Activities you would never do...

[Anonymous]

This is so interesting! My DD does competitive gymnastics. At her gym it’s a very healthy culture. I steered her away from lacrosse (nasty mean girl stuff in our town and where I grew up) and she pulled away from soccer at a young age (also because of mean girl/aloha girl drama). Swimming had a bunch of over involved tiger parents in our area and that put her off, but somehow tennis where I live is weirdly supportive and collegial.

It’s fascinating how some activities have a culture of their own depending on where you live. We’re not in the dmv and some sport cultures are very different from the stereotypes I remember from growing up. And some are the same, cough cough, boys’ lacrosse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is so interesting! My DD does competitive gymnastics. At her gym it’s a very healthy culture. I steered her away from lacrosse (nasty mean girl stuff in our town and where I grew up) and she pulled away from soccer at a young age (also because of mean girl/aloha girl drama). Swimming had a bunch of over involved tiger parents in our area and that put her off, but somehow tennis where I live is weirdly supportive and collegial.

It’s fascinating how some activities have a culture of their own depending on where you live. We’re not in the dmv and some sport cultures are very different from the stereotypes I remember from growing up. And some are the same, cough cough, boys’ lacrosse.

Ok, I get the mean girl reference in your comment, but for the life of me, what's an aloha girl? I'm thinking grass shirts, leis and coconuts, but that can't be it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is so interesting! My DD does competitive gymnastics. At her gym it’s a very healthy culture. I steered her away from lacrosse (nasty mean girl stuff in our town and where I grew up) and she pulled away from soccer at a young age (also because of mean girl/aloha girl drama). Swimming had a bunch of over involved tiger parents in our area and that put her off, but somehow tennis where I live is weirdly supportive and collegial.

It’s fascinating how some activities have a culture of their own depending on where you live. We’re not in the dmv and some sport cultures are very different from the stereotypes I remember from growing up. And some are the same, cough cough, boys’ lacrosse.

Ok, I get the mean girl reference in your comment, but for the life of me, what's an aloha girl? I'm thinking grass shirts, leis and coconuts, but that can't be it?

Whoops, typo!

I meant “alpha girl drama”. Aloha would be a good thing! Find me the sport with too much aloha and we’re in.

[Anonymous]

A pro for gymnastics: you get to do the activity every single competition and everyone gets the same opportunity to do all 4 events.

A major frustration with soccer, softball and volleyball for us was the politics of playing time and positions. It was really frustrating to get to compete less than other teammates. For my gymnastics DD, she got to compete the same amount on every competition regardless of where she stood in the team’s pecking order or in the eyes of the coach.

[Anonymous]

We have two boys and the sport we weren't OK with was football. They were not top athletes, so they played rec-league baseball, rec-league soccer, summer swim, summer dive and a whole lot of ultimate frisbee. This had the advantage of keeping expenses within our meager budget.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No gymnastics,
no competitive swimming,
no cheerleading,
no boxing,
no football,
no racing,
no spelling bee!!!

Why you hating on the bee?

[Anonymous]

No travel sports.

I try to stay away from baseball because it's so boring, but if my kid really wanted to play I'd be ok with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is so interesting! My DD does competitive gymnastics. At her gym it’s a very healthy culture. I steered her away from lacrosse (nasty mean girl stuff in our town and where I grew up) and she pulled away from soccer at a young age (also because of mean girl/aloha girl drama). Swimming had a bunch of over involved tiger parents in our area and that put her off, but somehow tennis where I live is weirdly supportive and collegial.

It’s fascinating how some activities have a culture of their own depending on where you live. We’re not in the dmv and some sport cultures are very different from the stereotypes I remember from growing up. And some are the same, cough cough, boys’ lacrosse.

Lacrosse is really rapey in the U.S.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is so interesting! My DD does competitive gymnastics. At her gym it’s a very healthy culture. I steered her away from lacrosse (nasty mean girl stuff in our town and where I grew up) and she pulled away from soccer at a young age (also because of mean girl/aloha girl drama). Swimming had a bunch of over involved tiger parents in our area and that put her off, but somehow tennis where I live is weirdly supportive and collegial.

It’s fascinating how some activities have a culture of their own depending on where you live. We’re not in the dmv and some sport cultures are very different from the stereotypes I remember from growing up. And some are the same, cough cough, boys’ lacrosse.

Lacrosse is really rapey in the U.S.

No. It’s not. College in the US in general has problems with sexual assault. Fraternities have the highest amounts of sexual assaults reported. With the big football schools more sexual assaults happen when there are football games and they happen at parties, dorms, anywhere on campus. Most go unreported.

[Anonymous]

No dance or cheerleading past rec level.

[Anonymous]

Sports- waste of time

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never in a million years, would I allow DD to become an empty-headed, vapid, cheerleader.

This + poms

I think Poms is most popular down South and the Midwest. Have you seen the Pom teams and dance teams in the D1 college division? They are remarkably talented. Watch videos from some of their competitions and explain why you have a problem with it. These girls are not super thin. For the most part their weight is right where it’s supposed to be and they are strong.

Just like female sports teams there are mediocre dance teams but the top Pom teams are on par with the colleges top sports team with regard to the work put in and the results.

Except for things like pay. Or scholarship money. Or future career prospects. But sure other than those minor things for which no one looks at colleges, these are great.

[Anonymous]

So I watched “scary interesting” YouTube channel.

I would never do cave driving or caving. Never!

This is on another channel but it is on caving. The cave has something called “the z-bend”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cToDxetyc-0
Yipes!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These make me a bit sad for girls. I had no eye hand or eye foot coordination, didn't enjoy the repetitive nature of swimming but was a damn good dancer then figure skater then cheerleader (I did all 3 over the years and cheered in college). I took absolute JOY in moving to music and had both a natural talent for it and love for it that made me work hard to build my skill.

I never once was body shamed in it or felt I had to be skinnier for my activity (vs the general be skinny pressure on girls). Maybe I would have been if I was at very high elite levels, but aren't all high elite athletes under body pressure whether its strength or weight or whatever. I am naturally petite which helped me with cheer and skating but that was no different than being naturally tall helping for basketball or tall and lean helping for cross country.

I just makes me sad that parents wouldn't let their kids do an activity out of potential future fears that gave me and many others such joy. I've circled back on all them in my adult life (just started taking skating lessons again after a 25 year hiatus) and I get energized from it in a way i never have any other physical or artistic persuit.

+1 I loved dance, and made national teams. My dad, in particular, decided dance wasn't really a good thing for me and forced me to play "real sports". I made teams, but never excelled the way I did in dance. Luckily a high school coach figured out my dance ability made me a natural hurdler and I ended up running track in college. But even now, in my mid-40s, I'm bitter about this.

[Anonymous]

No dance, gymnastics, football, or hockey