Updated on May 6, 2023
You have to be tall to be good.
Yes, it helps. But it’s not the end all be all.
Of course, being way above the net makes offense easier. But smaller players typically have better ball control (like how point guards typically have better handles than centers and forwards better dribbling skills than goalies). Ball control is crucial for a defender as they need to control the ball often… obviously. They also need to put it away after receiving a serve or digging an attack, but that’s where the craftiness of smaller players comes in.
Successful defenders often have many “tools” – offensive options that vary from shots to hits, pokeys to jumbos. Tall players can rely on a high, powerful attack. Smaller players must place the ball where the sand is empty, so their shots are crisp and accurate. That’s not to say they can’t detonate. Taylor Crabb is barely six feet, and his hits often warrant a thunderous sound effect from DJ Roueche. Kristen Nuss is 5’6″, and her short drop shots and sharp cut shots peppered with hard swings keep her opponents on their toes.
Female athletes have to wear bikinis.
Women are not forced or coerced into wearing a bikini. It’s hot and sandy out there; wearing clothes can feel cumbersome and stifling. Or it’s cold and rainy, and you better believe they’re playing in full leggings, long sleeves, and a puffy vest. The only rule everyone has is matching your partner. Even then – if it’s cold and you’re layering up, the AVP understands you may not coordinate your parkas and sweatpants.
Every lady is different. When the weather is nice, most prefer a bathing suit. Some wear bikinis, others like Delaney Mewhirter always opted for a one-piece. Others wear shirts, leggings, shorts, or a combination. It really doesn’t matter. Women do what they want.
You need a ton of practice time to be Main Draw material.
Reps are key, but gym time, mental prep, and rehab are nearly as important.
Take Johnny Hyden. He’s been playing volleyball for three decades – beach for two – and he starts training in the sand only six weeks before the year’s first tournament. It works for him: he’s the oldest AVP Champ and still going strong.
Or Kelly Reeves. She spends more time in the gym than on the sand, prepping her body for the grind of multiple matches a day. This isn’t to say they don’t get their practice reps in; they just don’t overwork themselves drilling on the sand.
But here’s the kicker: most AVP athletes have put in thousands of hours to get where they are. Malcolm Gladwell suggests putting 10,000 hours into your craft leads to skill mastery. In an article with the New Yorker, Gladwell said, “No one succeeds at a high level without innate talent… but the ten-thousand-hour research reminds us that the closer psychologists look at the careers of the gifted, the smaller the role innate talent seems to play and the bigger the role preparation seems to play.”
Preparation includes everything: practice, gym, recovery, sleep, film, visualization, all of it. The athletes that know this and don’t harp on practice open themselves up to greater success. They make the most of the time they do spend on the court, watch film to revisit the day and work on specific issues, and make sure their workouts enable better play rather than inhibit it. It’s a balance.
Playing in the sun every day will create wrinkles… or worse.
You have to be careful, but there are ways to stay safe. Most athletes are religious about applying and reapplying to prevent burns and sun damage.
Many have preferred hats or visors. I wrote before how April Ross told me early on to get used to playing in visor. It wasn’t easy to learn, but now I can’t play without it. April probably saved me from severe sun damage and premature wrinkles.
You need to be insanely athletic to play.
At the professional level – yes, this is pretty much a requirement, like it is for all professional sports. But to play the game? Definitely not. All you need is a ball, a net, and some friends. You don’t even need the ocean – beach courts are popping up like wildflowers nationwide. Lines help, but they’re really not necessary. I’ve set plenty of foot-drawn lines that sufficed for a few fun games. At its core, beach volleyball is “keep the balloon off the ground.” We’ve all played that. Anyone can play that.
As Chef Gusteau relays in Ratatouille about cooking – anyone can play volleyball.