I get why there are travel league and teams, but for the life of me, I do not understand either the time commitment parents make on behalf of their 8-13 year olds, nor do I understand the tolerance for repetitive stress injuries (knees/shins for soccer, elbows/shoulders for baseball) the kids suffer at these early ages.

A couple of things - how old is your child or children? I found the big cattle call tryouts to be very difficult - most of the coaches appeared to already know the kids they were going to choose and basically ignored the other kids. If you're interested in a particular club, sign up for their camps and clinics; it's a great way to get good training and to meet the coaches that will decide who makes the competitive teams. At the younger ages (until 12-13) almost everyone gets playing time - although of varying degrees. My daughter was passed over for travel soccer twice despite being the 'best' on her then all-boys rec team. Rather than letting it get her down, it motivated her to work harder. The next year she took all of the clinics she hadn't done before and made the team.

Our son was a good player on his rec team, but lacked confidence. Since he didn't express any desire to play travel when most of his teammates did, we kept him playing rec and, and by 8th grade he was more confident and ready to play travel. I'm glad we waited, especially since it would have been a big time commitment for all of us when he was still relatively young.

Anonymous wrote:11:02-

Not that poster, but I hear nice things about Annandale. I hear nice things about CFC. I think there are some nice clubs inColumbia Md. Personally, I would avoid any club with a team in VCCL unless you are sure that the lower ranked teams within their club are treated well. Go to a practice and ask. Things stay reasonable until the kids are big enough for 11v11 and then the pressure ratchets up.

Don't trust me, though. Sme kids are very talented and thrive in those clubs. I'm not looking for a scholarship for my kid.

It can be age group and team specific too. When DSs team played Annandale it was the worst - bad sportsmanship, especially among the parents. CFC has very nice people but inconsistent coaching and is a little too uncompetitive.

I don't agree with the assessment about VCCL. The B and C teams will have their own distinct identities and the fact that the A team is in a different league won't affect them. In our club the A team actually had less cohesion than the B and C teams because there was more turnover on that team.

As to tryouts, do a few. My DS tried out for 4 different teams one year. Didn't make a couple of them but did make 2. Picked the one he really liked based on the coaching and other kids, as well as likelihood of being a starter. Agree with others that the experience of trying out, even for the teams he didn't make, was actually quite positive and he learned something from each.

Most clubs in the NCSL have multi-team "academies", which menas they may have one team playing in D1 or 2, and another team playing in D4 or 5. SO there is room for kids who want to play at a higher level but who may not be the super players you saw at the travel game you watched. In our academy, many of the 2nd team's players have come up recently from rec. The acedemy practices together but play on separate teams for the games. It is a good set up. Clubs I know like this include Alexandria, SYC, LMVSC, SAC, CYA, Arlington, McLean, PWSI, etc. ALso, look for clubs/ teams that play in the ODSL...that is a slightly less competitive league offering a travel experience at a less high level.

11:02-

Not that poster, but I hear nice things about Annandale. I hear nice things about CFC. I think there are some nice clubs inColumbia Md. Personally, I would avoid any club with a team in VCCL unless you are sure that the lower ranked teams within their club are treated well. Go to a practice and ask. Things stay reasonable until the kids are big enough for 11v11 and then the pressure ratchets up.

Don't trust me, though. Sme kids are very talented and thrive in those clubs. I'm not looking for a scholarship for my kid.

We've had a very good and a very bad experience on two different travel teams.

I think it's important to note, as a PP said, that there may only really be one or two spots available on a travel team. So present it as a way to test your skills and get some experience but without a high chance that you will get on this time. If you do -- bonus!!

18:23 What league are you in now? Seems like one we'd like our son to be in.

I have a neighbor (boy) who was like this--one of the very best on the rec team (parent-reported, of course) and then made travel but cut after a year. It is hard on a kid at a young age to be cut but they are resilient. If your kids make the team, and you are ready for the family commitment, I think you should go for it.

Anonymous wrote:We are new to travel sports too. A question I have is what if a child makes a team, but isn't the best one on it? Do they still get a lot of playing time or sit on the sidelines often? Is it better for them to just stay in rec leagues and get more playing time or to be in travel leagues in elementary? Travel leagues are new to us and I'm not sure the level of playing all children get in travel and how competitive the rec leagues remain over the years. Another benefit to the rec leagues is that my child can also play another sport. With travel, he'd be limited to just the one sport.

It is never good to be the "best" on a team. You learn less.

Many travel kids do two sports. You carpool.

It is never a bad thing to stretch and try. Failure here will mean tears for a day, but it is good to try.

Travel is a mixed bag. Compared to Rec: Coaching is better. Reffing is better. Game is very different. For some kids, rec just isn't intense enough. Some clubs really only care about their A team (not where my son would play) and other clubs care about all the kids. Some families are WAAAAY too serious, but in rec, some of the kids aren't serious enough.

We switched clubs due to a coach issue. We're still committed, but with a different club. "We" because this is a big commitment of time and energy by all three of us in the family. We love watching the games, while the rec games made us cringe. We love our current coach.

Worth trying. You can quit in a year.

We are new to travel sports too. A question I have is what if a child makes a team, but isn't the best one on it? Do they still get a lot of playing time or sit on the sidelines often? Is it better for them to just stay in rec leagues and get more playing time or to be in travel leagues in elementary? Travel leagues are new to us and I'm not sure the level of playing all children get in travel and how competitive the rec leagues remain over the years. Another benefit to the rec leagues is that my child can also play another sport. With travel, he'd be limited to just the one sport.

Having been through a few of these with two different children, I think it depends on the child and also on managing expectations. Many of the tryouts are only for one or two spots, and there might be 10-12 kids trying out for those spots, and some might already know people on the team. But if the child goes for the experience, getting to see what travel baseball/soccer is like, and hopes to make the team but won't be crushed if he or she does not, it should go fine. I think a kid who would be crushed would likely also have trouble playing in a more competitive environment and that is worth keeping in mind as some kids are ready to move up at different times in their development.

I am going through the same thing now. My son is the strongest player on his rec team but when we watched the select/ club team play he is not as good as most of those boys. I am having him try out for an open spot and if he doesn't make it he will at least have gotten practice playing with better kids. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

my boys would like to play more than rec soccer/baseball so i'm signing them up for the upcoming travel/select team tryouts. i've been to pretty much every one of their games and most practices, so i know they are probably better than average kids but not really stars or dominate players. in other words, chances are they will not make the teams. so my question is, need i contemplate whether they might develop some type of negative attitude if they are not doing well at the tryouts, before committing to them? has anyone's kid lost the love for the sport due to a bad tryout experience? i've known a couple of boys who didn't make the teams last year but are still playing and having fun, and getting better. am i worrying too much/too early? tks.