C O L D Coaching Staff
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Coach Kenny Rhoades, Four-Time NCAA All-American (National Runnerup on 3-meter at 2007 NCAA National Championships), 2006 NISCA All-American (final rank 59th in the U.S.A.) for Brighton Bulldogs (Coach John Strider), finished his 2nd year as a varsity diver at Metro State, nominated for 2006 Colorado Diver of the Year at 5A CHSAA State Championships, and nominated for 2008 NCAA Diver of the Year at National Championships in March of 2008, where he finished 3rd (3M) and 4th (1M) respectively. After Metro State eliminated their swimming and diving programs, he will remain the all-time best and male recordholder for Metro State's Varsity Diving program.
Kenny qualified for Colorado State Championships all four years during his high school career, and has re-written the college recordbook as a Roadrunner at Metro State, where he owns both the 1-meter 6-dive and 11-dive records, and finally achieved the 3-meter 6-dive record at NCAA's in 2007. He reset all four male diving records at Metro State his sophomore year diving with Coach John Conyers, who had coached for a couple years at Sagebrush Diving, too. He loves to work with divers of all ages, and could see himself diving and coaching for the rest of his life. He brings an extremely approachable style to our coaching staff, and has a contagious positive attitude. Kenny has been a fire juggler and entertainer at Casa Bonita in Denver, as well as currently diving in Mirage Entertainments Diving Show in Indiana for the Summer of 2008.
Coach Andrew Coup (prefers "Drew")
Head Summer Coach, who might return in mid-December 2008
Coach Drew is coaching full-time for Sagebrush Diving during the Summer of 2008. He is one semester away from graduating from Drury University, where he earned 4 NCAA Division II All-American distinctions during his illustrious career. He was coached for all four years by Coach Richard Hackett. Before that, he dove at Brighton HS here in Colorado, and was coached by Coach John Strider to a Colorado 4A State Championship, resetting the Colorado All-Time State Record, held up to that point by Jeff Carter, Ponderosa HS. He earned a NISCA All-American distinction for his efforts in HS that season.
Drew aspires to climb Mt. Everest in 2010. Pictured to the left is the beginning of his training. (Yes, that is what you think it is... a Speedo, in a snowfield, at St. Mary's Glacier, with 38 degree water behind and below him. He later ended up in the frigid water... intentionally. Go figure!!! We suggest he not even pack his Speedo for the Mt. Everest expedition...)
(Coach Kev on left, with Olympic Coach John V Wingfield at the National Training Center in October 2007)
Coach Kevin Sage (prefers "Coach Kev")
COLD Technical Director and Owner
Head Swimming and Diving Coach at Colorado School of Mines (also Director of Aquatics and PA Instructor... PE stands for Petroleum Engineering)
Mission Statement Experience Certifications Awards
Coach Kev begins his 12th year as coach for Sagebrush Diving in Arvada, CO. He has been coaching the sport of diving for 23 years since he began right out of high school, coaching his Alma Mater, Columbus East High School in Columbus, Indiana. Interesting story, the first diver he coached is now the Columbus East High School Coach, Steve Warren (COOL!). He has coached nine Colorado local high schools (Arvada, Arvada West, Broomfield, Golden, Pomona, Ralston Valley, Standley Lake, Summit, and Wheat Ridge), where most of the divers have set and reset every 6-dive and 11-dive record except for one (Eric Seaver's record for 11-dives at Arvada HS, which is still intact). He is in his second year coaching at the Colorado School of Mines. He recently was promoted to Head Swimming and Diving Coach at Mines after three of his divers achieve "B" cuts and qualified to 2008 NCAA Division II Nationals (Chandra Lippitt who graduated Spring 2008 as an NCAA Division II Academic All-American, Christopher Moore, who had no previous diving experience before joining the Mines diving team in the Fall of 2007, but he played Lacrosse in HS... that counts!!!, and finally Simon Demby-Myers, who just missed making finals on 3M). Sage coached the Metro State Roadrunner Men's and Women's diving teams for three years, where two of his varsity divers (Kenny Rhoades and Chelsea Bates) qualified for the 2007 Division II NCAA Nationals, held in Buffalo, NY, in March 2007. Rhoades finished as NCAA National Runnerup on 3-meter, and 6th on 1-meter, earning two All-American distinctions, and in the process, reset 3 of the 4 Metro State Men's Diving records in his first season. Bates finished as the 1-meter recordholder for 6-dives at Metro State, before transferring away from Metro State just before Nationals. Sage spent one month in the 2005-06 season coaching the CU Diving Club Team. He also spent one season coaching the University of Denver Men's and Women's team, where the women scored the most team points in DU's history (at the time) at the 2003 Sun Belt Conference Swimming and Diving Championships and reset the school record for 1-meter (6-dives) twice, while two of the women finished the season within 13 points of the school record on 3M (Keelan Smith went on to capture the 3M 11-dive record during the next season). Before that season, Sage was named Colorado's Diving Coach of the Year for both the Boys (5A) and Girls (4A) in 2000, and had been nominated at virtually every HS State Championship for the honor while he was coaching the high school teams. His goal is to elevate the fun and excitement in the sport, and provide a top-quality diving program for divers of all levels. He is the only coach in Colorado who is a certified master spotter by USA Diving (mats, dryboard, 1M wetboard, trampoline, and dry platform), and subsequently, is certified as a USAD Regional Instructor Trainer in all courses, conducting all courses in the RMDA, and filling in throughout the USA when needed, mostly in Arizona and Nevada (Las Vegas). He recently achieved his 2nd Master-level distinction in May 2008 in a USA Diving sponsored trip to the Ft. Lauderdale Grand Prix. He is currently the Training and Education Chair of the Rocky Mountain Diving Association (since 2000), was the meet director for 2001 Region VI Summer Diving Championships, 2004 U.S. Region VI Spring and Summer Diving Championships, and was the meet director for the 2007 Region VI Summer Diving Championships, is a 2008-09 member of the United States Professional Diving Coaches Association, and a Lifetime Coach Member of one of our National Governing Bodies, USA Diving. Finally, Coach Kev is the first Colorado Sport Director for Diving (a position he currently holds) in the new American Amateur Union (AAU Diving), an organization which re-instated Diving as a sanctioned sport in late 2005. He has hosted the first AAU Colorado District Championships in 2005, as well as the 2007 AAU Colorado District Championships. (E-mail Coach Kev)