Sports in America

[MsSassyBaskets]

Um, can we start an entire thread on this issue/ This Lance discussion is interesting and all. For the record, IMHO he is an a** par excellence, but I think that this story is part of a much bigger cultural issue. I could make comments on everything from the near non-cancellation of the NYC marathon to the Steubbenville Rape case to every freaking high school athletic team acting like they are State Championship bound with their unreasonable practice requirements that infringe on family vacation time.

Listen, I'm an athlete and a coach. I actively encourage my kids to play multiple organized sports. My husband coaches middle school and college athletes and is a former college hockey player. With all of this being said, "IT IS JUST A GAME, PEOPLE!" We have lost sight of who we are.

/rant over. I'm sorry, but this issue keeps coming up again and again in multiple derivations and we never seem to get at the heart of the matter.

I completely agree with you. I can see DH and I having some mild disagreements about future kids and sports because I'm SO against sports fanaticism and over-competitiveness. DH, on the other hand was captain of his track and cross-country teams in college. Exercise and athleticism is great. Team participation is great. But there's a point at which the obsession and competitiveness crosses over into negative territory. I would never want my future kids idolizing a professional athlete, and I would never want them thinking that a sports competition was more important than, well, just about anything else in their lives.

[ladymoreta]

It's stuff like this that makes me hope my kids don't want to play a sport, and that's really sad. I just don't want our family time consumed by games and practices, and all the driving in between. DH wants them to play something, but I don't think he understands the scope of time requirements.

[BonBon]

It's stuff like this that makes me hope my kids don't want to play a sport, and that's really sad. I just don't want our family time consumed by games and practices, and all the driving in between. DH wants them to play something, but I don't think he understands the scope of time requirements.

LM, I have some local friends where that's all.they.do. Every Saturday and Sunday is consumed with practice and games. One friend has four kids and they also do swim and karate. I don't think they see much of the inside of their house. :/

[Thirteen]

I have a list of sports that are "too dangerous" that my children will not play at all.
Maybe I should start an "acceptable activities" list? This is getting me thinking...
FWIW -
I saw my cousins get roped into club sports at an early age: they were never home, even on weekends and holidays.
I'm not so sure I want that for my family.

I was overcommitted to xc's as well, and I don't think I enjoyed half of what I did.
This includes varsity sports, folks.
It's tough, especially since where we live, the rec sports are super competitive and start as early as 3 years of age. You can't just pick something up later, say junior high, and expect to get playing time.




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[MsSassyBaskets]

So which came first? The attitude that sports (for kids) have to be ultra-competitive, that you have to start early, that sports are more important than academics, downtime, family time, etc.? Or the idolization of athletes in our culture? Are the two connected? Personally I think they feed each other. What's the best way to combat the negative sides of this?

[Deebs]

One of my best friends just moved from Atlanta to Sacramento. She's thinking she is going to have to go back to work (currently a SAHM) to pay for her son's soccer league, in addition to the other kids' activities. They have three kids, and this league will run them over $10,000 a year, but that will double in a couple years because he's in the younger league, at age eight. She recently asked if DH sees more injuries with soccer or football, and was absolutely shocked that she should have to worry about concussions and second hit syndrome. At the young ages, he sees a lot of soccer injuries, and has had a couple devastating single hits. When I told her that I thought the money and time aspect was NUTS unless she sees him as a future pro athlete, she retorted that he does really have talent. I'm sure he does, but to invest that kind of money? It just blows me away. What also gets me is that when I told her to go find a concussion center and have his baseline one, she to.d me it would probably be too expensive.

Now watch, I'll be back on iMSN in three years to tell you all ab the crazy sports/activities I'm paying for my kids.

[SuzySunshine]

Mine are 5 (A) and 3 (R) - they currently do dance (A) and gymnastics (R). I'm not sure A is cut out for gymnastics as she really doesn't have the confidence to do things like walk across the beam (which is thickened at this age) and can't seem to have the coordination to figure out a cart wheel. R does it because he's a boy, I needed an activity for him and he can take his class at the same time as A's. Next year A will have full day school so her activities will have to be pared back and I suspect gymnastics is one that she will have to give up. Dance is another story, she LOVES it, is already talked about her recital which isn't until June and if you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up she says a dancer. We will stick with the studio that we are with but in 2-3 years if she's still serious at this and has some natural talent we'll switch to a more intense studio if that is what she wants.

A constantly asks when she can play soccer. Not really sure why because she has only played very small amounts at her previous preschool. But there is a league that plays at her school so it is close and her friends will be playing so we will sign her up for now. If she gets to the point that she is competitive we'll have to reassess because soccer is the #1 source of concussions for girls if I'm not mistaken. Our neighbors have 8 year old twins, both play soccer and they are CONSTANTLY going on the weekends to practices, games, etc.

I'm not sure what R will do, he'll probably start with soccer as well and go from there. I'd like him to play baseball, I'd like A to play softball (my sport) but I haven't had much luck finding them t-ball leagues in the past, maybe this summer.

I was an ok athlete in high school but I went to a small school of 50 kids/class, in a bigger school I would have been riding the bench or sticking with cheerleading (not that it isn't a sport!) I'm sure. DH is a runner, state cross country in high school and an invited walk on to a D1 school. He chose not to because he wanted to focus on school but he talks very highly of the dedication he learned from cross country.

We both golf and will teach the kids to golf as they get older, for a couple of reasons - one because it is a sport that will stick with them for a lifetime and two because its something the 4 of us can do together.

I would also like them to swim as I see that as another sport they can do for a lifetime.

I don't know, I see pros and cons with sports - I think its good for kids to learn to play on teams, learn how to handle defeat, etc. But I think it sucks that they have to start so young to even think about being competitive if its something they want to do long term and I think it sucks that it sucks up so much of a family's time which we all know is rare enough with doc spouses. It is something we are still working through as our kids gets older, we'll see...

[diggitydot]

My sister does this shit with her kids. They are CONSTANTLY shuttling from one practice to another with basketball, football, cheer, baseball, and softball. I don't get it, but if it makes them happy then have fun, sis.

$10K for an elementary school aged kid to play any sport is ridic in my book, though.

[GrayMatterWife]

$10K for an elementary school aged kid to play any sport is ridic in my book, though.

NFW. Find a new hobby, kid. Sorry.

I enjoy $10K vacations, $10K fur coats, and $10K upgrades to my house. But life comes with limits. Get used to it.

[MarissaNicole]

I was actually thinking of starting a thread on this topic because it seems like my coworkers' lives are consumed by their kids sports.

When I was in high school people went out for new sports or activities all the time (without any prior experience). They (my coworkers) were saying that kids need to have it narrowed down to one or two activities around 8 or 9 so that they can dedicate enough time to be able to be good enough to play in high school. That seems rediculous! (It's not like all these kids are going on to play college sports).

Am I unrealistic that I was hoping my kids could try several things and be involved in a sport without necessarily doing it year round?

How the hell do people afford regular and travel/club sports lessons and equipment?

I want my kids to play and try different sports but at what cost? I am hoping things swing to more laid back in the next 10 years....

Wife to PGY3

[v-girl]

I think I'm just going to train my little boy to be a runner. He can do track. The homeschool athletic group has middle school and high school track. There is also a track team he can start in the summer for elementary kids.

[SuzySunshine]

Am I unrealistic that I was hoping my kids could try several things and be involved in a sport without necessarily doing it year round?

This is my worry too but we are hearing the same thing if you've never played a sport by 8 or so, forget it. It's sad!

[SoonerTexan]

It's tough, especially since where we live, the rec sports are super competitive and start as early as 3 years of age. You can't just pick something up later, say junior high, and expect to get playing time.

Yep stupid TX. When we lived in Mississippi, my 50 freestyle time would have qualified me for state. I TX, I didn't even make it to District...there were Olympians in my district.

I'll share more about my "baby" sister's experience with Select Softball & Volleyball later. High school sports are nothing compared to these.

[civilspouse]

I have no idea how we will handle this with our kids. DS is only 2 so we have some time, but it seems like kids sports are a much bigger deal these days. I want my kids to try sports. I think it helps promote an active lifestyle, is a good place to meet friends, can teach many lessons, etc. I grew up in Idaho and didn't really do many organized sport until I joined the soccer team my sophomore year in high school. I loved it and have continued to play in adult leagues for exercise. When we moved to the midwest and DH was studying all the time I decided to volunteer to coach soccer. I coached 3rd & 4th graders for the City rec team and was shocked at how intense some of the parents were. Some of the kids on my team were not only on the rec team, but the club teams going to multiple games a day. I know the high school teams here for almost any sport are super competitive and like others have said if you were playing on the club teams growing up you don't have a chance. It just seems like what you have to do.

[MDPhDWife]

This is my worry too but we are hearing the same thing if you've never played a sport by 8 or so, forget it. It's sad!

Yep, this appears to be a reality. My oldest DD (11.5) is a very talented soccer player and started at age 4. When we moved and she started middle school we decided to not let any of our kids participate in any extracurriculars until the first half of the year was over. We wanted to ensure they got a handle on the new school district and weren't struggling academically before committing any time to sports or other activities. I'm so relieved we made that choice. It's been nice having more family time and not running around on the weekends.

Our youngest DD (8.5) has never really been into sports and we finally had to push her to pick an extracurricular this quarter. She picked an after school class called "Girls just wanna have fun" where they do crafts and paint their nails. This cracked me up. . I am concerned though that by holding my athletic daughter back now, she won't have an opportunity to really participate in sports or try new things in high school. Kinda sucks.