All-Star It's Happening All Over; Not Just In Cheerleading

[tumbleyoda]

This is a heart wrenching must read article. If it was not for recreation programs, community programs, and coaches letting me and many others participate for little to no cost, I would not be where I am and who I am today. To be abundantly clear I was never a young phenom, superstar, wunderkind or anything remotely close to that that a coach or program could use me in a marketing campaign to get other kids to come to their gym. I would of never been a model, spokesperson type of kid. I was good but never great as an athlete. Often left alone to work things out on my own they surprising others when I made progress. Only then did I get help when I showed I was determined to not give up.

Even though they left cheerleading out of this article make no mistake that the same exact thing is happening there. The industry is knowingly pricing families out of the sport and are even now working to punish those who do not for lack of better terms "see it their way and comply."

This is why I am glad to give time back whenever I can often losing money and family time on the process because I know how much it means to that kid that does not have the resources to participate in teams like this. This is why I am glad to work for a gym that gives back in so many ways not to have our name called out or recognized, but because we love kids and it is the right thing to do.

If you have the resources and choose this path that well and good. My concern will always be for those that do not. Who teaches them? Who motivates them? Who makes them not only better people but better athletes? Who gives them a chance?

I do. I will. I always will. I pray that we don't ever forget that no matter our lot in life, someone is always looking up to us and wishing they had what we have. Don't trample on that. Ever.



Kids' Sports Leagues Have Turned Into a $15 Billion Industry | Time.com

 

[Official OWECheer]

"Entering June, Joey Erace's Dallas-area team, the Texas Bombers, was third in the USSSA's 10-and-under baseball power ranking. The Alamo (Texas) Drillers were No. 1. This summer, Luke Martinez, 10, played second base for the Drillers. His family lives in a well-appointed mobile home in south San Antonio. Luke's mom Nalone cooks for a food truck. Luke's dad Jerry is a logistics coordinator at a printer and copier company. He works overtime whenever possible to save for Luke's frequent overnight trips across Texas and to Louisiana, North Carolina and Florida. The family has skipped car payments and put off home repairs to help."

Hell to the naw. I could never. But I'm not a parent, so I can't say what I'd do in that situation.

 

[5-6-7-8]

"Entering June, Joey Erace's Dallas-area team, the Texas Bombers, was third in the USSSA's 10-and-under baseball power ranking. The Alamo (Texas) Drillers were No. 1. This summer, Luke Martinez, 10, played second base for the Drillers. His family lives in a well-appointed mobile home in south San Antonio. Luke's mom Nalone cooks for a food truck. Luke's dad Jerry is a logistics coordinator at a printer and copier company. He works overtime whenever possible to save for Luke's frequent overnight trips across Texas and to Louisiana, North Carolina and Florida. The family has skipped car payments and put off home repairs to help."

Hell to the naw. I could never. But I'm not a parent, so I can't say what I'd do in that situation.

I'm a parent…I say "hell to the naw."

 

[Official OWECheer]

I'm a parent…I say "hell to the naw."

Fitting for the occasion.

These details about families' financing of their kid's athletic career and making crazy sacrifices reminds me of Little Girls in Pretty Boxes. Great quote from the article:

"The odds are not in anyone's favor. Only 2% of high school athletes go on to play at the top level of college sports, the NCAA's Division I. For most, a savings account makes more sense than private coaching. "I've seen parents spend a couple of hundred thousand dollars pursuing a college scholarship," says Travis Dorsch, founding director of the Families in Sport Lab at Utah State University. "They could have set it aside for the damn college.""

Imagine saving that 200K and carefully investing it to build wealth for one's family?

 

[tumbleyoda]

"Entering June, Joey Erace's Dallas-area team, the Texas Bombers, was third in the USSSA's 10-and-under baseball power ranking. The Alamo (Texas) Drillers were No. 1. This summer, Luke Martinez, 10, played second base for the Drillers. His family lives in a well-appointed mobile home in south San Antonio. Luke's mom Nalone cooks for a food truck. Luke's dad Jerry is a logistics coordinator at a printer and copier company. He works overtime whenever possible to save for Luke's frequent overnight trips across Texas and to Louisiana, North Carolina and Florida. The family has skipped car payments and put off home repairs to help."

Hell to the naw. I could never. But I'm not a parent, so I can't say what I'd do in that situation.

No way no how would I do it. I won't let my kids even cheer because it is so expensive and I won't let them do school cheer for numerous safety issues I personally observe. Plus those school cheer costs are creeping up as well. There are much better things to invest in their future with IMO.

 

[5-6-7-8]

...

Imagine saving that 200K and carefully investing it to build wealth for one's family?

That's crazy talk!

 

[Official OWECheer]

No way no how would I do it. I won't let my kids even cheer because it is so expensive and I won't let them do school cheer for numerous safety issues I personally observe. Plus those school cheer costs are creeping up as well. There are much better things to invest in their future with IMO.

Makes me sad because I would have been a heartbroken child if I hadn't been able to afford cheer. What have you observed is causing them to creep up?

That's crazy talk!

LOL! I have to constantly check myself for spending $30 a week on snacks/food that aren't on my grocery list. I can't imagine spending an entire mortgage on my child's sport. Makes me wonder how all-star parents cope. Makes the wine in the Starbucks cup a lot more understandable.

Privatized youth sports are probably the most brilliant consumerist machine ever created.

 

[Boughetto]

No way no how would I do it. I won't let my kids even cheer because it is so expensive and I won't let them do school cheer for numerous safety issues I personally observe. Plus those school cheer costs are creeping up as well. There are much better things to invest in their future with IMO.

I agree with the school cheer cost creep. My cp does middle school cheer and I was not expecting it to be as expensive as it was. The fee included multiple bloomers, warm up, shoes (my CP hated the mandatory Varsity shoe the coach made all girls wear regardless of comfort level, bows, tshirts, poms., etc.

 

[tumbleyoda]

Makes me sad because I would have been a heartbroken child if I hadn't been able to afford cheer. What have you observed is causing them to creep up?

The desire to follow what is being marketed to them as being successful even if it raises prices to unreasonable levels, higher cost in uniforms, mandatory camps in order to attend certain competitions, paying for "training" at local gyms which is sometimes nothing more than open gym with under-qualified coaches and other times a deal under the table to get the team there.

IMO we have lost our ability to say no. And this is killing the sport and causing the industry to die a death of a thousand tiny cuts

 

[Official OWECheer]

I agree with the school cheer cost creep. My cp does middle school cheer and I was not expecting it to be as expensive as it was. The fee included multiple bloomers, warm up, shoes (my CP hated the mandatory Varsity shoe the coach made all girls wear regardless of comfort level, bows, tshirts, poms., etc.

Some coaches are sales reps for the the apparel company that supplies their team; they must be making commission from that.

 

[5-6-7-8]

Makes me sad because I would have been a heartbroken child if I hadn't been able to afford cheer. What have you observed is causing them to creep up?


LOL! I have to constantly check myself for spending $30 a week on snacks/food that aren't on my grocery list. I can't imagine spending an entire mortgage on my child's sport. Makes me wonder how all-star parents cope. Makes the wine in the Starbucks cup a lot more understandable.

Privatized youth sports are probably the most brilliant consumerist machine ever created.

100%! From a business perspective, its genius!

 

[tumbleyoda]

Some coaches are sales reps for the the apparel company that supplies their team; they must be making commission from that.

Now see...you weren't supposed to say that!

or the camps they attend...or the competitions...or the...yea you know.

 

[Official OWECheer]

The desire to follow what is being marketed to them as being successful even if it raises prices to unreasonable levels, higher cost in uniforms, mandatory camps in order to attend certain competitions, paying for "training" at local gyms which is sometimes nothing more than open gym with under-qualified coaches and other times a deal under the table to get the team there.

IMO we have lost our ability to say no. And this is killing the sport and causing the industry to die a death of a thousand tiny cuts

Under-the-table deals?

And w/ regard to scholastic cheer, would it kill people to stick with package uniforms? Reuse uniforms year after year? Solid bodyliners instead of custom striped ones? Any white cheer shoes as long as they are comfortable for the athlete wearing them (stupid to have to buy new cheer shoes when you already have perfectly good ones)? Sticking to in-state competitions (LBH, most of the schools breaking their necks to get to Nationals don't have the skill to do well there)? Nothing wrong with spending tons if the kids can afford it, but there are lots of schools that would have higher participation in cheer and other sports if they were less expensive.

 

[Boughetto]

Some coaches are sales reps for the the apparel company that supplies their team; they must be making commission from that.

The coach wasn't a sales rep for the company she just chose those shoes for whatever reason. I just disliked the fact that a coach would mandate a particular shoe and not just say ''all white cheer shoe". I don't know if that's the norm?

 

[tumbleyoda]

Under-the-table deals?

For example lets say gym A charges 100.00 a month for training a school team. Gym B says we only charge 80.00. Gym B is a better value money wise at first glance. But what they don't know is Gym B is quietly paying the coach of the school team 25.00 to 40.00 for each kid that signs up. So of course school coach pushes Gym B cause she is getting paid by them under the table and off the books to bring her school team to that gym. Now Gym B also uses under qualified staff that don't cost as much per hour and basically make it open gym play time. Even though Gym B has less structure and instruction, the emotional touch point of price drives the selling point to the parents.