Extracurriculars you regret supporting

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not one mention of football.

Few pursue that sport in educated urban areas. It's a terribly ugly and dangerous sport. We neither watch it, nor allow our DCs to play it. We have zero friends with kids in football. You have to be huge physically too (usually overweight) and willing to damage your brain.

This is the absolute dumbest thing I've ever read. As if the academically elite private schools don't have football programs.

Nobody has mentioned football in this thread because generally, the people that enroll their kids in youth football don't regret. They are by and large, good programs

My 10 year old DS is at an academically elite private school in an area where football is huge, and yes, while his school has football, we don't allow him to play it. PP is correct that it's a dangerous sport and I don't understand parents who are willing to risk their child's neurological development. As far as it being a a good program? No. It's not. These are kids who don't need athletic scholarships to go to college, so really all their doing is risking their kids' health for nothing.

I thought soccer also was notorious for concussions and other injuries, but that's not stopping people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not one mention of football.

Few pursue that sport in educated urban areas. It's a terribly ugly and dangerous sport. We neither watch it, nor allow our DCs to play it. We have zero friends with kids in football. You have to be huge physically too (usually overweight) and willing to damage your brain.

This is the absolute dumbest thing I've ever read. As if the academically elite private schools don't have football programs.

Nobody has mentioned football in this thread because generally, the people that enroll their kids in youth football don't regret. They are by and large, good programs

My 10 year old DS is at an academically elite private school in an area where football is huge, and yes, while his school has football, we don't allow him to play it. PP is correct that it's a dangerous sport and I don't understand parents who are willing to risk their child's neurological development. As far as it being a a good program? No. It's not. These are kids who don't need athletic scholarships to go to college, so really all their doing is risking their kids' health for nothing.

I thought soccer also was notorious for concussions and other injuries, but that's not stopping people.

It's stopped us. It's just less trashy-seeming than football, so no one brings it up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m surprised no one said modeling!!! Also sewing classes are worthless too. Who really sews anything anymore?? It’s a good skill to know - at least it’s not competitive unless you’re trying for one of those sewing competitions.

My DD liked the classes she took last year. She keeps to basic projects like summer skirts and tops, but she finds it relaxing to plan out what fabric she would use and if she want to add any embellishments (lace, ruffles, etc.)
She is in many stressful classes at school and can get very intense in focus, so we like to encourage her creative side with classes like this or art which she enjoys. Also life long sports like tennis and rock climbing for recreation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

I'm the PP above you and rec classes is the way we went.
I had been involved competitively in tennis when I was young and disliked the atmosphere even then. I knew my kids would hate it. Right now, they have good skills but would never make any of our high school teams. DH and I regularly play with them and it's just been fun now that they have gotten better. It works for us. Can't put it on a college app, but that's fine with us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had middle school sports growing up. JV and Varsity for soccer, basketball, baseball, volleyball and more. Practice 5 nights a week was enough to get better at your sport. No need for 9 month sports and travel fees, coaches and bs.

x10000

Yes! I think it's so odd that FCPS doesn't have middle school sports. Looks like they are phasing it in next year, with track and field, so we'll see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

I'm the PP above you and rec classes is the way we went.
I had been involved competitively in tennis when I was young and disliked the atmosphere even then. I knew my kids would hate it. Right now, they have good skills but would never make any of our high school teams. DH and I regularly play with them and it's just been fun now that they have gotten better. It works for us. Can't put it on a college app, but that's fine with us.

Echoing the PPs for recreational tennis. I did play competitively in high school and started to in freshman year but quickly realized that I was way out of the running in skill level compared to the others and stepped back to playing for fun. Which is the best. Learned the basics at day camp, then played with Dad the next 25 years til he had to step back for his health, with friends, with DH and on doubles teams at work events and retreats instead of golf. Trying to get back into it now with my tween -- rec classes and the courts at the neighborhood park when they're not overrun by the pickleballers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

I'm the PP above you and rec classes is the way we went.
I had been involved competitively in tennis when I was young and disliked the atmosphere even then. I knew my kids would hate it. Right now, they have good skills but would never make any of our high school teams. DH and I regularly play with them and it's just been fun now that they have gotten better. It works for us. Can't put it on a college app, but that's fine with us.

Echoing the PPs for recreational tennis. I did play competitively in high school and started to in freshman year but quickly realized that I was way out of the running in skill level compared to the others and stepped back to playing for fun. Which is the best. Learned the basics at day camp, then played with Dad the next 25 years til he had to step back for his health, with friends, with DH and on doubles teams at work events and retreats instead of golf. Trying to get back into it now with my tween -- rec classes and the courts at the neighborhood park when they're not overrun by the pickleballers.

The pickleballers
Yes, though that may be me when my knees give out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

I'm the PP above you and rec classes is the way we went.
I had been involved competitively in tennis when I was young and disliked the atmosphere even then. I knew my kids would hate it. Right now, they have good skills but would never make any of our high school teams. DH and I regularly play with them and it's just been fun now that they have gotten better. It works for us. Can't put it on a college app, but that's fine with us.

My kids love tennis. We do rec classes plus occasional private lessons and tournaments. Sure some kids and parents are hyper competitive and jerky. But it is a mix, like anything. Some of the kids they compete against are in tournaments every weekend, sometimes in far flung places. But you don’t have to be. We do an average one tournament per month and only within an hour drive. My kids win and lose matches. They are ok with that and have fun with it. There coaches are amazing and supportive and never push them to do tons of tournaments. My kids won’t be D1 athletes, but they are pretty good and will have a spot on varsity high school team as freshman. It keeps them active and they enjoy it. I like it because we can lean into it or out, depending on their school work or other activities. We aren’t committed to a set schedule

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

I'm the PP above you and rec classes is the way we went.
I had been involved competitively in tennis when I was young and disliked the atmosphere even then. I knew my kids would hate it. Right now, they have good skills but would never make any of our high school teams. DH and I regularly play with them and it's just been fun now that they have gotten better. It works for us. Can't put it on a college app, but that's fine with us.

+1

[Anonymous]

Great idea for a thread, OP.

Soccer for us - travel and all that bullsh$t.

Here's a sport you all should consider: ultimate frisbee. It's self-refereed and the community is chill and friendly. Uniforms usually consist of a light shirt and a dark shirt. Usually close by. Not expensive. Good exercise, team work. It's like flag football moving a disk down the field, running into position to catch it, etc. It's fun!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

The bolded statement could be adapted to just about any youth sport. Parents in this area just take it way too far, unsurprisingly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tennis anyone?

I responded with tennis a few pages ago. We encouraged tennis because of the whole life-long sport aspect but DC is fed up with the whole scene, with hyper-competitive jerky kids and strict coaches who are constantly yelling and putting enormous pressure on everyone. Child still enjoys the game but doesn't want to play competitively at all anymore. I wish we had stuck to the group classes at the rec center and the summer league at the pool and avoided the indoor racquet clubs completely. Very expensive mistake.

The bolded statement could be adapted to just about any youth sport. Parents in this area just take it way too far, unsurprisingly.

Not frisbee parents! 😊