticed improvements in body comp, recovery, and energy levels backing off the big meats and moving more towards fish, nuts, and legumes as sources of protein.

And Mike, the Vitamix? Bomb. I use it everyday to make power food smoothies. Not your Jamba Juice full of sugar crap either, whole fruits and vegetables dumped right in and turned into a nutrient boost. I should be getting paid for how much I am endorsing that thing. Its amazing.

Not so concise, but thats all folks...

Arielle Martin

Several of my family are BYU grads - excellent school.

Good Luck in the future.

[Big Bird]

Since my name was dropped in the thread, I was there for the award presentation, I personally talked with James & Arielle, etc., over the weekend, here is what I have to say regarding the matter...

THIS IS HUGE!!!! Let me put it into perspective, and if I'm wrong on my possibly out-dated numbers, I apologize in advance, but I think you'll get my point.

USA Cycling has over 1,400 Coaches. The award went to 1.

There are nearly 60,000 riders between mountain bikers & road cycling disciplines. BMX makes up a few hundred riders. Whether you know whom James is or not, the fact that this award was presented to a BMX Coach in the BMX discipline is an outstanding achievement for both James and our sport.

I recently said in my Dale Holmes podcast something to the effect of this is no longer the backyard white trash sport...this is now an Olympic sport! Mike Redman put it into perspective to me over the weekend and said that back in High School he had a coach badger him about playing baseball, saying "BMX isn't a sport...Baseball is a sport!" - Mike looked at me and smiled and said that the memory of that HS coach was clear while he was announcing the races in 2008 Olympics - the same year baseball was removed.

As for the BMX coaching seminar (where the award was presented), James invited most, if not all BMX coaches to teach/present in the seminar - giving an opportunity to bring as many perspectives to this ground breaking program, that in my opinion is the road to help solidify more structure & support in our sport. There was nearly a ga-Zillion years of BMX coaching in the same room sharing ideas at the same time. Yes!!...you should have been there!

During the seminar, in the Elite Athlete Panel Q&A, what an athlete needs from his/her coach was a resonating topic.

https://twitter.com/#!/bbiggbird/status...5549314/photo/1

The #1 most thing I heard from these Elite Athletes was this: Relationship between Coach & Rider - understanding their personal needs. So regardless of who you know or like, it comes down relationship & trust.

There is currently a lot of collaboration between USABMX, USAC, Coaching, etc. The sport is growing. It is an Olympic year!
Congratulations to James - Congratulations to our sport: GO BMX! GO TEAM USA!

[mannequinforce]

This thread really opened my eyes! Wow!

[thebondtrader55]

What happened to Sean Dwight?