The Timing of Attacking the Ball in Beach Volleyball - Part 3

Hi!

Last week we discussed the setters responsibilities in the Timing and Rhythm of Attacking the Ball.

The setter basically can make or break the timing of the play BUT the team MUST NOT have an 'indoor mentality' - in beach volleyball the play revolves around the passer / attacker NOT the setter as it does in indoor volleyball.

This is why it is very difficult for indoor players to do consistently well on the beach UNLESS they can wrap their heads around the rhythm and timing of beach volleyball.

OK, let's get back to the hitter / passers responsibility to develop rhythm and timing

Pass the ball to the best possible place for YOU to attack the ball - if you want to hit from the middle of the court, pass to the middle of the court, if you want an outside set, pass to about 6 - 8' (2 m) from the sideline.

Remember, you DO NOT want to be consistently trying to hit a set that is coming from farther than 6 - 8 feet (2 m) away - so pass the ball less than 8 feet (2.5m) away from where YOU want to hit from.

Just passing the ball anywhere and expecting your partner to give you the perfect set in rhythm is not so "smart"... ;>)

OK, so you just made a great pass up to the net, to where YOU wanted the setter to go, you followed your pass and are a couple of steps away from where the set is going - NOW WHAT?

The ball is coming down and you are going up to hit it...

This is key - YOU MUST go up to attack the ball as high as you possibly can, rather than dropping your arm and letting for the ball to come down to you!

You energy and momentum MUST be going up (not forward) that's one of the many reasons why a strong plant and jump off of 2 feet is SO IMPORTANT!

I see this A LOT, especially on: 1) sets that are close to the net and 2) when the hitter wants to make a shot. What happens is that the hitter doesn't go UPWARDS as strong and as high as they can to make contact with the ball: instead, they wait for the ball to come down to them - this totally screws up the rhythm and timing of attacking the ball!

The HIGHEST you can touch (stretch your hitting arm straight up,) when jumping (or standing on the ground) is the goal for where you want to consistently make contact with the ball - you need to start and end with this goal in mind.

You really, really, REALLY need to create the habit of always, always, ALWAYS making contact with the ball as high as you can reach, no matter what you are doing (warm up, practice swings, any and all drills) -

If you don't reach high consistently when you are standing on the ground, I promise that you will hardly ever make solid contact with the ball as high as you can reach when you are jumping!

FYI: What the elbow of your hitting arm does GREATLY effects how high or low you make contact with the ball

Also, the hand of your non hitting arm needs to get as close as possible to exactly the spot where you want to make contact, (what you do with your non hitting arm and hand is very critical in the jump, timing and swing). Your non hitting hand helps you track your target, the ball.

Yes, I realize I'm talking about arm swing and not about timing right now!

Why?

Because until you get used to the mentality AND feeling of making contact with the ball as high as you possibly can touch above your head, knowing when to jump is almost useless!

Your jump is "almost" directly under the ball: if you try to jump too far forward you will hit the ball at least 6 to 12" lower than you could have! 6 to 12" lower is HUGE when it comes to attacking the ball and easily can make the difference between winning and loosing the point!

The stronger you plant and the more aggressively you explode your jump upwards (NOT forward) with the mentality of making contact with the ball as high as you possibly can reach, the better off you will be and the quicker you will develop consistent timing in your attack jump and hitting the ball high.

Three words to remember during the actual swing: REACH and SNAP!

It takes a TON of energy and focus to:

- pass the ball well,

- quickly move into position, and then

- plant and jump like your life depends upon it,

- make contact with the ball as high as you possibly can' and then

- do it again, and

- again!

Be patient with your self, focus on one thing at a time and then keep adding 'pieces to the puzzle'. Quickly evaluate what you did and didn't do every time you attack the ball and keep making adjustments - the greatest players who ever played did this, maybe we should too!

There are many, many physical and mental skills and variables that go into the rhythm and timing of attacking the ball in beach volleyball - this is probably why beach volleyball is such a fantastic game to play and what I believe to be one of the most all encompassing and demanding sports to play at a high level.

And most of the meatballs who try to promote the sport put the vast majority of their focus on the "beach lifestyle and the girls in bikinis" - talk about killing the rhythm and timing of the game! But that's a different story...

Sounds like I need a few more deep slow breaths and another Mediterranean cruise... ;>)

We attempted to describe most of the physical and some of the mental aspects that create an environment for attacking the ball with in rhythm with timing.

If you pass, set and keep the play moving forward, then plant aggressively, jump upwards and attack the ball rather than waiting for it to come to come down to you - you will have the foundation of developing great timing in attacking the ball.

Timing is all about rhythm and feel and really needs to be 'lived rather than read about'

I hope this helped just a little - keep practicing in "baby steps", you'll get it sooner than you think!

Feel free to ask questions or make comments.

Be Your VERY Best!

Dan

U of Beach Volleyball

Part 2 - the Timing of Attacking the Ball in Beach Volleyball

Hi!

Last week we attempted to describe how to get into the physical rhythm of attacking the ball in beach volleyball.

In short, consistently pass the ball well and you have a 'sporting chance' of getting into rhythm, consistently pass the ball all over the damn place and you don't!

Shocking... but I got a little long-winded and the blog on rhythm and timing turned into a 2 Part blog and now it's going to be a 3 Part blog - Part 3 will be next week!

Let's take a quick left turn and talk about the setter in regards to the rhythm and timing of hitting.

To be a great partner you must communicate very well AND never give up on the play or your partner.

This very much includes during the serve receive! You need to be unquestionably clear as to who is going to pass the ball.

As soon as you know you are not passing the ball you MUST aggressively move to the net in a straight line toward the passers side of the court. (your first step is toward your partners side of the court and also forward toward the net rather than straight in-front of you)

As you are quickly moving to the net and to your partners side of the court, you are also watching the passer because if it isn't a great pass you can adjust to the ball and still do everything possible to make a great set.

If you came from playing indoors, or on grass or play with people who played indoors you will swear on your grandmothers grave that the passer is supposed to pass the ball to the setter in the middle of the court and somewhat close to the net. And you are correct -

IF you are playing indoor volleyball, BUT YOU ARE NOT...

This is about 2 person beach /sand volleyball!

Indoors, the setter is "god"/ the focal point of the team - everything revolves around the setter - everyone goes to work to set up the setter and make the setters life "easier".

THIS IS A VERY KEY POINT: In 2 person beach / sand volleyball - the passer / hitter is "god" - the setter must go to work for the passer / hitter and do EVERYTHING possible to make it easier for the passer / hitter.

If you want, beach / sand volleyball can be played with an indoor mentality, but it won't be played very well and it will have ugly rhythm and timing - sound fun? Heck NO! - and it's even uglier to watch! ;>)

But this is how many, many people try to play it - STOP IT - would it help if I said "please"?

Indoor volleyball is a great game and has its own mentality, strategies, rhythm and timing; IT DOES NOT have the same mentality, strategies, rhythm and timing of beach / sand volleyball - PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE DO NOT get the 2 mixed up!

To set well you need to move your feet like a cat, be willing to literally 'pounce' into position at the last moment, land balanced and then set using your entire body. The weight of your body, as well as your hips and shoulders need to move in the exact direction you want the set to go in - and I mean EXACT direction!!

Like passing, the set goes in the direction of the balanced weight of your body - if your body isn't balanced and the weight and position of your body isn't going in the exact direction you want the set to go in - you will not help your partner with the rhythm and timing of hitting.

Setting is an exact science -

A bad set,
A setter who doesn't know where to go or how to get there,
or a lazy setter

Will pretty much guarantee that the rhythm and timing of attacking the ball will be totally screwed up!

Or, the setter can help give more rhythm to play, or even create rhythm when there really wasn't any because of a bad pass, IF they work their butt off - it's up to you!

In short - the setter must do everything possible to make the play better and help the hitter.

What the setter does or doesn't do is an extremely important part of the rhythm and timing of hitting.

FYI: PLEASE make the play better EVERY time you contact the ball - you are either helping the rhythm of the play or destroying it!

Next Week Part 3 of 'The Timing of Attacking the Ball in Beach Volleyball'

Until then,

Be Your VERY Best!

Dan

U of Beach Volleyball

The Timing of Attacking the Ball in Beach Volleyball - Part 1

Hi

On our previous blog post when we evaluated the first AVP final of 2010, I said we would be doing a tournament evaluation for every AVP final shown on ESPN2 / ABC…

I didn’t lie! – (I just haven’t seen the Santa Barbara final yet and won’t be able to until the end of May) – I’m in Europe for the next few weeks with my wife on a Mediterranean cruise celebrating the fact we have survived 30 years of aggravating the heck out of each other / our 30th wedding anniversary! (and our 50th birthdays) ;>)

So we’ll put on hold evaluating the Santa Barbara Open, and for now we will attempt to answer a question we received the other day – the question was about how you know when to time your jump when you are attacking the ball – (spiking or making a shot).

Trying to describe timing is much like “trying to get a haircut over the phone” – it’s not very efficient or effective, but it’s better than trying to evaluate a tournament you haven’t seen! ;>)

Timing really needs to be taught in person or via video training – but the good news is that it can be learned, although it takes a little patience and a lot of incremental steps.

But it’s a good question and something I see many players struggle with – so here goes…

The Timing of Attacking the Ball in Beach Volleyball - Part 1

Timing is all about rhythm, it’s about doing what you need to do to get into rhythm, and even if you are a “white boy” and can’t dance, you can still learn the rhythm and timing of beach volleyball! ;>)

When you are in rhythm, your timing comes naturally.

When you are out of rhythm, it gets very, very ugly, very quickly… (you can understand timing, but not be in rhythm; but if you are in rhythm, the timing will be easy to find)

But before we jump fully into the subject of timing and rhythm, here are a couple of “side dishes” to consider…

1) The goal of hitting/spiking is not to crush the ball downwards, the goal of hitting/spiking is to end the play and win the point! Think about that – there is a time and a place to crush the ball down and a time and a place to do something else…

2) Most players, at all levels of play try to crush the ball when they should be making a shot, and make a shot when they should be crushing the ball. I say this happens because most players play from their ego / from fear, and thus are not in step with the rhythm of the game – but that’s a different level of rhythm than what we are going to discuss today.

OK, let’s jump into the subject of the rhythm and timing of attacking the ball - the physical rhythm of hitting is far more easily controlled than the mental and emotional rhythm – unless of coarse you are a Zen Buddhist monk… ;>)

This is what you physically need to do on a consistent basis to get into the physical rhythm of hitting the ball:

PASS THE *@#*! BALL toward the net and in front of you!!!

The first way you kill the rhythm and timing of your hit is by screwing up the pass.

To have great timing, you first need to be a great passer. The better you pass the serve, the better the physical rhythm and timing of your hitting can be.

It’s really that simple – consistently pass the ball well and you have a chance at consistent rhythm.

Consistently spray your passes / serve-receive all over the court and you have absolutely ZERO chance at having consistent hitting rhythm and timing – PERIOD!

After you pass the ball in front of you and toward the net immediately move toward the net - “basically” follow your pass – you, the ball and your energy need to be moving forward in a controlled yet very aggressive way.

Even if you don’t pass the ball toward the net, the play isn’t over yet and you maybe able to save the “rhythm” of the play – BUT YOU MUST move forward, tell your setter to push the set up to the net and thus attempt to develop some sort of forward moving attacking energy and rhythm to the play.

If the setter doesn’t see and hear you moving forward (tell the setter where you are going / where to set the ball during the play), it makes it even more difficult for the setter to make the play better with their set and thus you can once again help kill the rhythm of the play, especially if you pass the pass too far off the net. So DON’T wait for the setter to get to the ball before you move forward!!

In a 'perfect world' this is how the rhythm of hitting goes: the pass lands about 3' from the net and slightly off center from the passers point of contact, the passer follows the pass quickly so that at the moment the setter is about to make contact with the ball, the hitter is about 2 large steps away from where the ball/set will land – which is about 1 foot away from the net and about 3 – 6 feet away from the setter.

As the ball leaves the setter, the hitter makes a quick adjustment step towards where the ball is going and then a large aggressive plant step under the ball (you hop off one foot forward and land on 2 feet in a balanced squat position with both arms back) and then explode upward and make contact with the ball at the highest point you possibly can reach..

It is key that you are within a few steps of the setter and a few steps from where you hope the set to land – you don’t want to be running forward or sideways chasing the ball, hoping to figure out where it’s going to go.

This is why the location of the pass and then the approach position of the hitter is so VERY important to the rhythm and timing of hitting!

The pass should move the setter close to where the hitter wants to hit from; then all the setter has to do is set the ball toward the net and a few feet from where they are – this is SO much easier than having the setter push the ball all over the place – and as an added bonus there is someone right there to cover your sorry ass if you get blocked! ;>)

Attacking sets that come from 10 to 15 feet away works just fine in indoor 6 person volleyball – IT DOESN’T ON THE BEACH!!!!

Indoors, the passer is rarely also the hitter; the hitters are basically in their approach position before the pass is completed; and there is not any sun, wind or a soft slippery surface to jump off of – it’s a completely different approach, timing and rhythm.

PLEASE TRUST ME ON THIS ONE!

You will never EVER get into any rhythm and thus never be able to develop the timing needed to consistently attack the ball as high as you possibly can, UNLESS you learn to consistently pass the ball up toward the net and in front of you and then immediately move toward the net to get into your final attack approach!

Most everyone wants to be a great hitter (have great rhythm and timing) but most everyone forgets that they need to consistently be a great passer first.

So what about the setter? My theory is, the better you are at passing the serve; the more skilled the setters will be who will want to play with you. So focus on you becoming a better passer first and your setter in "white shining armor will show up! ;>)

I must admit, I’m a beach volleyball rhythm snob – I won’t play a competitive game unless I’m pretty damn sure that the person I am playing with can pass consistently and set consistently – it is absolutely no fun at all chasing passes that I have no clue as to where they are going and even less fun to break my back chasing a set after I worked my butt off to give my partner a good pass. I’d be better off trying to chase a balloon in the wind!

No rhythm, no timing, no fun!

Yes, I do feel somewhat passionate about this and my doctor says I should close my eyes and take a few slow deep breaths of this beautiful Mediterranean sea air…;>)

Next week, The Timing of Attacking the Ball in Beach Volleyball - Part 2

Let us know what you think.

Be Your VERY Best!

Dan

U of Beach Volleyball