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Big news!!

Big news is on the horizon for Venice Volleyball in 2009. Details are still in the works but a press release will be announced soon. All I can say is that it involves the Sun Dome in Tampa, UF and USF, and National primetime exposure against another top High school Florida team.

16th Annual Wild West Camp

Save the date for the 16th Annual Wheatley's Wild West Volleyball Camp. June 1st-4th. This year will feature a brand new exciting format! {Click Here}

Some High school news

The Venice faithful got some good news today on the '09 High school season front. We found out a few weeks ago that our 5A district will be VENICE, Manatee, Charlotte, Pt. Charlotte, and Gulf Coast (Naples). Today was the district meeting where we decide how many times each team will play each other and where the District tournament will be held. By a vote of 3-2, District teams will only be required to play each other once. Also, the team with the best District record will host the District tourney at the end of the season. This also means that VHS could possibly host the next 2 years. It really makes a lot of sense to do that for financial reasons as the top seed will most likely be in the championship. Now, the only thing we are waiting for is the Board of Directors at the FHSAA to vote on whether or not our match limit will drop from 25-20 matches.Many coaches around the state, including myself, have written letters to the FHSAA to oppose this motion. More on that at a later time. Our bid to attend the Nike Invitational is moving forward. It will be on tap at the next school Board meeting.

Final results from Basic Training

6 weeks ago, I told you that I wanted to become a better coach by relating more with my players in their off season workouts so I joined a Basic Training class at the YMCA. I went one step further and went to the the 5:30 AM class. My goal was to not miss a class (which I accomplished and I even went when we had 2 days off from school and the day after the superbowl. No Excuses! ) . I also told you that the instructor gives everyone a nickname after a few weeks in the class. I am now known as "SPIKE". We really dont know people's real names in the class but we are made to know everyones nickname otherwise the class pays for it with scissor kicks. My partner most of the time was "RESCUE" because she is in the medical field. Some people take the class over and over again. For example; a former (and future) players parent was in the class. Terry Ream A.K.A. "Bulldog" has lost over 40 pounds since last March. Today was graduation where we had to do testing to see how far we have come. Here are my results.
I lost 12 pounds (180 to 168) and 2.5 % of body fat.
pushups went from 85 (in 2 minutes) to 102
sit ups went from 75 to 92
mile time from 7:40 to 7:16
So there you have it. I would encourage you to all do it as there were many different shapes and sizes in the class and if you have an athlete in the program, you will be able to relate with them on a more personal level. I have been brainstorming about the possibility of even a mother/father and player basic training class for our summer workouts. Stay tuned on that one. I will say that we finished with a lot less people then when we started. The next class starts March 9th. I would probably take the class again but my wife has banned me from getting up that early. It was a great experience and it taught me a little discipline with getting up early and I now eat salads for lunch. I feel a lot better and have a ton more energy then before.
Over and out,
Spike
Phil 4:13

Vision

Championships are won in the off season.

2009 Districts Released

Here is the new 2009 volleyball District has been released. This is still tenative.

DISTRICT 12(9 schools): Baker (Cape Coral) * Cape Coral * Charlotte (Punta Gorda) * Gulf Coast (Naples) * Lakewood Ranch (Bradenton) * Manatee (Bradenton) * Palmetto Ridge (Naples) * Port Charlotte * Venice

Here are a few notables: Plant has moved to Class 6A and Ft. Myers has dropped down to 4A