Coaches Assemble to Get the Venom Camp Under Way

Friday, 21 June, 2019

It was time to put the finishing touches on our Venom Camp as the Coaching Clinic portion of the camp started tonight and the Camp itself would start bright and early on Saturday morning.

First, we assembled at Varese's Stadio Franco Ossola that is named after a legendary Italian soccer player who grew up in Varese but perished in the 1949 Superga air disaster that killed most of the championship players of the Torino soccer team.

  Glory Days in Varese Calcio History

Although there is also a velodrome
inside the stadio, calcio or soccer
has traditionally been its main tenant

A packed studio for
calico back in the day

Unfortunately, the Varese calcio team folded at mid-season this year due to financial difficulties.

Coming off the Velodrome turn

Alfredo Binda was an Italian
cyclist from Varese who won the 
Giro d'Italia five times and was
a three time World Champion

DJ lining the calcio field
for American football

Bart, Giorgio and DJ

That line is quite straight.

The field was ready for Saturday

In the evening we had scheduled

a coaching clinic with all of the

Chicago Bears coaches taking turns

imparting their knowledge

Steve Spagnuolo
Kansas City Chiefs
Defensive Coordinator

Steve was our keynote speaker and really got the night rolling in a positive direction. He will we working with the DBs at the Camp.

Bears QB Coach Dave Ragone
addressing the coaches

Shane Toub
Bears Offensive Line
Assistant Coach

I will be assisting Shane with the OLine at the Camp. He gave a great talk on OLine fundamentals tonight.

I have been playing or coaching American football since 1958 and have attended countless coaching clinics over the years. Still, tonight, I learned something brand new from each and every one of the coaches who gave talks.

Never too old to learn, I guess.

After the clinic we all adjourned to the BellaVita Caffé in downtown Varese to enjoy an evening with family and friends both old and new.

Coaches Brock Olivo and Shane Toub
enjoying the warm evening

As it got later, we all got livelier

Coaches Ted Monachino and
Steve Spagnuolo with our man Enzo

With Bart Iaccarino and Joey Fuentes

Bart is Joey's coach in Barcelona and I worked with him as a player with our Europe Warriors U19 team two years ago.

Good, hard working young man!

Coach Chris Tabor made the guy
selling flowers a happy paisano

Deep into the night everything was still

positive and lively but we had a Camp

to put on tomorrow so we all started

heading home at about 11:30 p.m.

My impression of the Bears coaches is that they are great teachers who have a positive and infectious passion for the game.

Thus, I am really looking forward to the start of our Venom Camp!