My ideal is a single game, Saturday morning, 10:15am within 30 minutes drive. Late enough I get up the normal time, early enough that the whole weekend is still mine after.

If you guys want to feel better about any of this, go visit Capital Challenge at the Pg equestrian center this week at 7am. Maybe the office will give you a sample bill, too!

My kid loves team sports. He plays baseball and soccer. All of his friends play at least 1 if not both. Some also play basketball as well. He loves it. We didn’t push either sport. We signed him up when he was little to play soccer and he loved it. He asked to play baseball.and loves it too. He is in third and I’m hoping he can do both for awhile.

He’s made good friends on his teams and most live near us so they go play with each other when they aren’t at games. I love that he would rather be playing the games or out playing in our neighborhood with these friends instead of in front of a screen.

If I have to occasionally get him to an 8:15 soccer game, it is worth it.

Anonymous wrote:May your kids never try ice hockey or figure skating - early mornings (am early) and late nights on weekends, school days, even holidays.

I honestly don’t know how a kid in the DMV tries either unless a parent really encourages it. It’s not like we are in MN and the local pond freezes and kids can play pickup hockey.

Anyone we knew who had a kid playing hockey described a miserable existence…but usually a parent had played.

Figure skating is even more niche and less organic

Anonymous wrote:May your kids never try ice hockey or figure skating - early mornings (am early) and late nights on weekends, school days, even holidays.

Or volleyball. Don’t start. You will be at a tournament and flying sooner than you think. You think you won’t but you will. And it will also be on a holiday. You will be in a convention center until midnight and up again at 5am. Just say no to that first rec season.

May your kids never try ice hockey or figure skating - early mornings (am early) and late nights on weekends, school days, even holidays.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just don't do team sports. It's not worth it for our family. One of them does a lot of music, so there's driving and frequent rehearsals for that, but it's not as bad as travel sports and there are no early mornings!

Ditto. My kid is built like a linebacker and has been begged by coaches to play everything but thankfully he wasn’t interested in sports. He loved orchestra and that schedule was perfect for our family.

Your son is gay. You know that, right? Nothing wrong with that, but that is why he doesnt play.

Wtf?! Americans are truly insane. Just admit you are obsessed with sports for no good reason. There is nothing you learn from sports that you cannot learn by another means. Nothing special about sports. NP btw.

Like what? Give me this magical “another means”.

What things do you learn from sports you can’t learn by another means? If you don’t play sports, are you doomed to never learn these things? There are many, many people in the world right now who have never and will never play sports. Are they lesser people than those who do play sports?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just don't do team sports. It's not worth it for our family. One of them does a lot of music, so there's driving and frequent rehearsals for that, but it's not as bad as travel sports and there are no early mornings!

Ditto. My kid is built like a linebacker and has been begged by coaches to play everything but thankfully he wasn’t interested in sports. He loved orchestra and that schedule was perfect for our family.

Your son is gay. You know that, right? Nothing wrong with that, but that is why he doesnt play.

Wtf?! Americans are truly insane. Just admit you are obsessed with sports for no good reason. There is nothing you learn from sports that you cannot learn by another means. Nothing special about sports. NP btw.

Like what? Give me this magical “another means”.

I feel like most things fun to do as a hobby/pursuit involve getting up early sometimes?

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also OP, you think it’s one magical person doing this? It’s multiple leagues competing for the same spaces so each club has a person working with dozens of other club reps to coordinate it.

Why not reduce the number of teams to match venue availability? Maybe the youngest kids can wait a year? Maybe 50, not 100, rec soccer teams in the county for 1st graders is sufficient? Maybe boys’ flag football plays in September and girls’ flag football plays in October? I say this as a parent of young kids. Not everyone needs to do everything all at the same time.

Why not?

Because of money. People want to make money off of parents of kids. Parents will pay. The American youth sports complex and athlete worship culture. The Church of Sport.

So stupid and false. The vast majority of rec sports and even most travel sports are volunteer run and profit no one. It’s simply so kids can play.

Which again, you would know if you actually got involved.

Wrong! Who do think runs the leagues? Not volunteers, PAID employees. The coaches may be volunteers at the rec level, but field assignments are still done by a paid league/club/etc. employee. And yes I have been involved (last kid graduates in May-almost done)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also OP, you think it’s one magical person doing this? It’s multiple leagues competing for the same spaces so each club has a person working with dozens of other club reps to coordinate it.

Why not reduce the number of teams to match venue availability? Maybe the youngest kids can wait a year? Maybe 50, not 100, rec soccer teams in the county for 1st graders is sufficient? Maybe boys’ flag football plays in September and girls’ flag football plays in October? I say this as a parent of young kids. Not everyone needs to do everything all at the same time.

Why not?

Because of money. People want to make money off of parents of kids. Parents will pay. The American youth sports complex and athlete worship culture. The Church of Sport.

So stupid and false. The vast majority of rec sports and even most travel sports are volunteer run and profit no one. It’s simply so kids can play.

Which again, you would know if you actually got involved.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also OP, you think it’s one magical person doing this? It’s multiple leagues competing for the same spaces so each club has a person working with dozens of other club reps to coordinate it.

Why not reduce the number of teams to match venue availability? Maybe the youngest kids can wait a year? Maybe 50, not 100, rec soccer teams in the county for 1st graders is sufficient? Maybe boys’ flag football plays in September and girls’ flag football plays in October? I say this as a parent of young kids. Not everyone needs to do everything all at the same time.

Why not?

Because of money. People want to make money off of parents of kids. Parents will pay. The American youth sports complex and athlete worship culture. The Church of Sport.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also OP, you think it’s one magical person doing this? It’s multiple leagues competing for the same spaces so each club has a person working with dozens of other club reps to coordinate it.

Why not reduce the number of teams to match venue availability? Maybe the youngest kids can wait a year? Maybe 50, not 100, rec soccer teams in the county for 1st graders is sufficient? Maybe boys’ flag football plays in September and girls’ flag football plays in October? I say this as a parent of young kids. Not everyone needs to do everything all at the same time.

Because the kids/parents want to and are ready to pay. So you advocate for not enough teams for all the 1st graders that want to play rec and not pay an arm and a leg for club?

Anonymous wrote:Also OP, you think it’s one magical person doing this? It’s multiple leagues competing for the same spaces so each club has a person working with dozens of other club reps to coordinate it.

Why not reduce the number of teams to match venue availability? Maybe the youngest kids can wait a year? Maybe 50, not 100, rec soccer teams in the county for 1st graders is sufficient? Maybe boys’ flag football plays in September and girls’ flag football plays in October? I say this as a parent of young kids. Not everyone needs to do everything all at the same time.

Anonymous wrote:If you happen to be such a person, don't. Please. Just stop. We will all pay you to NOT do this. Truly I would pay at least $50 each time to have this not happen.

Find out who is responsible, OP and go have strong words with them.

Let us know how that goes.