My TB Ignorance......please cure

[marriard]

I tend to have a different perspective on this. When DD was 10U, her team qualified for ASA nationals and finished in 2nd place. It was an incredible experience for the players and families involved. The players worked hard all summer to get there and their efforts paid off. These experiences may or may not happen again (e.g. girls drop out, or their team never gets back to the national championship game, etc). To say these tournaments are meaningless really does a disservice to the players. I'm sure these type of experiences have made my DD a better player and will stay with her throughout her softball "career".

My experience has been 'in the long run' these are meaningless. Not arguing that there is not personal achievement and pride for the team itself - I was talking externally beyond the team group.

And maybe it is a great personal experience for some players and was for your DD but the amount of players I have seen drop out from these teams has been ridiculous because a lot of it was done for the parents benefit over the kids. The team that was 2nd in ASA nationals and won a USSSA 10U-A tournament the year my DD was eligible for that age group (my DD was on a team that finished 5th that year I believe but Orlando is 3 hours away so it is local enough to make the trip) - less than four years on and only 3 of those girls play now (and at least one of them is clearly doing so only because her parents want her to). The best 2 players in 14-A quit last year along with most of their teammates - and they had dominated both within the state and had put in some strong national performances). And in terms of making high school teams or playing in college it also doesn't matter what you did in 12U and down.

And I am sure there are exceptions such as your experience. But I can't think of one locally at the moment.

 

[dadofadirtlover]

Thanks marriad. How you explained it is EXACTLY how I took it. No explanation needed from my perspective. I can't see my daughter's life going to the crapper because she had a horrible TB experience and swears off the roller coaster ride of SB. Life truly would go on. I suspected that some of these questions might not be able to be answered until it was time to actually try out. Just trying to plan accordingly for budget purposes as much as possible. We're in a suburb of Atlanta and there are literally dozens of TB teams (and some orgs have multiple 10u teams) to play against. I'm not looking for "the team" to go to nationals. I'm looking for a team that has at least a handful of parents that are half-sane like myself and an organization that isn't in shambles so our 9 and 10 yo babies can dress up (uniforms and eye black), play a GAME in a more competitive environment, learn more details about their positions and defensive situations, get more game-time reps, and smile (or cry) for pictures to be plastered all over everything (as if there aren't already enough of those).

Rocketech1,

Congrats on your DD getting 2nd place at nationals at 10U. I bet she was all smiles for at least a month! I know my DD would be

 

[M & R Davis]

One thing I would recommend since you are almost a full year out is start researching which teams align with your location and in general similar goals to yours. Once you find them get their schedules and go watch some games between now and next years tryout times. You will learn a TON from both the coaches and by sitting amongst the parents during the games. Some teams will instantly "eliminate" them selves from the running based on these observations and others will rise to the top of your list of potential matches. This can save a lot of head aches later on as people can be very different at a tryout or on the phone then they are during the heat of the moment.

Good luck!

 

[dadofadirtlover]

One thing I would recommend since you are almost a full year out is start researching which teams align with your location and in general similar goals to yours. Once you find them get their schedules and go watch some games between now and next years tryout times. You will learn a TON from both the coaches and by sitting amongst the parents during the games. Some teams will instantly "eliminate" them selves from the running based on these observations and others will rise to the top of your list of potential matches. This can save a lot of head aches later on as people can be very different at a tryout or on the phone then they are during the heat of the moment.

Good luck!

Good idea! I think I'll borrow it and take ownership when I tell the DW about the brilliant plan.

 

[nanotech14]

---

Who cares about the money. They only grow up once, spend the 401k. I'm spending my retirement seeing as many softball complexes as I can. But of course I'm not married, so I don't have to worry how a wife feels about it. when my dd is no longer playing, we want to coach a TB team together. I told my dd when I die. Just put me in a cheap pine box and dig a hole in the woods somewhere near a softball field. I don't want her spending to much on my funeral. It will take away to much money from softball.

 

[JJS]

I tend to have a different perspective on this. When DD was 10U, her team qualified for ASA nationals and finished in 2nd place. It was an incredible experience for the players and families involved. The players worked hard all summer to get there and their efforts paid off. These experiences may or may not happen again (e.g. girls drop out, or their team never gets back to the national championship game, etc). To say these tournaments are meaningless really does a disservice to the players. I'm sure these type of experiences have made my DD a better player and will stay with her throughout her softball "career".

This is the perfect example of there being no one answer for any one person or any one team. What is wrong for Marriard may be exactly what Rocketech1 is looking for. There are all different levels of teams, and at each level there are different philosophies. Determine what is right for your family. Ask all your questions upfront. There is a team for you out there. It just may not be the team you want or think it is.

 

[dadofadirtlover]

Well stated JJS.

 

[JJS]

I'm not looking for "the team" to go to nationals. I'm looking for a team that has at least a handful of parents that are half-sane like myself and an organization that isn't in shambles so our 9 and 10 yo babies can dress up (uniforms and eye black), play a GAME in a more competitive environment, learn more details about their positions and defensive situations, get more game-time reps, and smile (or cry) for pictures to be plastered all over everything (as if there aren't already enough of those).

Our first year of 10u we decided to take our rec. team in a more competitive direction. We played in 3-5 tournaments that summer. All were 15-45 minutes from home, and were very, very low key. Tournaments were cheap($180 per team), but had a $5 per person gate fee. With uniforms, practice fields and tournaments we were in for about $200-$250 for the year.

Second year 10's we played a little higher level tournaments. We practiced more per week, and played 10 tournaments. Fee's were around $400-$500.

By 14u we were paying $1300-$1500 a year, plus traveling 4-7 hours away. We were spending another $2,000 on hotels and gate fees. That's nothing compared to the $5,000 spent on lessons.

My point is that there are different levels for different families. You can choose the team that fits your needs. There are teams from 10U-18U that don't really travel, but that play plenty of tournaments. Also, many teams have great sponsors and/or good fundraisers to help lower out of pocket expenses.

 

[dadofadirtlover]

Yeah. 7 teams asked me to have my DD tryout for their team 2 - 3 months ago. 3 "hee'd and hawed" about the cost and the other 4 gave a range of $1,000 - $1,300. At the time, I didn't know about DFP so I knew nothing about things like jersey costs, what's included/not included, how many tournaments, how much travel, what the goals at the end of the season were, how she would be coached, trained, etc. I honestly thought it was just a notch higher than rec (all the teams played in the same park). Same general rules. Play 1 game during the week, 1 on the weekend, and have a tourney at the end of the season (I know......stupid thinking). When they said $1,300 (worst case scenario), I just started planning a budget for it. $150/mo. and she'll be good to go in a year. Then, I find out it's not that cut and dry. A couple coaches called back stating how much circle time (didn't even know what that was) she could get (she doesn't even want to pitch) or how much fundraising they do (still didn't change the reg. fee) and they only had 1 slot left so please schedule a private tryout today(eyeroll)!!!!! Now I know it's because they need the last utility player and are saying whatever they need to in order to get a spot filled thanks to genius posters of DFP. The costs of hotels wouldn't bother me, even it it was for every tournament. Gate fees, either. The lack of forecasting for budgeting is what would kill me. I have a special needs son that requires alot of attention and I HAVE to plan things in advance as much as possible. Obviously, nothing in life is fool-proof and will go perfectly to the plan. But, when I see my 9 yo DD light up like a christmas tree at the sound of the word "softball" when just 24 months earlier, she was stressed out and not knowing whether her little brother would live or die, I want to make sure I do everything in my power to not start something that I can't finish in SB. TB is a big commitment to time and money and I have to get it right. The SB diamond is her oasis and if we have to go from TB back to REC, it would crush her because she is an ultra competitor. Additionally, one of the therapists my son sees actually encouraged his excitement about the game. So, her "studying swings and games" on Youtube is an auditory relaxer for him. Turns out he gets soothed by the sound of a bat crushing a softball and could watch it for hours on end in total smiles. Go figure lol. How I got all the way over here from talking about the TB costs? I don't know. I'll stop my rambling now and say thanks for answering the question again.

 

[grcsftbll]

I'm in the Atlanta suburbs too. Our current team is 1500 for the year, which covers everything but gate fees and travel expenses. Cleats, helmet, bag, uniforms, tournament fees. Etc. We have a lot of talent and I think we'll compete pretty well, especially in the spring as the girls adjust to 10u.

Our 8u travel team last year, we paid about 300 total. We did a bunch of fundraising. But that only included one uniform and tournaments. It was a pretty terrible team but the girls had fun anyway. We made the jump to the more expensive, higher level team this year because our kid is pretty talented and was having to dumb herself down for her teammates. She loved her coach and teammates but has told us repeatedly she's very happy we changed things for this year. She's really competitive so a team of girls who couldn't even catch reliably was discouraging for her.

There are LOTS of options in Atlanta. Lots. And most teams offer fundraising possibilities as well.