I think there is a real dichotomy -- this is an area where parents are willing to pay exorbitantly on private coaches etc. but it is also not an area that produces many high-level athletes (other than I think basketball). I have seen some postings on hockey and this is certainly not an area anyone would look to for high quality hockey (we previously lived in Boston and it is no contest). One of the reasons people have to travel so far around here is there just is not much hockey, and it is really expensive. Lots of baseball programs have popped up around around here but Maryland used to be one of the states that sent the fewest players to the pros, though it is possible that the quality is improving. CA, GA, Fla. can play outside all year round, this seems true for soccer too though the quality around here is pretty high but not as high as all of those screaming parents seeking the scholarships they never got. While there are a lot of sports activities around, the competition tends to be stronger elsewhere, which makes one wonder where all the money is going, seems as often as not to be for the parents rather than the kids.

Arlington is pretty sports-heavy too. They have interesting sports through the schools and the county - lacrosse, field hockey, etc. I grew up in the midwest and we never had that stuff, but my 4-year-old can take lacrosse through the county. Love it.

I do agree that it can get too intense, though. I'm kind of hoping that my daughter doesn't get too into a sport that requires a lot of travel, as it'll get kind of hard to manage.

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in a city where sports wasn't really emphasized and am finding the sports programs here overwhelming in terms of parental and child commitment and the level of competition even in the early elementary years. So not having the perspective of being raised in a suburb, I'm just wondering is the level of sports participation in Montgomery and Fairfax Counties similar to other areas of the country and other suburbs, or is this just another area thing that the DC area is overly competitive about?

I am in Ashburn, VA and holy shit, they are serious about their sports out here. It sucks because my child is decent, but in order to even think about HS sports if you are not killing it by the age of 10-11, then FORGET IT. Kids out here have agility coaches, endurance coaches, former NFL players running conditioning camps. It is insane. The number of practices these small children have to commit to is out of control. I have a neighbor, their kids play travel hockey and they practice 5 days a week, 2-3 hours a day, have private coaches, and travel all around the country and into Canada for games. She has two kids doing hockey and each costs her about 25K/hr....total fo 50K, just on hockey! They are never home, their whole life is hockey. I hope they are saving for the hip replacement that will be needed when they turn 23.

Yes, I think this whole entire area is so Type A. It bleeds into sports and is very overwhelming.

I grew up in a city where sports wasn't really emphasized and am finding the sports programs here overwhelming in terms of parental and child commitment and the level of competition even in the early elementary years. So not having the perspective of being raised in a suburb, I'm just wondering is the level of sports participation in Montgomery and Fairfax Counties similar to other areas of the country and other suburbs, or is this just another area thing that the DC area is overly competitive about?