Are sports pricing themselves out of the market?

[CoachKevin]

What I find funny is the private lessons. There is an indoor "academy" that charges $70 an hour for private lessons... Most around here are at the $35-50 range per hour. There is even one who's dad coaches the local HS team and he played HS baseball, who is a paid hitting instructor (and not very good IMO)... anything to make a buck

 

[GatorGirl]

I agree we are all a product of our generation and I totally agree with living in a bubble. I am the same age as Adam Walsh was. He was abducted and killed around 1983 or so. I remember after they captured the killer and all they showed the special to us kids to scare us AND IT DID. The media is really responsible for my wanting to live in a bubble. The beat news stories to death and scare us to the point of not wanting our kids out of our sight--even Oprah with her publicizing that sexual predator website.

So yeah, I am going to pay more to have my kids in organized sports so they get out, play and play with other kids. I wish I felt ok letting my kids run around our neighborhood, but I don't. Will anything happen? Probably not. Does the media make you think ANYTHING can happen? Absolutely.

GG

 

[CoreSoftball20]

What I find funny is the private lessons. There is an indoor "academy" that charges $70 an hour for private lessons... Most around here are at the $35-50 range per hour. There is even one who's dad coaches the local HS team and he played HS baseball, who is a paid hitting instructor (and not very good IMO)... anything to make a buck

Many people in a sports coaching/teaching position don't belong there much less making money at it...haha

 

[starsnuffer]

I agree we are all a product of our generation and I totally agree with living in a bubble. I am the same age as Adam Walsh was. He was abducted and killed around 1983 or so. I remember after they captured the killer and all they showed the special to us kids to scare us AND IT DID. The media is really responsible for my wanting to live in a bubble. The beat news stories to death and scare us to the point of not wanting our kids out of our sight--even Oprah with her publicizing that sexual predator website.

So yeah, I am going to pay more to have my kids in organized sports so they get out, play and play with other kids. I wish I felt ok letting my kids run around our neighborhood, but I don't. Will anything happen? Probably not. Does the media make you think ANYTHING can happen? Absolutely.

GG

I hear you. The vast majority of abductions and such are family members and close friends. Statistically, your kids are safer at strangers houses. You're right that it has a lot more to do with people letting the media scare them then it has to do with reality. No one can tell you how to raise your kid though.

It is true that people with low IQ's breed 12x faster then people with high IQ's, and that people tend to breed with like IQ partners. We'll probably see two distinct species in a few hundred years.

-W

 

[SCDad]

The direction has strayed into how to raise kids safely. In short;

In today's threatening world just going out to the neighborhood park does not work, and is really not all that safe. It is not media, it is fact.

Playing organized softball is one of the best environments going, no matter what your future.

The absolute best way to advance your softball player into college softball is through a top travel organization. Period. However the costs are getting to be more and more of a burden. To the point now, it is not possible for some.

We did this (play for a big org.) for a while. At the same time had discussions with DD about what her life goals were. It became apparent being the absolute best softball player in the world was not her ultimate goal. After playing from age 4 to now almost 17, she does not rate this as her #1.

Does that make her a lesser player? sure it does. Has backing away from a super org. stopped her softball future? no. Do I now spend much less money on softball? much less. Would I do it over again? absolutely.

The super organizations are still the best way. They are getting very costly. Other avenues can be had, so it is not the only way.

The other point to be made is that the ability, and level of play of your DD is vital. Always keep that in mind. It allows choices. Whether or not my DD is playing for a super org. right now is not the ultimate answer. But because she played the game so long, she can compete against these players and be respected by them.

We are now ramping up for high school softball. Coming up on the best time of year for us.

 

[chinamigarden]

My mother was a big city cop in the 1950s. At that time the female cops primarily dealt with crimes committed by or to woman and children. She quit because of all the terrible things she saw. Crimes against children have always been there. We just hear about them now.

 

[SCDad]

My mother was a big city cop in the 1950s. At that time the female cops primarily dealt with crimes committed by or to woman and children. She quit because of all the terrible things she saw. Crimes against children have always been there. We just hear about them now.

OK, OK ... but because our parents are now more knowlegeable, and i will give you the same probably happened many years ago ... are you saying to the young ladies today "no organized softball for you, just go to the park and play".

Organized softball is safer. It has taught my DD many life lessons. "Organized" essentially means their are like minded adults, umpires, coaches, parents, directors who, by and large, are serving the sole purpose of helping the young ladies in a structured, competitive environment, become functioning adults.

And mostly positive male role models to boot. In a society lacking of them, combined with the documented proof that positive male role models have tremendous influence on good behavior patterns of young women. This applies to a young lady who does not have an active father, as is true to many today.

I am not buying your position, even if I can agree your premise is correct.

 

[GatorGirl]

SC, I don't think anyone is disagreeing with you, but you have only lived one side of it. I agree that organized is safer in my mind, but could I site research, absolutely not.

I just know that when bored kids get together, crap happens. That is kids, not society. Kids think they are invincible and put themselves in situations they shouldn't. So if kids are organized and supervised, let likely to put themselves in those situations.

I agree that awful things have always happened. But the media shoves it down our throats until we are petrified. I don't watch the news or most of regular TV for that matter. Netflix, Hulu and DVD's for the most. Any fool can write a blog or start a website, but if it doesn't have AP after the article, it doesn't have much credibility in my book, only a little with it. Too many people use FaceBook as a credible source and it is really bringing society down.

GG

 

[CoreSoftball20]

There isn't anything "in it" for kids and parents anymore for kids to play pick up games. Times and attitudes have changed along with schedules and availability. If you don't believe me, just read forums like this and all the others and really think.

When I was young, my dad and I would go out to the back yard and he would just pitch. I had a blast just hitting with him. We would BS the whole time and have fun. No long winded lessons about how some coach isn't gonna like the way I did something and how it had to change or else I wasn't gonna get on a team and get a scholarship to a college...yada yada yada. It wasn't a job or practice to go out and hit or play catch.

Now it is.

 

[chinamigarden]

OK, OK ... but because our parents are now more knowlegeable, and i will give you the same probably happened many years ago ... are you saying to the young ladies today "no organized softball for you, just go to the park and play".

Organized softball is safer. It has taught my DD many life lessons. "Organized" essentially means their are like minded adults, umpires, coaches, parents, directors who, by and large, are serving the sole purpose of helping the young ladies in a structured, competitive environment, become functioning adults.

And mostly positive male role models to boot. In a society lacking of them, combined with the documented proof that positive male role models have tremendous influence on good behavior patterns of young women. This applies to a young lady who does not have an active father, as is true to many today.

I am not buying your position, even if I can agree your premise is correct.

Thank you for creating and articulating my position and then disagreeing with it. I appreciate it when someone who lets the media do their thinking for them, do it for me. Its so much faster then having to have my own thought.

Stranger danger lessons were among the worst safety programs ever designed for kids. It created this image of a bogey man who will snatch up kids and created this false sense of comfort around people the kids know. Statistically the child predator is more likely someone the child knows, but the kid isn't trained to recognize danger from people they know, only that strangers are bad.

As for the melding of topics. I certainly don't see how an organization that charges thousands a year is more or less safe then one who gets substantially the same thing done for hundreds of dollars.