‘[Trails] and tribulations’: exploring wash-out in cycling coach education

Abstract

The mechanisms underlying occupational socialisation and wash-out following formal coach education are not well understood. This study explores eight cycling coaches (6 males, 2 females) navigating these challenges as they transition into their everyday coaching role. Using ethnographic interview data (collected over 18 months) and inspired by creative non-fiction (CNF) literary techniques, the accounts of three characters (Emily, Mark, and Yvette) offer rich insight into the workplace conditions that facilitate and inhibit wash-out: ignored and forgotten; the challenges of wearing two hats; and triumph on the trails. We discuss the challenges of becoming immersed and accepted into occupational cultures, the socialising force of observing other coaches, and the impact of (mis)aligned goals between the individual and organisation. This work has potential to inform the support offered to coaches following formal training.