So you want your daughter to play travel fastpitch softball huh...

This is for the parents of girls that want to play softball... or maybe she already plays rec or little league and you are thinking of taking the next step - travel fastpitch softball - and you have never done anything like this before. I just wanted to share my experience. I am sure yours will be different, but it will give you an idea of what to expect I hope. For the record none of my kids ever played any kind of travel sports before this so everything I experienced was as a first timer.

Finding a Team

The best way to find a team for your kid is to visit the local fastpitch softball oraganizations' message boards at the end of the summer or the beginning of fall. Around here the organizations are Top Gun, NSA, and IFA. Coaches are always posting about needing players. Also they post a lot of tryout dates and locations. Most of those you can just show up to - some you have to let them know you are coming. Most posts will give all the details you need. Also if your daughter has a private hitting or pitching coach, make sure you let them know to keep and ear out for a team that needs a player - especially if you missed the fall tryout season. Something will always happen on somebody's team where they need another player or 2. Maybe they had someone quit for another team, who knows. Coaches hear about that stuff a lot. You may have to take her to a lot of tryouts to try to schedule as many as you can. My daughter's pitching coach actually found her a team when she was 9. That was the start of all this.

Getting Her Ready

Now let me give you some advice. If you practice with your daughter like I do, you do not want to neglect any part of her game. Travel ball players practice almost all year long. My daughter wanted to pitch so bad and we were so focused on that - we didn't practice her hitting and fielding. She was a good hitter and decent fielder but after a winter of only pitching her hitting and fielding suffered greatly and that almost blew the deal. She worked extra hard on her hitting and fielding and I really believe by the last few tournaments of the summer she was one of the best hitters and fielders on the team. Make sure you work on everything before you try out. These girls are good and coaches can tell when a player hasn't picked up a bat since the fall season. It took my daughter more than half the spring and summer season to get her swing and fielding back up to par. Some girls are probably good enough to get away with this more than others. My kid has to keep practicing but she loves it. That's the other thing about practicing. Does your kid want to practice? We go out all the time and have a net in the backyard for soft toss and a pitching lane. At first she was pitching every day - now it's more like 4 times a week (she's 12). She swings her bat 4 or 5 times a week too. Not all kids will want to do that and not all will need to.


Are You Willing to Travel to Practice?

The team Keri started travel with was a startup team called Team TFS out of Burlington NC. This was their first 10u team in the area. Now because we were so late to the party we pretty much had to play for them or not play - luckily the coaches were great. Now it was an hour drive to practice 2 or 3 times a week... that is something you have to think about. Are you willling to drive that far? Maybe you will get lucky and get on a closer team... We drove 2 hours round trip for practice and it was worth it for her (she loved the coaches and players)  so it was worth it for me. We did find a closer team the next year because of the drive and because my kid needed to move up a level age wise and that team did not. Start early in the Fall if you can when looking for a team. The earlier you start looking in the fall the better chance you have of finding the right team. Take her to as many tryouts as you can, even if you think you probably won't play for that team. The tryout experience will be great for her.

Do you Care if They Lose?

Keri's team was a startup team. That means there were a lot of players that were just starting travel ball, and that means tough times. They didn't win a whole lot, but they did get better. They never got a trophy until the last tournament they were in. We were fine with this. Maybe you won't be. That team is a really good team this year so if you have a good coaching staff and patience, you will be rewarded. The team she is with now is really great too. The coach doesn't care about winning trophies just for the sake of getting one. He wants the team to play great competition and win there - and he will not settle for less. I love that.

Playing Time

How much do you expect you daughter to play? Every parent wants playing time for their kid. We ran into this on our first team. Keri first joined the team as a part time player. The coach made it clear that she wouldn't play much and that she could play little league and just come to the games she could make which I was fine with - but that's a very unusual situation. Then some players quit and he asked us to join full time. The problem with this was she still did not play much when she wasn't pitching. One tournament she played an inning and a half even with her pitching. That would be fine if she hadn't given up little league where she would play every inning of every game. Luckily for us, she got a lot better during the season (from her hard work and extra practicing) , started hitting and earned plenty of playing time the last few tournaments. My feeling is that if you want someone on the team, you should want them to play, not just to take up space on the bench. Not all coaches feel this way though. You should definately make sure this is clear before you join the team. We learned the hard way. .On her current team the coach made sure he told us that he doesn't keep players unless he wants them to play and he has kept his word and she has played very well for them so far.

(On a side note I hope you do NOT have the experience my oldest daughter had in club / travel volleyball. She joined the Triad Spikers Volleyball Club in High Point NC when the director told us they really needed players and she would get "plenty of playing time". So $500 later we found out they just wanted her to ride the bench 80% of the time (sometimes more). This was a team that never won and was in the lowest bracket and most of the players were no better than my daughter - sorry had to vent). Point is you need to try to make sure the team fits what you are looking for before you drop your money on them.

Are You Ready to give Up Your Weekends?

I love being at the ball field. I can't get enough. The fact that my daughter plays makes me very happy. Do you like being there? I hope so because on average you will be there every other weekend (or more) from early Saturday morning to 8pm or later (we have been there as late as 11pm) and then again early Sunday til whenever you lose out or win your bracket. You will be there a lot. Most of these tournaments will most likely not be in your area (unless you are very lucky) so you may have to drive an hour or more to get to these places. You could stay for the night if you have the money I suppose (see the next section).

Get Ready to Pay Up

Do you have a deep wallet? Some teams are very expensive but if you make it to one of these teams you already know that. The teams we have been on are pretty reasonable. Between $250 and $400 for the spring season. this year we have 9 tournaments scheduled and will most likely play more - then you have to do it again for the Fall season. Doesn't sound too bad. Don't forget to factor in gas, meals, travel chairs, sunscreen, hotels, softball equipment, water .or sports drinks (which I hate), water  and snacks. There are many ways to save money though. Last year was our learning year. We ate out a lot. We found out we could not keep doing that. This year we started packing all our food. We bought a travel propane grill for $45. The propane tanks are 2 for $5. Now we have a family of 5 and sometimes take friends so buying hot dogs or hamburgers to grill will saved us a ton of money when you figure how much feeding 5 or 6 people eating out would be. We pack sandwiches for lunch and snacks like chips, crackers, fruit, plenty of drinks, nuts and other assorted stuff. Still it is a lot cheaper. We also do not get hotel rooms. Most of our tournaments are about an hour and 20 minutes away. When we factor in the gas vs. a hotel room we come out much cheaper driving. Now if the tournament goes really late we have decided this year to try to find a room just so we can get some sleep.

You also have to factor in the costs for the parents equipment. Things that you wouldn't think of normally like a canopy for hot sunny days  (it helps in the rain also), a wagon to carry all your stuff around, travel chairs for everybody (you do not want to sit on the bleachers all day and night), a cooler (which you probably have already), and in some places blankets and a propane heater (believe me, after your first couple of tournaments with temps in the 30's you just might want one too). These things really make the weekend better. But not everyone uses all this stuff and you might not need it. Lots of people just use our canopy. I don't mind at all but I would rather have one for myself than rely on someone else to bring one. I am also looking for sides for the canopy so we can have a heated "room" on the really cold days. One parent on our team has a wagon that has been modified to have 3 levels. that is pretty cool. We are also getting a trailer hitch for our mini-van so we can just put the wagon on there instead of inside the van.

Get Ready To Be Proud Of Your Kid!!

These kids are worn out after a tournament. They play more in a weekend than they play in weeks of little league or rec league ball. They will all do something to make you proud during any tournament whether it is getting a big hit or just hustling to keep someone from scoring. It is a very rewarding experience for your child. I can see the love of the game my daughter has and it really makes me a proud father to watch her give 100% effort to help her team win. The players become a family and would do almost anything for one another. The coach is one of the most important people in their lives. It really is a wonderful thing to behold if you find the right team. Sometimes you tryout for a team and it just seems right. They want your kid and she loves the coach and players from the start.  Sometimes it is different. Her first team she didn't get along with many of the other players at first. I think they viewed her as some kind of outsider. These same girs became her best friends after just a few weeks once they got know one another. Travel softball isn't for everyone. But hopefully if you are thinking of giving it a try I have given you some idea of what it could be like.  I hope you try it and it becomes as great an experiance as it has for me and my daughter because it will provide her with many wonderful memories she will keep for the rest of her life!

r

Fastpitch Softball Pitching - Control Problems

I have a daughter that is very big into fastpitch softball. She started playing when she was 8 in little league fall ball. The next year she played little league in the spring ,all stars in the summer and then decided she wanted to start pitching. She started in august and pitched for fall ball little league. She worked really hard the next few months, got a whole lot better and we ended up finding her a 10u travel ball team the next spring for her play for and pitch. She played for 3 travel teams last year, 2 10u teams and a 12u team. She is 11 now and playing 12u ball for the Peaches in Yadkin, NC. She is one of the youngest on the team. Some of the girls are 7th graders and my daughter is in 5th. She is also one of the smallest. She is mainly an outfielder for this team and does really well. The coach wants her to pitch but she has had control problems. I think we have probably solved that and I wanted to share our experience.

We started going to a pitching coach when she first started to pitch. Honestly I figured she would try it and not like pitching or the work she would have to put in to become a real pitcher. I was wrong. She loves it. We go out most days and pitch and during the winter we go indoors and practice pitching, hitting and bunting. The first pitching coach we tried was at a hitting center. This woman was a great pitcher for a local college but we only went to one lesson. She seemed pretty good but we found one we liked better. This guy is one the nicest people I have ever met in my life. He actually works with my father in law, which is how we found him. He is very genuine and my daughter loves him to death and he has been coaching and teaching pitching for many years. They both teach pitching like so many others. Push off, open your hips and close them very fast. The faster you close your hips the better. She did that and actually pitched very well in 10u, especially last fall for the 10u Cardinals. They got a second place gold bracket finish with her pitching. She also got her first no hitter that tournament. Problem is, they pitch from 35 ft. Now she is pitching from 40ft. Her control left and never came back until recently.

Her travel ball coach eventually suggested something and she tried it. He said they teach this at the University of Arizona and after I researched it I found a lot more people teach this way now than I thought and it makes total sense. When you close you hips fast as she was taught, they start getting the way of your arm. Her pitches were tailing off bad to her right very often. She was worried about hitting her hip with the ball. A pitchers hips have absolutely nothing to do with how fast or accurate she throws the ball (at least not in a good way). What he suggested was don't close your hips at all. It is a huge adjustment but as she gets used to it I think her accuracy is coming back fast and her speed might actually be improving. While she is still getting used to it, when she does it right (which is more than half of the time now) she is very accurate. Also her delivery is much smoother than it was. She can relax her arm better because she doesn't have to think about hitting her hip as she releases. Now she does close up after the ball is gone but this is only for fielding purposes and has nothing to do with her pitching. It really does work. I would love to see what you guys think. This is just my personal experience. I am sure different things work for different people. Now I just have to figure out how to tell her pitching coach....

Watch Cat Osterman during her no hitter in the olympics. Notice how she never closes until well after the ball is gone.

UPDATE: My kid decided she could NOT do this... haha. Well know she does kind of a hybrid between both. She doesn't close her hips fast like she used to but she still does a little. It is what is comfortable for her. Her control is a lot better but we will find out tomorrow as she is pitching her first game of the spring.

Entertaiment Center

Cooling You Entertainment Center

We recently purchased a new entertainment center (really a big TV stand with a lot of storage). It is really nice, though. A problem I ran into is that even though it does have ventilation holes in the back, my PS3, cable boxes, and PC (yes I have a computer hooked to my TV) get very hot in there. I started leaving the door open but the PS3 still got hot and it is a pain to remember to open the door every time. My 3 year old likes to close the doors also and she makes sure she waits until I am not looking... I notice exactly 5 seconds after my PS3 freezes up.

I started looking into solutions and figured out that I wasn't the only one having that problem. There are many products made just for such reasons. There are also some do it yourself remedies to be found rather easily by just looking. Let me tell you about them then I will tell you how I took care of the problem.

First I bought a fan for the back of the PS3. $20 off Amazon. It works well but still there is a lot of heat in there. I needed something more to push the heat out of the entertainment center instead of it just hanging around in there cooking my electronics. I searched google and found these :

1) Cabcool Cooling Kit for Entertainment Center

This one is on Amazon for $39 plus shipping. I would need at least 2 and maybe more of these which takes the price up to $100+. Says it is easy to install. You have to mount these to your center. I really didn't want to put screw holes in my nice new entertainment center... This kit gets really good reviews though and most people say it works really well. I just wasn't crazy about putting it together. Also this plugs into the wall (or anything else with an outlet) so it will run all the time or when you turn on a particular component.

2) Thermaltake Mobile Fan II USB Cooling fan

I like this one, although not made especially for this purpose. It has a stand and I can hook it up to my PS3 via USB so that it only comes on when the PS3 or my computer does. It costs less than $12 plus shipping (or free if you buy 3 or more). It has lots of reviews and most are good although I am not sure how many people use it for cooling their entertainment centers. Looks like a good use for it though.

3) Cabinet Cooler Fan System

This one also gets good reviews. It comes on automatically when the temperature gets above 87 degrees and cuts off at 85 degrees so it doesn't run all the time. It is really quiet apparently and cools pretty well. The problem for me would be I would want 3 or 4 and the price is a whopping $100 EACH... whoa! I read some reviews that said it was worth it... I am not sure if I agree. I guess I should see it work before I dismiss it but at that price I would want it to cool the whole living room. Next...

4) Antec AV Component Cooler

Ok, this one looks pretty cool. It has 2 fan speeds. Most reviewers say you never need the high speed. Your component sits on top of this much like laptops sit on top of laptop coolers. The difference is the airflow comes out the back end and not the bottom (an idea I think would work well for laptop coolers also). This one also uses an AC outlet to power the unit. The drawbacks of this is that you would need one for each component that runs hot and they are $50 each on Amazon. Most reviewers say it works well but more than a few say it is made cheaper than they anticipated. The plastic, they say, is just cheap like a lot of laptop coolers. So maybe they took one and put AC power instead of USB?? Still if it works you may not care... I did.

5) Do it Yourself

I also found (and you can too) a few sites by searching the net that explain how to build your own cooling fans. Some even have thermal fan controllers to automate the system. The best I can find is about $60 for 2 fans, cases, thermal controller and power cables. That's not bad in the scheme of things. I decided against that too.

6) My solution

I looked at all these choices. I had to decide what was important. My main concerns were my PS3, my PC, and my DVR. All run pretty hot. Now I had to decide what features were important. Did I want automation? Did I want USB power or AC? did I even care? How much did I want to pay. Did I care if the fans ran all the time and what if I could hear them run. How do I want them mounted if at all?

I decided I did not care about any of it except cooling and the price. I went to Walmart - just to look at what small fans they had and whether I could use them. I expected to pay $6 to $10 for a small fan which would have probably made me choose another option. I found small fans for $1 a piece. I scanned them just to make sure. Sure enough, $1. They were small enough to fit in my entertainment center but not too small so I bought 6. I put one at my DVR, 1 behind my PC and 2 on my PS3 (on intake and one out). I am keeping the other 2 just for backups. I expected them to not give out much air or to be loud. Actually they put out enough air to keep all my components cool and I cannot even hear them. I plugged them all into a power strip so I can turn them off if I want. My stuff stays cool now and I don't even have to open the doors any longer. The total price was $6 plus tax and I have 2 extra fans. the fan casing is metal and also very well made. Maybe I got lucky finding these fans (I am thinking of going to get the rest of the $1 fans just in case I wear them out) but I am very happy with my solution. Maybe it's not for you but it works very well for me. I hope you find a solution you are happy with.