NEWSLINE STORY

published May-June 2015

Don�t Throw Them to the Wolves; Be a Mentor

by Tina Hawkins, 2nd Vice President and Publicity/Promotion Director

You are always encouraged to recruit, recruit, recruit!

But what do you do with those new people once you get them?

Be a mentor to your new members!

Many people come home from a horseshoe tournament, complaining about how Joe Blow doesn�t even know how to call his score, Jane Doe never knows who is supposed to pitch first, and Little Jimmy never stands in the right place while his opponent is pitching.

Maybe nobody has ever taken the time to explain proper horseshoe pitching etiquette to them.

Don�t just throw your new recruits onto the courts and forget about them! Take them under your wing and coach them! Especially the youngsters, as they are like sponges, observing and absorbing what is happening around them. SHOW them proper tournament behavior by example.

The lessons need not stop when they put their shoes in the bag. Teach all your new members how to keep score and to judge a shoe. Scorekeepers are often in short supply during an event and that could be because not all horseshoe pitchers on site know how to do it. It will benefit THEM as well. How can a pitcher check the score sheet for accuracy if they don�t know how to keep score themselves?

Learning to judge shoes will benefit all involved, as well. When pitchers carry a tool and are able to measure their own shoes and determine who scored, tournaments will run much more efficiently.

New pitchers should also be schooled in court care. Be it a sand pit or clay court, it needs to receive some attention during an event. Be sure to demonstrate those methods to your recruits, so other players will not have to take up the slack tending their courts.

Recruiting new pitchers is GREAT!! But don�t stop there! Follow up with your new members and help them be prepared for competition, especially if they intend to enter tournaments, and even the World Tournament. Everybody will get more enjoyment out of the sport if all members are trained in proper behavior and etiquette.

Now, get out there and RECRUIT, RECRUIT, RECRUIT!!!