teens

A friend of mine, who has more coaching experience than I do, sent me an e-mail this morning:

you can never predict when kids get tired and frustrated and don't want to compete. You're certainly not alone as a coach in feeling that frustration and it's probably not just an urban black kid self-esteem thing. Any coach can tell you that they've had debaters quit on them at the oddest moments when you want it so bad you can taste it.