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Question for the board...
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Question for the board...


Apr 6, 2015, 2:45 PM

Just a little detour from the usual ruckus from TNet. I need some advice.

How do you know when it’s the right time to have your kid(s) sit down and really think about what they want to do with their choice of sport(s)?

I have two children, 13 y/o girl and a 9 y/o son. My daughter could’ve and still can be a pretty decent player at the sport she devotes most of her time to. I gave her all the tools, lessons, time and energy, etc. to make her the best player she could be. I can’t give her the “heart” to want it as bad as some and she and I are ok with that. She enjoys her sport but when her time is up I can see her being ok with walking away. Heck she’ll probably make a great coach someday.

Anyway, back to my real reason for this post...the boy. He’s our “seasonal” child. Whatever season is going on, he’s playing. Football, basketball, baseball, golf, and has some interest in wrestling. He goes to football camp every summer and loves it. He’s like me when I was a kid, not great at any of them but good enough to play quite a good bit and have some success. But, he’s starting to want to do more and more and to be completely honest we can’t afford it! For example, football camp is $225, now he wants to do golf lessons, basketball camp, baseball camp, wrestling training and on and on. Those are all about the same from a cost standpoint, not counting equipment.

Don’t get me wrong, part of me loves that he has the interest but at what point do we sit down and say ok, we need to figure out what you really like and maybe start being more serious and dedicated without getting burned out. He’s like any 9/10 yr old, hates practice, just wants to play but he does understand you have to put in the time and effort to get better. The golden rule at our house is if we pay for sports it's not social time. It's time to learn, give and receive respect.

I’m a rec. coach and I’ve seen plenty of the “next best....” simply get bored and try something else. I’ve also seen the kids that are driven away by their own parents or get tired of playing 1 sport all the time so they quit. But, with this being my own kid I’m really struggling with solutions. And no, I'm not banking on sports for scholarships or any of that crazy talk. I'm just as happy with straight A's as I am with game winning hist and baskets. What say you, TNet?

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...well, he is 9 so maybe pay a little less for sports and


Apr 6, 2015, 2:54 PM

let the boy have fun. In a few years, figure out which one may help him get some scholarship dollars and focus there?

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Re: ...well, he is 9 so maybe pay a little less for sports and


Apr 6, 2015, 3:02 PM

That's the crux...he's having fun. He just wants more LOL! He understands all sports cost something he just doesn't grasp that total cost of doing multiple camps/clinics over the summer. Who knows, maybe he'll keep getting good grades, playing multiple sports and gets a Phys Ed degree!

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My vote would be for golf camp, baseball second.


Apr 6, 2015, 3:44 PM

Only you know if he has the likely genetic makeup to play college football or basketball. To help him understand the cost, have him do all his chores at one time on a Saturday. When he really hates it after the second hour and it takes 3 hours to do, explain just how little money was earned in those 3 hours, how long it would take to work for all the camps, and that is why he can't do it all.

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Re: My vote would be for golf camp, baseball second.


Apr 6, 2015, 4:01 PM

I like it! He's been doing little "jobs" around the house for my mom and my mother-in-law to earn his football camp money. We have that set aside but it's teaching him we don't have the magic money tree!

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my two cents....a little long


Apr 6, 2015, 4:17 PM

I have been in this same position.
My daughter who is a pretty good baseball player (leftie and super quick) played baseball and when it was time to switch to softball she played one year rec and on a travel team and HATED it because she felt like it wasn't as competitive. At 10U rec she was getting hit by pitches or walked and it kinda soured her on it. So, she didn't want to play this year. It was hard.....bc she was good and as parents we could see the talent and potential, but we didn't push her. She will get asked to play on a 9u travel baseball team occasionally if they are short on players, so that's what we do right now.

My son....loves baseball. Lives, breathes, eats it. Loves practice and when we're leaving a tourney he's always wanting to know when the next one is. He's 7 and plays up on an 8u machine pitch team and has played AA rec/travel ball for 2 1/2 years. We have invested in hitting and fielding lessons and yes they are expensive, but he loves it. Do I worry about burnout yes. But how do you tell a kid, who loves it, no we're not playing fall ball etc.? This year he has told us he wants to try football, so we're doing that and playing a handful of baseball tourneys in the fall.
I don't know....as long as he's having fun and putting in the effort and time then we'll support him in whatever he wants to do. The minute he says he doesn't want to do it or wants to take a break we will - like we did for my daughter.

To me, playing travel ball is no different than all these kids who are dancing, paying for private lessons, competing in competitions and knowing they will never ever become a professional dancer or choreographer. Or, all of the competitive cheerleading teams, which are extremely popular right now, and they aren't going to cheer in college, etc.
It's what they learn about themselves in the process. The character, commitment and dedication it takes to be your best, but having fun doing it.
Just my two cents.

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