Go or Don't go to Nationals

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.

Jan 12, 2015
2
0
Hello all,
As a newbie here I wanted ask a question and see what the opinions are. My daughter plays on 9U A tournament team, that was formed this past fall. The girls all played against each other in the house league and moved up together. When tryouts were held in August there was the normal team meeting and it was said by the coach 8-10 tournamnets, no league games. He was asked if we would be going to Nationals and he didnt seemed that open to it at the time and said well maybe the year after we will see.

We played in 3 fall 10u tournaments and went as you would predict, we won 2 games in 3 tournaments. The girls were learning to play and it was an experience to build on and eveyone was ok with that. Fast forward to 12-1-14 and the final payment was due for the fees and everyone paid. Now we had a team meeting on 1-3-2015 and the plans for the season come up...now its 12 tournaments more then half are going to require an overnight stay and we are definately going to Nationals. No vote, no discussion with the parents. Coached picked which National we were going to and that was it.

Some families have older boys who are going to Cooperstown and were caught off guard as Nationals were never brought up. So a few parents voiced their concern about what if they cant go since I guess in boys baseball Cooperstown is a big deal. The coach said if you do not go to Nationals he will find a replacement for the girl and she is off the team. They want you to commit to going and it will be fairly expensive...you want my money but not my opinion. Well does this sound right to anyone? #1 no discussion was had. #2 This was all brought up after the final payment due. #3 Should a vote have been done? #4 Can you be removed from a team by not wanting to go to nationals? There is alot of buzz going on now and to me this doesnt seem right? Am I wrong on this?
 
Oct 11, 2010
8,337
113
Chicago, IL
No, you are not wrong.

I do not care about your opinion or want a vote, tell me what I signed up for and let me decide. I do not need 7 other parents telling me what we should do.

I would demand my money back if you do not like were this is going.
 
Jan 27, 2010
1,871
83
NJ
Tell the coach you didn't plan for this and want out. IF your team doesn't win it will be a horrible trip and your team will probably disintegrate before you reach the gates.
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
It is vitally important that the head coach of a TB team lay out plans/expectations for their team before and during tryouts. While there will always be some variations in the schedule, to dramatically increase the number of overnight tournaments and add a mandatory trip to nationals is excessive and could be a financial burden for some families. I would suggest having a team meeting with the coaches and the parents to discuss the options and if you are not happy with the outcome of the meeting you look to switch teams. I would not consider going to Nationals at 10U or 12U unless they were VERY conveniently located.

My $0.02 on nationals.....
The best softball trip we ever took was for the USFA world series in Panama City Beach, FL as a 1st year 14U team. It was a great combination of softball and vacation. We rented a condo on the beach and played softball in the morning and had beach time in the afternoon. It was truly a family vacation and EVERYONE had a great time. I did not realize how good we had it until we went to ASA Nationals the last two years in Normal, IL and Salem, VA. The siblings DO NOT want to go to Normal, IL or Salem, VA. The grandparents do not want to go to Normal, IL or Salem, VA....hell, I didn't want to go to Normal, IL or Salem, VA. This year we are hoping to go to Chattanooga, TN for 16U ASA Nationals and I will be dreaming of PCB the whole time I am there. Enjoy it while you can because when it becomes competitive it sucks all of the fun out of it.
 

sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,132
113
Dallas, Texas
Am I wrong on this?

No, but you are not "right" either.

When DD#1 first started playing, I wanted to be in on every decision made. I was like you...I was upset if someone didn't let me say my $.02 worth.

Ten years later during my DD#3's last years of travel ball, I wanted someone to say, "Pay $X. Here is where and when to show up. Bye."

Some teams are lead by dictators. Some are run by committee. The question is whether *YOU* as a parent are comfortable with the team's plans. If you don't like it, quit and find another one.
 
Feb 3, 2011
1,880
48
I can't believe how experienced I feel now reading posts like this. :)

You're right in that you signed up for 1 program and now are being told that there's been a dramatic change to it. Unless you're in a remote area with only a few local tournament options where you'll be competitive, there's no need to participate in too many out-of-town tournaments requiring hotel stays.

As for Nationals, as a 1st-year 10u, that trip was something I wanted for my daughter. She wanted it, too, but she only wanted it initially because I wanted it. She only knew about it at all, because I'd mentioned it. The HC made the decision not to make the trip, so DD became a free agent, but ended up not going anywhere at all. NO BIG DEAL.

Fast-forward to 2nd-year 10u and we did go to ASA Westerns with a really good team that competed well all week. When we joined the team, we knew that Nationals was the goal, and that Westerns would be Plan B.

As far as your DD being replaced for playing all season and then taking a pass on Nationals, oh well. There will always be other teams. Of course, given what you've described, there's a chance other parents will feel the same as you, so HC will be trying to figure out what to do when only 6 families book hotel reservations that week.

Your coach needs to have a plan before setting the roster each season and that plan needs to track with where the team is at. That is, the end-of-season goals of a 1st-year 10u team should not be the same as a 2nd-year 10u team.

Good luck.
 

JAD

Feb 20, 2012
8,231
38
Georgia
We loved Chattanooga TN.

I do not have a problem with Chattanooga, but during nationals ASA schedules teams to play one game a day for 4 or 5 days. What do you do the rest of the day? How many times can you visit the Tennessee aquarium? How many families would plan a week long summer vacation to Chattanooga if there was not a softball tournament there? We love Chattanooga when we play Scenic City, the Summit of Softball is a great facility and we play 3-4 games a day, so our day is full of softball.
 
Oct 22, 2009
1,532
0
PA
I've got news for your coach. At 9U, if you give me an ultimatum like "if you do not commit to go to Nationals, I will find a replacement for your DD and you are off the team", he will not have a team before the spring starts. Lose one player, a second will leave. Once 2 leave, all of a sudden, you have 8 or 9 players from the original team, and at 9U, finding a "replacement" who will commit to go to Nationals will be tough, and you can't go to Nationals with minimal subs. He will lose his team long before the trip to Nationals comes up, and he'll never find enough crazy parents to field a 10U team next year who will blindly give him money. Being a dictator at 9U just does not work.

Cut your losses and find another team.
 
Jun 1, 2013
847
18
Just playing devil's advocate here but Nationals is what 6 months away?? How far in the future do you expect a coach to plan? Fall ball is separate from spring/summer, things change and the coach has given you 6 months notice. Sounds fair.

My real opinion on this is if you aren't beating the local competition, why drive and spend x amount of money to get beat at a different venue? At 9 and 10, no reason to spend that amount of money. Save it and by a couple new bats and 6 months of private instruction. Just my $.02 also.
 

Latest posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
42,830
Messages
679,468
Members
21,443
Latest member
sstop28
Top