A very insightful conversation with Chris Hanneman, Club Director for Dakine Volleyball Club, from Tacoma, WA, on the subject of building a junior beach volleyball program and the importance of beach volleyball training for indoor volleyball players.

About VB RAGS Junior Beach Training

VB RAGS began training junior beach/grass players 16 years ago in Puerto Rico. We launched the VB RAGS Beach Volleyball Academy, and working with several legends of the game, we developed a curriculum designed to take junior beach players to the next level. Two years later, 2 of the youngsters we began training in 2005, won the AAU National Junior Beach Championships in 18U, in Hermosa Beach.

What are our training sessions like?

INTENSE FUN!  Our two hour practices are divided as follows:  

• The first hour is dedicated to technical/tactical work, giving our players a high number of repetitions in the fundamentals of BEACH/GRASS doubles.
• The second hour of practice is strictly playing time, with coach intervention as needed.  

Our structured, disciplined approach to teaching the game takes players all the way from the game’s fundamentals through advanced skill and tactics.

But we don’t just focus on technical skills; we incorporate psychological and nutritional elements that will allow each young athlete to reach their maximum potential.

Our practices are intense, but a blast for any athlete who wants to learn/strengthen their game, or compete at the highest levels of junior beach. 

We group players by age & skill to make sure each session is both challenging AND FUN!

Will we play in junior beach tournaments?

We definitely recommend you sign up to play in several of the junior beach events to be held in the Jersey Shore this Summer, but we don’t run the events and the costs associated with participating in the events is not included in our fee structure.

Will Beach/Grass Volleyball help my indoor game?

Most definitely.  When you play Doubles, you have to become an all around player, which helps you fine tune all areas of your indoor game. While there are many differences between Outdoor and Indoor Volleyball, there are many technical areas that are similar, and as such, playing Outdoors really maximizes the number of touches a player gets. In addition, Outdoor players see a great improvement in their stamina and explosiveness after playing Outdoor, because playing Doubles is so much more physically demanding than playing Indoor.