Youth Volleyball: Crazy Weekend, Crazy Money Spent

I had to share my crazy youth sports weekend and the ridiculous amount of money I spent because of it.

Flash back to November, my wife and I planned a five day getaway trip. Five days is about all I can handle being away from the kids. We planned to leave on Sunday, January 26th and return on a Friday, January 30th. We typically plan our getaways on a Sunday to Friday schedule for two reasons: 1) Every night is a school night. This makes it easier for my parents to watch the kids and 2) chances of missing a game are reduced.

As our trip approached, we found out that our daughter had a volleyball tournament in Nashville, Tennessee which is a 5 hour drive from Cincinnati. Our flight home from vacation was supposed to arrive at 11:30 pm on Friday. I did not want to drive 5 hours at night after a long day of traveling from the Caribbean, so I called Delta and the resort and changed our trip to a Saturday to Thursday schedule. 

COST: $300 and 20,000 miles to change the flight. No charge for the room change.

My wife and I had a great time, but we were ready to go home on Thursday to see the kids. Right before we were about to leave the resort, we found out that our flight to Atlanta, our connection city, was cancelled. We were stuck in the tropics for an extra day. We had to buy an extra day at the resort and Delta was not going to reimburse the amount because it was weather related.

 COST: $350 for an additional night at the resort.

We had to scramble and figure out how we were going to get our daughter to Nashville. Option 1 was to get home at 11:30 pm on Friday and drive all night. Option 2 was to get our daughter a ride to Nashville with a teammate or coach and meet our daughter there. 

We were very reluctant to choose option 2 because we do not know the coach or the other families yet. This is the first season that we have been with this club and this was the first tournament. We spoke to our daughter and she thought it would be fun to ride with the coaches, so we chose option 2. 

We called Delta to change our final destination to Nashville instead of Cincinnati. They were willing to do it, but would not put us on the 7pm flight to Nashville because they did not think that we could make the connection in time due to customs. Our option was a 10:30 flight. Instead of waiting 3 hours for a hour long flight, we decided to reserve a rental car in Atlanta and planned to drive the 3.5 hour trip. Well, our flight arrived early into Atlanta and we breezed through customs, so we asked Delta if we could jump on the 7pm Nashville flight. We made it with minutes to spare. We then rented a car in Nashville.

COST: $270 for a three day rental and a drop off fee.

Nashville is in the south, but it was not exactly warm there in January and the forecast called for snow on the Sunday of the tournament. We did not have any warm clothes. We left Cincinnati in a snow storm the day we left for our trip, but we left our coats at home. As a result, we had to buy a few sweatshirts and some long sleeve shirts. 

COST: $170 for warm clothes.

The team gathered for a team dinner at Old Chicago Pizza and Tap Room and we stopped at a grocery store to get tailgating food, paper plates, forks, etc. so the kids could eat quickly between games. 

COST: $130 for food and drinks.

It was all worth it. My daughter's team did really well in the tournament. Too well. They advanced all the way to the finals. The final match went to 3 games. The final game went to 16-14. As a result, we did not leave Nashville until 4:30 EST which was just about the same time a big snow storm was sweeping across Tennessee and Kentucky. After 6 hours of white knuckle driving, we got home, but we missed the Super Bowl. I apparently did not miss anything because it was not a good Superbowl.

I would rather watch my daughter than Payton Manning any day. She was fun to watch. At five foot one, my daughter was the shortest outside hitter in the entire tournament, but she did great because she can jump. She also played middle back.

The Main Point

Total cost $1,150. 

I would do anything to watch my kids play the sports that they love to play. 

Youth Volleyball: 23 Things I learned at my First JO Tournament

My daughter recently gave up AAU basketball to concentrate on soccer and volleyball. So I went to our first Junior Olympic Volleyball Tournament this weekend. This is what I observed.

1. JO Volleyball tournaments may only be one day events, but they are long and grueling - we arrived at 7am and left at 6pm. 
2. Teams in a 12 team event are guaranteed 4 matches.
3. Each game lasted about 20-30 minutes. (Blowout matches might last 40. Closely contested back and forth matches can last 90+ minutes)
4. The teams warm up for about 30 minutes prior to each match - even if the team is competing in the 5th match of the day. This makes no sense to me. The 11 hour event could have been cut down considerably.
5. Unlike, basketball or soccer, there is only one set game time. The first game of the day on each court is established then the preceding matches follow immediately after the match prior concludes. Some matches last 40 min and others last 90, so games times cannot be set. 
6. Girls volleyball uniforms are ridiculously tight.
7. Sadly, there are a lot of overweight 12 and 13 year old girls.
8. The players are assigned to officiate the games they are not playing in. (They line judge, keep score and they work as the down ref.)
9. The up ref (the one on the ladder) is a paid experienced ref.
10. Considering that most of the officiating is done by the players, I am not sure why volleyball is so much more expensive than basketball and soccer.
11. The young refs and line judges made a few mistakes, but all in all they did well for 12 year old kids. 
12. Thankfully, the fans went easy on the young judges. Our parents were warned prior to the season.
13. The first two games of a three game match are rally scored to 25.
14. The third game of a three game match is played with standard scoring to 15. (Only the serving team can score.)
15. You can missed the excitement of a nail biter third game if you think that it goes to 25. In the first match that went to three games, our team came back from a 11-14 deficit to win 16-14. I watched calmly thinking that we needed 9 more points.
16. Playing time is not distributed equally. My daughter played in about 10.5 of the 12 games. One girl, who really struggles, only played in 5 games. Her parents were pissed.
17. Volleyball parents are just like soccer, football, softball, baseball and basketball parents. They too complain about the coaches, the refs, the facilities, the length of the events, the playing time, etc.
18. Spikes are exciting, but I think that back row digs are awesome and seem to get the loudest fan reaction.
19. Some kids can pay attention on each and every play and some kids are in la la land on most plays. (The rule that a player must hit the ball before it hits the ground is lost on a quite a few of the girls.)
20. Girls develop at different ages. Some of the 11-12 year old girls looked like they could be in 4th grade (my daughter) and others looked like they were juniors in high school.
21. Youth sports facility food is terrible. (NO OUTSIDE FOOD PERMITTED)
22. All the players of a team must stay even after the team is eliminated if a few of the girls are assigned to ref a later game. Our team made it to the final four this weekend. We met a strong team in the semi finals. We, of course, wanted to win, but if we had to lose, then we wanted to lose before the other semi-final loser lost. The last semi-final team to lose had to ref the finals.  Thankfully, we lost 2 minutes before the other semi-final team, so I was able to get home just in time for the kickoff of the Superbowl. The dads from the other losing team and the 2 finalist teams were not as lucky.
23. The ball always finds the weakest player on the court.

The Main Point

Volleyball is fun to watch if the teams are good and the rallies are long. Volleyball is pure torture if a team is struggling. Our team did pretty well, but 12 games of volleyball over 11 hours is not for the weak.

 

Youth Baseball: Nations Baseball Gets an F

How did the Nations Baseball World Series held in Pensacola, FL rate compared to other national tournaments?

Here is my report card on Nations Baseball U14 World Series Championship held in Pensacola, FL during the week of July 11 - 15, 2012.

My son has competed in the CABA World Series (U10 - Indianapolis, Indiana), the AAU National Championships (U11 - ESPN Disney Wide World of Sports, Orlando, Florida), Cooperstown Dreams Park (U12 - Cooperstown, NY), the Nations Baseball Premier National Championship (U13 - Gulfport, MS) and Nations Baseball World Series (U14 - Pensacola, FL). It is from this broad base of experience that I feel qualified to grade these events in comparison to each other.

Opening Ceremonies: The Nations Baseball World Series had an opening ceremony on Pensacola Beach the Wednesday before the start of action on Thursday. Our team did not participate for several reasons. 1) Many of the families stayed on Perdido Key far from Pensacola Beach. Few were motivated to get back into a car after recently driving 11 hours, 2) the 14 year old boys were not excited about the event, they wanted to stay on the beach instead and 3) There were only 4 teams in the tournament. What is festive and fun about that?

• Nations Baseball Gulfport, MS - Grade B
• CABA - Grade F (I don't remember any opening ceremonies)
• AAU Disney Fields - Grade A (Disney performers entertained the players, siblings, parents and coaches.)
• Cooperstown Dreams Park - Grade A (It was a bit long, but it was a festive start)
• Nations Baseball, Penacola, FL - Grade NA

The Skills Competition: The Nations Baseball World Series had a skills challenge on the schedule when the team signed up for the tournament, but it was canceled. I believe that they canceled it because there were only 4 teams in the tournament. 

• Nations Baseball Gulfport, MS - Grade B
• CABA - Grade B
• AAU Disney Fields - Grade F (I do not remember any skills competitions)
• Cooperstown Dreams Park - Grade A (Exciting competitions played out in front of a packed stadium)
• Nations Baseball, Penacola, FL - Grade F

The Fields: The Nations Baseball World Series was suppose to be held at University of West Florida, but was moved to Tate High School. We believe that the event was moved due to the lack of teams in the tournament. Only one field was needed for the entire tournament. 

Tate High School has a great field with a well manicured grass infield, a dirt mound, stadium seating and vast dimensions. The outfield grass was green, freshly cut and fast. The infield is made of a blood red dirt that looked great on the field, but terrible on soiled uniforms. The fences on the fields used for the U14 event were at least 9 feet high, 325 ft down the line and about 375 ft straight away. No home runs were hit during the tournament. 

We had a torrential rain Friday night and Saturday morning, the field was unable to recover quick enough to play any games on Saturday. This made Sunday was a long day of baseball. Fields at Cooperstown and Disney recover much more quickly. Luckily, our team was seeded #1 after pool play so we got bye on Sunday morning. 

Tate High School is where Don Sutton, Hall of Fame Pitcher, and Travis Fryman, Cleveland Indians third baseman, played ball. 

From a spectators standpoint, the Tate HS field had the qualities of a minor league stadium. There was ample seating behind home plate on concrete steps. The concrete was hard and absorbed the Florida sun, so it was hot. The stands did have a roof covering up some of the seats which did provide some protection after 11am.

• Nations Baseball Gulfport, MS B+
• CABA - C+ multiple municipal fields of varying quality.
• AAU Disney Fields - A (Perfectly manicured fields configured identically. These fields can take on lots of rain and be playable in short order.)
• Cooperstown Dreams Park - A+ (20 perfectly manicured fields configured identically with reachable fences. These fields can take on more rain than the Disney fields and be playable faster.)
• Nations Baseball, Penacola, FL - Grade B (One great field)

The Concession Stand: Tate High School had a typical HS concession stand. The food was ok, the drinks were cold, the service was friendly and the prices were very cheap.

• Nations Baseball Gulfport, MS - Grade F
• CABA World Series - Grade B (Some venues were good, some not so good)
• AAU Disney Fields - Grade B - (Too expensive)
• Cooperstown Dreams Park  - Grade A+ (Good food, big variety, honest prices)
• Nations Baseball, Penacola, FL - Grade B

Game Schedule: The games were not too early, nor too late. That was good. The tournament could create a schedule like this because there were only 4 teams in the tournament. Still, Nations Baseball gets an overwhelming F. The tournament started on Thursday and ended Sunday. Why? Why not start Wednesday or Tuesday. Most of the house / condo rentals in Pensacola were Saturday to Saturday. Most of the families came down on the Saturday before the tournament started a full 5 days before the games began. Many families had to check out of their condos on Saturday morning and find a hotel room for Saturday night. The tournament did not schedule a rain out contingency day, so the Saturday games and the scheduled Sunday games were played on Sunday. A lower seeded team could have played 5 games on Sunday if it played out that way. That is unacceptable because it puts young arms at risk.

Furthermore, the World Series happened to be on the biggest weekend of the year for Pensacola. The second weekend of July is the Blue Angels Air Show weekend. It is the most crowded weekend and therefore the most expensive weekend of the year. Nations Baseball missed a great opportunity to use the Blue Angles Air Show as a draw to the tournament. No the short sighted folks at Nations scheduled games during the Air Show each day, so our families paid the extra rent to go to Pensacola on the best weekend of the year, but could not enjoy the show. (NOTE: Folks that stayed on the Pensacola Beach side did get to see the Blue Angels practice. We stayed on the Perdido Key side of Pensacola so we did not see anything.) 

Nations Baseball should start the tournament on Monday and end it on Thursday. If it rains, Nations would have Friday to make up the games. Families than will have an opportunity to see the Air Show on Friday, Saturday and can then drive home on Sunday. News alert for Nations Baseball. People need to get back to work to pay for the rather vast expense of a baseball tournament. The championship game for this tournament ended on Sunday at 7pm. Many families had to drive through the night to get to work. 

• Nations Baseball Gulfport, MS - Grade C
• CABA World Series - Grade B
• AAU Disney Fields - Grade B - (Many doubleheaders had large gaps of time between them)
• Cooperstown Dreams Park  - Grade A+ (I am not sure how they coordinate all of the teams when it is not raining, but they manage the schedule beautifully when rain delays or cancels games too.)
• Nations Baseball, Penacola, FL - Grade F

The Competition: Nations Baseball only attracted 4 total teams for the U14 tournament so they got an F. There were three very talented teams and one team that was rec level. Nations baseball was desperate for teams so they offered a local team a free entry. The local team had never played on 60/90 fields, so they took the free entry to prepare their kids for the upcoming season on the bigger fields.

• Nations Baseball Gulfport, MS - Grade F
• CABA - Grade A (International teams from Puerto Rico and Panama made the event special)
• AAU Disney - Grade A  (Lots of quality teams competed in this event.)
• Cooperstown Dreams Park  - Grade A+ (Each week for 13 weeks every summer, 100 plus teams compete. There is a wide range of competitive levels competing in this event. The top teams typically prevail, but the mid-range teams can advance far.)
• Nations Baseball, Penacola, FL - Grade F

Click Read More for Umpire, Competition Format, Destination, Website, Tournament Committee grades

Gulf Coast Nations Baseball U14 World Series Review and Tips (Part 1)

When you are looking for a baseball tournament for your team you need to do your homework. Not all tournaments deliver the same experience or competition.

My son's travel baseball team was suppose to play in the CABA World Series in Nashville, Tennessee this week. Unfortunately, several of the players on the team had football conflicts, so the team decided to go to the Nations Baseball U14 Elite World Series in Penscola, Florida instead. The Nations tournament was scheduled one week earlier than the CABA World Series.

Last year the team competed in the U13 Nations Baseball Premiere World Series in Gulfport, Mississippi. I provided tips, tricks and commentary for that event in these posts called Youth Baseball: Nations Baseball National Championship. This was what I summarized about that 2011 tournament:

"The first ever Premier National Tournament was a great experience for my son, but it is not an premier event quite yet. I do have faith that Nations baseball will eventually get it right. This year (2011) they got the baseball facility right and the host city (Gulfport Mississippi) is great. They just need to attract more and better teams to justify the "National Championship" status."

So fast-forward to 2012. Did Nations Baseball listen?

The 2012 U14 CABA World Series, which dubs itself "the greatest show on dirt", attracted 31 teams from 15 States. In contrast, the Nations Baseball Tournament attracted 4 teams from 3 states. There were three very strong baseball teams competing in the event and one local team that got run ruled in every game. The local team had players on the team who had never played on a 90 foot diamond before. They were a nice bunch of kids, but they were totally out classed. I talked to one of the moms from that team who told me that Nations gave them a free spot so they took it for the experience of playing on the bigger fields.

The so called "World Series" was literally a round robin tournament between 3 teams. Not three teams from US, Japan and the Dominican Republic - no - three teams from Florida, Texas and Ohio. It turned out to be fantastic baseball with some outstanding pitching on a really cool field, but it did not live up to World Series or National Championship status again.

The Main Point

Last year, I had faith that Nations Baseball would eventually get it right. I lost that faith after hearing what the Nations Baseball Tournament Director had to say.

Here are the details of my conversation:

Ten families from Ohio each spent about $1700 on lodging, $500 in food and $340 in gas to participate in a tournament. The team paid a $700 tournament fee. The team spent about $26,000 in total to participate in the event. This is a lot of money for strapped families in this economy.

When we got to the stadium where the event was being held, Nations Baseball wanted another $25 per person for an entry fee ($7 per day per person or $25 for a 4 day event pass). My wife, my daughter and I went to the stadium to watch the action, so we were charged $75 to watch this four team - poor excuse for a tournament.

Gate fees are common at these tournaments, but you would think that because it was so poorly run they would give us a break. Many complained, so Nations made 8 and under free. My daughter is 11, so I paid the $75.

Several parents from our team approached the Nations Tournament Director to express their disappointment regarding the entry fee and the quality of the tournament that was promoted as a "World Series". First of all, the team felt lied to. One week prior to the event, Nations communicated that 6 teams were paid and two more would be confirmed before the event. Eight teams does not make a "World Series, but it is better than three elite teams and a rec team. He told the group that he could not help it that two teams backed out at the last minute to play in the USSSA tournament 16 miles away in Orange Beach Alabama. Upon hearing that, one of the parents concluded that it makes even more sense that Nations not charge us to get into this event since Nations collected money from teams not here and umpire expenses with fewer games played would be lower. The Nations representative said that he refunded the money to the teams that backed out.

What $#!@$#? - there is no penalty for pulling out of a tournament at the last minute. That is a big problem.

The Tournament Director then whined to the group that he has to charge the entry fee because the tournament has lots of expenses. The tournament consisted 5 age groups. There were tournaments for 6U (4 teams), 10U (6 teams), 11U (4 teams), 13U (6 teams) and 14U (4 teams) in the event. Each tournament had 12 slots available, so each and every age group had trouble attracting teams. This clearly suggests that Nations Baseball is having trouble competing in a very competitive category against CABA, USSSA and Ripken, etc.

I paid entry fee money and went into the stadium. Several of the parents refused to pay and just watched through the outfield fence.

I was up close to the action when my son's team won the event. It was not a hollow victory because the two other strong teams made the tournament very competitive, but we are not running around calling ourselves World Champs or even National Champs.

Finally, Pensacola is a great place for a tournament. In the next couple of posts, I will provide tips for baseball families regarding lodging, eating and having fun in the Pensacola area.

Youth Baseball: Are Private Lessons Worth the Money?

Are private lessons for pitching, hitting or fielding really worth the money?


When I was a young baseball player, my dad taught me how to hit, pitch and field. In the 70's, there was no thought about private training for baseball. My dad played baseball in college, so he was more knowledgeable that most dads. Still, he was not a technically sound instructor.


Kids of today, those filled with real potential and not, are turning to private instruction to get ahead or to simply keep up.


Jayson Stark, one of my favorite sports writers wrote a great piece on ESPN called The Age of the Pitcher - I found this section of the long post about the increase in number of hard-throwing pitchers most interesting.


In 2007, 11 pitchers averaged 95 miles per hour, in 2011, that number tripled to 35. How did this happen?


Jayson and baseball experts have the following theory. 

Think about that for a moment. Can that really be true -- that the number of smokeballers blowing 95 mph and up has tripled in five years? Even other pitchers have a hard time comprehending that phenomenon.

"I've never seen as many hard throwers on every single team as I do now," says Derek Lowe. "It seems like every team has three or four guys coming out of that bullpen throwing 95 miles an hour."

"When I first started doing this 25 years ago, if you saw a kid touch 90 (mph) at 17 years old, you were like, 'Oh my God,'" says the Indians' vice president of scouting operations, John Mirabelli. "That guy became an automatic prospect. Now, just about every guy (on a scouting director's radar) throws 90, and most of them throw 92. And you never saw amateur guys throwing in the upper 90s. Now you see it all the time. It's unbelievable."

But this word of caution: We can't be totally sure if those numbers are accurate. They might tell us more about how we measure velocity now than about the pitchers we're measuring. So we went about this another way: We asked scouting directors what they see when they show up at high school and college games.

Other scouting directors spun the same tales, over and over. And that tells us something: This is NOT a mirage.

So where is that velocity coming from? The theories go like this:

• More long-tossing to build up arm strength. 
• More and more kids seeking out personal pitching coaches, most of whom once played professional baseball, who are passing along advancements in throwing programs and better mechanics. 
• An explosion in the use of personal trainers, even by teenagers.
• Less abuse of young arms by coaches, thanks to new rules, pitch counts and workload limits.

The Main Point


When you combine talent, desire and proper instruction good results will follow no matter what you are doing, but it does not necessarily mean that your kid will advance. Spend your money on private lessons wisely and go into it with the proper perspective because chances of playing in college or the pros is remote at best. 


To me private lessons teach my kids one thing - if you want to advance at anything, be it sports or school or business, don't be afraid to ask experts for guidance. 

Youth Golf Club Fitting: Sales Job or Con Job?

I went to get my son new golf clubs and I was talked into spending significantly more money than I had planned. Was this a great sales job or a con job? Perhaps the sales pro read about me in the first chapter of the book, "The Most Expensive Game in Town" What do you think?

My son is going to tryout for his high school team in August, so for his combined 8th grade graduation, Catholic Confirmation and 15th birthday, I took him out to get fitted for new golf clubs.

We went to the Golf Exchange because their TV commercial featured the latest computer technology for fitting golf clubs. After I saw the TV ad, I went to the website and noticed that Golf Exchange was a Golf Digest Top 100 Fitter, The Ping Fitter of the Year, a Mizuno Top 100 Fitter and the Callaway 2012 Fitter of the Year.

I was sufficiently convinced, so on my son's birthday, we went to the Golf Exchange to get my son fitted for new clubs. The pro immediately asked me a bunch of questions about my son's objectives, golfing history and swing. The pro then asked my son to hit his own 6 iron in the cage to get warmed up, while he fired up the computer to analyze my son's swing.

My son started hitting the ball and numbers jumped up onto a computer screen.

He than gave my son a club with some special impact indicating tape affixed to the club head. After each shot, the pro would read the tape and then remove the head of the club and replace it with another that connected at a slightly different angle. The pro would then again put indicating tape on the club head and hand the club to my son. This continued until the optimal club head angle was determined.

The pro then asked my son to hit his driver. After a few swings were recorded, the pro called over another sales associate and they started whispering back and forth. I edged closer to try to hear the conversation, but I could not hear it clearly.

I was curious, so I asked the pro if there was a problem. He told me that there was no problem with my son's swing, in fact your son's numbers are truly amazing. The problem is that your son's driver cannot keep up with his incredible swing and it might be difficult to analyze your son's "pro-like" swing inside.

He asked me how far my son hits his driver. I hesitated thinking that he would not believe me, then I told him that he hits between 250 and 310 and on occasion farther than that. My son is 5 ft 8 and weighs 120 pounds, so I was waiting for that look from the pro that says, "I think that you are exaggerating a bit about your son." Instead, he said, "I am not surprised with these numbers. In fact, he is losing distance because of the incredibly high backwards rotation he is generating with his current club." He then told me that the right shaft on the driver will control that spin better and your son will be hitting 310+ consistently instead of occasionally.

The pro then showed the numbers to another pro in the shop. This sales pro happened to be the JV coach of a local high school. The JV coach was also amazed by the numbers and told me that my son can be a special player - we don't see numbers like that from 15 year olds very often.

The Main Point

If the pros at Golf Exchange were feeding me BS to get me to spend more than I intended, then they are the greatest bunch of actors in the world.

I bought my son Ping I 20s and scheduled an outside fitting for a new set of woods too. When I got home, I looked up the swing statistics for pros and they did match my son's numbers. I also read some Ping research that shows proper golf club fitting does make a difference.

Why would I not want to give my son every advantage as he tries out for the golf team. I sucker is born every minute, but a natural golf swing is not. I guess I will find out over the next couple of years which is more accurate.

The Growing Youth Sports Economy - Is it Good or Bad for our Kids?

I spend a considerable amount on money on youth sports. Actually, one of the reasons I started this blog was to track how much I was spending. I didn't do this to live within a budget -- I had no intentions of spending less -- I was just curious. And I wanted to spark conversation with people who are equally enthusiastic or / and foolish.

My youth sports cost list has sparked many conversations, including one with Mark Hyman, sports journalist and author. In late 2010, Mark interviewed me for his second book on youth sports called, The Most Expensive Game in Town - The Rising Cost of Youth Sports and the Toll on Today's Families. I answered his questions, and to tell you the truth, I was a bit nervous about how I was going to be portrayed - our behavior regarding youth sports is not exactly rational.

The book was recently released and Mark sent me a copy. When the package arrived from Beacon Press, I hesitated. I didn't hesitate as long as I did before I opened my SAT scores, but it was close.

I finally opened the book and immediately went to the index to see if my name was mentioned in the book and on what page. To my surprise, I was mentioned on 6 pages, including page 1 of the book in the chapter called the Parent Trap. In this chapter, Mark told the stories of three families and also revealed that he was more like me than not.

The book explores so many interesting topics surrounding the economy of youth sports. Mark follows the dollars and explores the motivations of the people who spend their money on youth sports and the people who earn money from youth sports. He explores both sides of the financial equation in a respectful way while exposing some of his own misguided sports expenditures.

The book will make you think. And after you read the last page, you will close the book and wonder if kids would be better off without the influence of money.

In the book, you will find an interesting story about small money-strapped towns betting on youth sports meccas to bail them out of their financial woes. Mark also explores the influence of big corporation money from companies like ESPN, Gatorade, Nike and Pepsi. Stories about the Ford sponsored Punt Pass and Kick competition and the invention of the aluminum bat brought back memories for my wife and me. My athletic wife competed in the PP&K and I used a gold painted Worth metal bat in 1970, the year that it was introduced and changed youth baseball forever.

The Main Point

If you are involved in youth sports as a spender or someone who earns a living from youth sports, you will find this 145 page book a very interesting read. You can buy it directly from Amazon for $16.47

Here's why we spend on youth sports:

Many parents spend money on youth sports in hopes of giving their kids a chance to earn a scholarship or a pro contract. If this were our goal, then our expenditures on youth sports would be considered questionable. That is not our goal. My kids and I both know the slim to none chances of playing sports at advanced levels (college and pros). I write about this a lot in my blog.

Our goal is to have fun and learn what it takes to succeed in life. Sports teaches so many life lessons. (I write about this often too) At the end of their sports careers - whether it ends by getting cut by a HS coach or retiring from the pros after a successful career - I think that my kids will know how to set goals, work hard, work for demanding bosses, work with teammates, succeed under pressure, seek out experts for advice and persevere - lessons that will serve them well in life. 

Youth Sports: Strip Club Sponsors Local Little League

A struggling economy and over regulation has left a local little league's budget a little exposed. 

The budget strapped Lennox School District in California recently doubled field usage fees for a local baseball youth league. Rising maintenance costs and the need to provide security were cited as reasons.

They also banned the league from selling grilled food at the games. For years, the league had counted on sales of grilled food for revenue. The Lennox School District was concerned about public heath - actually they were concerned about financial liability. The Superintendent says that the school district cannot ensure that the league volunteers will handle and cook the food properly. The risk of punitive lawsuits to the school district outweighed the benefit.

These two moves put the season in jeopardy until the Jet Strip Gentleman's Club donated $1,200. Despite the dire situation and the club manager's assertion that the Jet Strip is community and family-oriented, the league returned the funds.

The season looked like it was going to be a big bust, until the publicity from the situation raised awareness of the league's plight.  Donations poured in from more appropriate sources and the season was saved.

This club donated the money without any G-strings attached. They did not demand a big promotional sign at the games. They did not ask for naming rights of the Field - Jet Strip Gentleman's Club Little League Park. Heck, they did not even ask if their girls could perform on the foul poles between innings. Several parents in the district did not mind that the money came from the strip club - money is money. What are your thoughts?

What about bars?

When my son was nine, his team played against a team sponsored by a local watering hole. Each kid on the tavern team donned a yellow shirt. They had their first names affixed on the back of the jersey over a large number. Emblazoned on the front of the jersey was Linda's Bar in classic baseball script writing. When I first saw the uniforms I wondered who in the world would put that on a little league jersey. Then I looked into the crowd and stopped wondering. 

I wrote about that night in my post called Cat Fight in the Stands. 

The Main Point

The world has tuned completely upside down when a strip club owner looks good and a school district looks bad. Somethings have not changed - strip clubs are recession proof, we need tort reform, US schools are a financial hot mess, sex sells and all PR is good PR.

Amusing Ways Youth Sports Parents Deal with Rising Gas Prices

There is nothing funny about rising gas prices, except how we deal with it. See some amusing ways to deal with it.

The cost of gas reached an all time "month of March" high yesterday. Experts are predicting $5.00 per gallon by the summer. This is a scary number for youth sports parents. There are many reasons for these high prices including; 1) high demand for energy from emerging countries like China and India, 2) the shut down of several US refineries, 3) the seasonal move to higher cost summer blends, 4) the unrest in the middle east, especially in Iran and 5) a US government that has been short-sighted regarding energy policy for over 40 years.

If you were told you had to pay $7.62* for each practice, would you sign your kid up for sports?

* Assumes you drive a Honda Odyssey with MPG of about 20 mpg (hwy / city), practice is 10 miles from your house, you do not stay at the practice for the entire 2 hours - instead you drive back and forth twice.

The Main Point

If behaviors don't change in our government, then youth sports parents will need to change. Here are some interesting suggestions to deal with the rising cost of gas.

1. Youth sports parents can charge their kids and any carpool kids a baggage fee for each trip. Little Bobby better fit his baseball bag under the seat or pay up. Tip for hockey moms - charge more for those oversized bags.
2. Youth sports parents can stay at each practice for the entire 2 hours. This cuts the per practice cost in half to $3.81. Beware - this is like torture for many parents. Youth sports parents reveal deep dark secrets when tortured - like their disdain for the coach, some snotty kid on the team or the Hot Mom in the toddler sized spirit wear and push up bra.
3. Youth sports parents can limit food service in the car. Yep - No more drive through visits to McDonalds for trips under 2 hours. You can provide a 1 oz bag of peanuts, a third of a can of soda with ice and a cocktail

Youth Sports: The Reality of NCAA Scholarships (Part 3)

All State in athletics + National Honors Society in academics = Acceptance into a great university and perhaps a scholarship

I always remind my kids that academic achievement is more important than athletic achievement. I tell them that participation in sports is fleeting, but knowledge will take them anywhere they want to go. Even if the place they want to go is to college to play sports. Ironic isn't.

There are two reasons why.

1) Athletic ability can open doors to great academic universities.  If your son or daughter has great grades and high ACT / SAT scores, his / her application will be considered by the admissions staff along with countless others just like it. Athletic ability can be the difference maker.  If a coach wants your son / daughter to play a particular sport for the school, they will lobby the admissions office to accept an athlete. Some good student athletes who could not get an athletic scholarship at a Division I school, may find a place on a roster and academic merit money at a Division III school. (Division III schools are not allowed to offer athletic scholarships)

2) Academic ability can open doors to NCAA locker rooms. In my recent post regarding the Reality of NCAA Scholarships (Part 1), I wrote about the limited number of scholarships for certain low revenue generating sports. For example, a women's soccer squad gets 12 scholarships for 28 roster spots. I explained that many collage coaches have to be creative with the limited scholarship dollars allocated to their program. They often split one scholarship 2 or more ways to attract as many impact players as possible. Great student-athletes can provide a coach another option. A friend of mine has a daughter who is a talented volleyball player. She was offered an athletic scholarship. The coach knew that his new recruit was a fantastic student with outstanding ACT scores, so he encouraged the recruit to apply for academic scholarships. She won an academic scholarship, so the coach was able to reallocate the athletic scholarship money to another player. So if two players competing for one roster spot are equal in ability, the coach will likely choose the player with the best chance to earn an academic scholarship.

The Main Point

Message to youth sports athletes: Study as much as you practice and you will be on a college court (field or pitch) before you know it.

My daughter CC playing during the
halftime of the Xavier Women's Basketball Game

#6 Xavier vs GW 2011

Youth Sports: The Reality of NCAA Scholarships (Part 2)

Crazy Youth Sports Parent, have you promised your little student-athlete a car if he or she gets a scholarship?

I called my sister on her cell phone the other day but she couldn't talk because she was at the car dealer buying a car for my nephew. She had promised him a new car if he ever got an athletic or academic scholarship. Well, he just got a football scholarship and a new car. My sister thought it was a small price to pay because the scholarship was saving the family $112,000 in tuition and fees. (Coastal Carolina University Out of State is approximately $28,000 per year for 4 years.) My dad had the same deal with me. (I did not earn a scholarship). I have the same deal with my kids.


This type of commitment may bite you in the ass. As you saw in the previous post - the average scholarship is only $10,000 per year. And if you read below, scholarships are not guaranteed. You can buy a car and still end up paying for school.


Misconception #3


All athletic scholarship are guaranteed for all four years. Actually, most scholarships are given for one academic year at a time and are offered with the expectation of renewal each year. The coach, however, has the option to renew, reduce or cancel at his/her discretion. The coach is required to send a written notification to each scholarship athlete on or before July 1 to offer a new scholarship or update the status of an existing scholarship as renewed, reduced or canceled. 


Once a scholarship is offered for an academic year, it can only be reduced or cancelled if 1) the athlete makes him or herself ineligible for NCAA competition by violating NCAA eligibility rules, 2) the information on applications or financial aid documents is discovered to be falsified, 3) the athlete violates school rules or 4) the athlete decides to quit the team. Athletic scholarships cannot be reduced or canceled during the year based an injury that prevents an athlete from participating or poor performance. Furthermore, scholarships cannot be increased in a given year for great performance either.


A new rule in 2012 has opened the door for 4 year guaranteed scholarships. The Big Ten schools and a few others are starting to offer these longer term deals for football only, the sport that make the most money for the school. Students like this because it protects them from losing a scholarship for poor performance on the field. Big Ten coaches currently like it because it provides them with a recruiting advantage. Smaller budget conference coaches hate it because it puts them at a disadvantage to recruit players. Some big money team coaches hate it too. They like the flexibility to cut players who are not earning their scholarships. Many programs over sign players. Which means they offer more scholarships than they have to ensure that they get enough new recruits. Well if too many accept the scholarships, the coach either cuts the recruit or cuts a current scholarship player. For more on the over sign issue, click on oversign.com. Most likely the 4 year guaranteed deals will be limited to the high revenue generating sports and all other scholarships will be 1 year renewable deals.


Most coaches will honor their commitment and renew a player's scholarship each year but scholarships are sometimes revoked or reduced.

Here are six situations that can derail a scholarship

1. A school experiences budgets issues and cuts back on scholarships.
2. A college drops the sports program. Some colleges will honor the scholarship, but if the sport was dropped for financial reasons the institute may not.
3. A coach may revoke a scholarship if an athlete consistently fails to meet the minimum academic requirements. (Includes 4 year deals)
4. A coach may revoke a scholarship if the athlete experiences drug or alcohol issues or violates other team rules.  (Includes 4 year deals)
5. A coach can cut a scholarship player at the end of a year if he or she does not think that the

Youth Sports: The Reality of NCAA Scholarships (Part 1)

My nephew just received a full ride to play football for Coastal Carolina. He scored 22 touchdowns in 11 games his senior year. The team’s previous record was 14. Still, my nephew was lucky to get a scholarship at all. He suffered an injury that cut his junior year short after a few games. The injury also significantly cut the number of calls he received from college football coaches and recruiters.

I learned a lot about the quest for a college scholarship from my sister. The biggest thing that I learned is that there are a lot of misconceptions regarding collage scholarships. Over the next couple of posts I will share the statistics and realities of NCAA college scholarships.

Misconception #1

All college athletic scholarships are full rides (4 years of free education plus room and board). Full ride scholarships make up a very small percentage of the scholarships granted. The average is actually about $10,000 per year, a small fraction of the $22,000 to $56,000 cost to go to school each year. Ironically, many youth sports parents spend $5,000 to $10,000 per year from age 11 to 18 preparing their young athlete for a scholarship. My message to you is, if you are investing money in youth sports for a potential NCAA scholarship you are misguided.

The reality is that outside of the money generating sports like football and basketball, full rides are rare. Many institutions simply cannot fully finance sports like soccer, baseball, bowling, golf, lacrosse, men's volleyball, softball, swimming, wrestling and track and field because these sports do not generate a lot of money from attendance and / or media contracts. Typically, women's volleyball players receive full ride scholarships.


The best chance for a full ride is in big money football and basketball. The NCAA allows 85 scholarships for football and 13 for basketball, enough to provide a full ride to every players and schools that generate a lot of money from these programs fully fund these scholarships. For comparison, a low money generating sport like men's soccer can only give 9.9 hardly enough for a squad that consists of about 28 players. Truth be told, many schools do not give the maximum number of scholarships allowed. To attract many quality players, one scholarship is often split and distributed among multiple athletes on a team. A one-year scholarship worth $50,000 is often distributed among 5+ athletes, each getting $10,000 or less per year. It's amount that satisfies a young athlete’s ego, but hardly covers the cost of going to school.

Misconception #2

Athletic scholarships are plentiful. That would be true if every Division I and II school offered the maximum amount of scholarships allowed by the NCAA. (Scholarships are highly regulated by the NCAA.) Here is the reality, only Division I and Division II schools can offer scholarships and the number of scholarships per sport per school is fixed. For example, baseball is only allowed to distribute 11.7 for the entire team each year. A college baseball team typically carries 36 players on a roster.

While the NCAA edict sets a maximum number allowed,  each college can determine how many scholarships they are going to give out based on their own principles and economics. Some schools DI and D2 schools do not offer any athletic scholarships at all. Ivy League teams and the military academies do not offer any athletic scholarships. Others offer some financial assistance through athletic scholarships, but simply cannot afford to offer the maximum number of scholarships.

Here is the hard cold truth - The number of athletes playing with a scholarship full or otherwise is about 140,000. Men’s and women’s hockey has the highest scholarship average per athlete $20,000 per year which is almost 4 times more than the average baseball players pull in.

The chart below indicates how many scholarships are available for reach sport.

The Main Point

Keep pumping money into a 529 college savings plan. Your kid has a 3-5% chance of playing a sport in college and the chances of getting a significant amount of money to play that sport is slim to none. 

Division I                                     Max             Men's            Max        Women's
                                                      #                Teams             #              Teams
                                                   Scholar-                            Scholar- 
                                                    Ships                                  Ships                                     

Baseball /Softball		11.7	291	12	283
Basketball		13	340	15	338
Track & Field		12.6	276	18	316
Football		85	242	0	0
Golf		4.5	290	6	252
Gymnastics		6.3	16	12	61
Field Hockey		0	0	12	77
Ice Hockey		18	34	18	24
Lacrosse		12.6	57	12	90
Rowing		0	0	20	86
Soccer		9.9	197	12	314
Swimming / Diving		9.9	134	8.1	193
Tennis		4.5	258	8	317
Volleyball		4.5	22	12	323
Wrestling		9.9	71	0	0
Division II
Baseball /Softball		9	266	7.2	287
Basketball		10	310	10	312
Track & Field		12.69	184	12.69	201
Football		36	169	0	0
Golf		3.6	233	5.4	170
Gymnastics		5.4	0	6	9
Field Hockey		0	0	6.3	29
Ice Hockey		13.5	24	18	9
Lacrosse		10.8	48	9.9	68
Soccer		9	204	9.9	256
Swimming / Diving		0	70	9	89
Tennis		4.5	178	6	239
Volleyball		4.5	16	8	300
Wrestling		9	61	0	2

Youth Sports: Study Because The Chances Of Going Pro Are Slim

A personal note to my kids. Please study in school because the chances of going pro in your chosen sport are slim. Go after it if that is your passion, but study, study, study so you have something else to fall back on.


Let's face it, there are lots of Crazy Youth Sports Parents who have their sights set on a pro contract for their kids. They spend lots of money, time and emotion to prepare their kids for stardom. They over-manage their kid's youth sports career to the point of insanity. They do this because there is an outside chance that their kid might be the next Ken Griffey Jr or Drew Brees or Dewayne Wade.


The players that make it to the pros are special, one in a million special and it is that slim chance that makes youth sports parents dumb.







A pro contract is a very remote possibility for all young athletes, even the ones who excel in youth sports and in high school. And I am going to prove it to you in this post.


Moeller High School is known for developing men of character, providing a highly regarded college prep education and dominating in sports. Consider the following regarding their sports program.


The Moeller Baseball program is also one of the best in the state every year. They have had 43 winning seasons, including 26 twenty-win seasons. They have won 5 Ohio State Championships ('72,'89, '93, '04, '09). They have also won the Cincinnati Greater Catholic League Championship 24 times making them the best baseball team in the city almost every couple of years. To achieve this type of success you need great baseball players. Making the varsity team is not easy and getting on the field to contribute is even harder. I hope that you would agree with me that Moeller baseball players are elite HS players.


The Moeller Basketball team is one of the best in the state every year too. They have won 3 Ohio State Championships ('99, '03 '07). They have also won the Cincinnati Greater Catholic League Championship 15 times making them the best basketball team in the city of Cincinnati every three of years or so. They have produced 4 Ohio Players of the Year or one every 10 years. To achieve this type of success you need great basketball players. One could argue based on the smaller size of the roster that it is even harder to make the varsity team basketball team compared to baseball. So I hope that you would agree that Moeller basketball players are elite HS players.


The Moeller Football team which was once coached by the legendary Jerry Faust is special too. The school has complied an overall record of 391-87-2 in its illustrious history. The program has garnered 5 National Championships and 7 Ohio State Championships while producing 87 All-Ohio players and 35 All-American players. According to the Moeller website, 389 players earned college scholarships. The Moeller football program does not cut players, so any Moeller student who wants to play football can participate. But the ones who start and have contributed to the amazing record of success are among the best. So again, I would hope you would agree that Moeller football players are elite HS players.

OK - I think that I have established that Moeller is a sports powerhouse so one would think that many professional athletes emerge from this program. Let's look at the numbers. 

Youth Sports Costs: Investment or Gift?

Crazy Youth Sports Parents Series

Watch the video below about angry youth sports parents. The video suggests that many youth sports parents view time and resources spent on their kid's athletic endeavors as investments with a future payoff. Parents with this view will be a constant thorn in the side of their kid's coaches to make sure their kids get extra playing time, prime positions, better training, etc.  These parents will also ride refs and umpires who "unfairly" treat their kids. And they will even argue with other parents if their kids do not help the angry parent's prodigy succeed by passing them the ball, setting a pick, etc.




Do you view the time and money you spend on your kids as

1) An investment with a future payoff (College scholarship or pro contract)
2) An entertainment expense for you kid and your family.
3) A gift that a) builds confidence, b) teaches the value of teamwork and leadership, and c) keeps your kid physically and mentally fit.
4) A day care option which allows you to drop your kid off so you have time to do the things you deem more important (i.e. work, golf, shopping, socializing with friends, etc.)

The Main Point

The chances of getting a college scholarship are extremely low, especially a full ride. The chances of playing professional sports are even more remote. So, I, for one, am not banking on it. I do not expect a future financial windfall from the athletic careers of my kids. I spend a considerable amount of time and money on youth sport for two reasons.

1) I am giving my kids a gift that will keep giving. Participation in sports teaches so many valuable life lessons. Lessons that will benefit them in academics and in their professional careers.
2) I also view youth sports as pure entertainment for my kids, for me, for my entire extended family. There is nothing that I would rather do for entertainment than watch my kids play sports.

If my kids get college scholarships and / or play professional sports, that would be a wonderful surprise and bonus.

Youth Sports: Expensive Shoes Obsession

Is your young athlete obsessed with expensive athletic shoes? Do you let him or her buy expensive shoes? Do you pay for them? If you do why? If you don't why? 

Share your point of view with me and my readers.

My son is obsessed with basketball shoes, baseball cleats and golf spikes.

My 14 year old son, Nic, is only 5' 6" but he has size 11.5 feet. I always tell him that one day he is going to be a big strong athlete or a short clown. Those constantly growing feet have cost me a lot of money over the years because every sports season since he was 5 and I have had to purchase him new athletic shoes. That's what dads do. Another thing dads do is put a reasonable budget on each shoe purchase and I have always done that.

Apparently in this Facebook super transparent world, the shoes still make the man.

My son likes to stand out. That's a problem when you play a team sport with uniforms. However, the one element of a uniform that Nic can control in most cases is his shoes. He uses his choice of shoes to make himself standout. Shoes have become a part of his identity and a reflection of his "full of life" personality. As such, he is currently obsessed with basketball shoes, baseball cleats and golf shoes. 

Over the last 6 months, Nic has purchased five pairs of basketball shoes for a combined total of about $550. You'll notice from my Youth Sports Costs list that only one is listed. I agreed to pay a portion ($80) of the only pair of these shoes (the white retro Jordans) that qualified as school shoes under his school's strict uniform policy. 

You are probably wondering how he buys his shoes if I don't buy them for him. Well, Nic is a hard worker. He mows lawns and watches a neighbor boy periodically to earn money to support his obsession with shoes. I keep telling him to put the money in his car fund (which I match dollar for dollar), but I guess shoes today are more important than a car tomorrow. I constantly remind him that his shoes will get him from point A to point B just like a car, but it's really tough to take a girl to the movies when the only mode of transportation you have is a pair of Pink Nike HyperDunks. I guess saving for the future is a lesson that he needs to learn the hard way though experience.

Here is a list of shoes he has purchased most recently to stand out. He also has purchased a matching headband for each pair.

Nike KD III Christmas Edition  (Yellow) KD is for Kevin Durant

Nike AirMax Flight 11 Reke Havoc (Purple) Tyreke Evans

Nike Zoom Kobe IV (Camo in Blue and Black) Kobe Bryant

Nike Jordan 5 V Retro Independance Day (White) Michael Jordan

Nike Hyper Dunk 2011 (Pink)

He bought these shoes online or at his favorite store the House of Hoops. The House of Hoops is a store within a store at select Footlocker locations. The closest one to our house is 100 miles away in Columbus. Fortunately for my son, we are in Columbus for soccer, baseball and basketball tournaments every other month. 

Nic was inspired to purchase the pink pair by watching the NFL breast cancer awareness campaign. During the month of October, the NFL players and coaches are raising awareness for breast cancer by donning pink (gloves, hats, shoes, sweatbands, etc.) for the A Crucial Catch Pink Campaign. 

The Main Point

You'd have to be crazy to buy multiple pairs of basketball shoes totaling $550 for feet that may still be growing. I'm not crazy, but my son apparently is and so are some of his friends. 

I am not really happy about his choice to spend money in what I think is a frivolous manner, but I also think that a person who works hard and earns his or her own money should be free to buy whatever they want to buy (as long as it is legal). I believe in limited government and freedom, so it's against my principles to mandate how my son spends his hard earned money or what color shoes he can and cannot wear.  It would take away all of his motivation to work. 

My wife and I have taught our son that you need to work hard to get the things you want in life. He has learned this lesson loud and clear. I hope that our message regarding the importance of saving money for the future is being heard too and that one day he will put it into practice.

What is your stance on expensive sneakers?