2013 Boys Soccer Verbal Commitments

[Unregistered]

Antics? You have no idea who I am and your supposition is wrong. You ever think of explaining what your actual position is instead of just trying to contradict everything you don't like? To tell you the truth, it is not real clear what you are trying to support only that you do not like BTDT. Since I am not him you actually come across quite foolishly. You seriously can't actually believe that it is only costing the average soccer family a couple of thousand dollars a year at this point can you? Personally I think the whole club soccer culture has gotten way out of control and no one steping back to question why the clubs are having us do half of what they have us do. The difference between us is I have no problem with you spending what ever you want to spend on club soccer. It is your time and money so as far as I am concerned you can do what ever the heck you want. What galls me is people like you want to minimize and normalize what is actually going on. I don't know why you want to do that but I personally think that it is important to strike a balance and point out that everyone doesn't see the world of club soccer the way that you do. It is not antics, it is offering a different perspect. If you don't share the perspective that is fine that is why you have forums to discuss such things. It would just be nice if you offered something rational in response instead of the stupidity you normally put out.

BTDT, I'm sick of you. You barged in here with your views, imposing them on others, and you have the gall to say we all can do what we want with our money and that you don't care. Then why are you here, in a boys 2013 thread!? I did give an affirmative response. MOST people are NOT spending 12K per year and certainly not the 30K you made a whole lengthy post about. I have given very rational responses. And just because I said we were mostly satisfied with our experience doesn't mean that I offered all of my opinions about the club scene right here. You have no idea what I think. I do know that you cannot for live of you answer a simple question: WHAT OUTCOME IS GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU TO JUSTIFY YOUR EXPENSE???? And if there is none, then WHY ARE YOU PLAYING????

[Unregistered]

You are like the guy who gets caught naked under the sheets with someone by his wife and insists that it isn't him. But you are actually worse. You continue parading around naked insisting it isn't you. Unbelievable.

[Unregistered]

We didn't go to the Orange Bowl!!! We didn't go to Disney or CASL or Phoenix!!!

And my kid is somewhere special, thank you. And if we had gone to Disney and had a good time, so what???

Please answer. What outcome will justify the money for YOU? Half D1 ride? Full ride? Full ride plus European contract? Nike commercial? Please, answer instead of posing like you are so worried about everyone else. There are some relatively smart people among the rest of us. Please, tell us YOUR story. Tell us how you are going to make all the same mistakes playing the "endgame" that you did on the first go round. You embarrass yourself here every single day.

Calm down, your questions have actually been answered if you bothered to read. Here is what I took from the responses so far. Everyone has to make an objective judgement about what they think they will get out of club soccer and then make a value judgment about how much they are willing to commit to achieve it. Part of what is being highlighted by this discussion are some of the surrealistic views some people have about the costs involved and possible outcomes. Clearly the costs have grown astronomically over the past couple of years and participation in club soccer does not automatically result in an offsetting college scholarship. If parents understand what the facts actually are and still want to roll the dice I haven't read anything here that suggests anyone is trying to stop them. Sure there is a little bit of judgement being offered by people who don't have the same value structure but the real issue everyone seems to be all worked up about is vetting the misinformation. There has been a ton of it here.

[Unregistered]

Calm down, your questions have actually been answered if you bothered to read. Here is what I took from the responses so far. Everyone has to make an objective judgement about what they think they will get out of club soccer and then make a value judgment about how much they are willing to commit to achieve it. Part of what is being highlighted by this discussion are some of the surrealistic views some people have about the costs involved and possible outcomes. Clearly the costs have grown astronomically over the past couple of years and participation in club soccer does not automatically result in an offsetting college scholarship. If parents understand what the facts actually are and still want to roll the dice I haven't read anything here that suggests anyone is trying to stop them. Sure there is a little bit of judgement being offered by people who don't have the same value structure but the real issue everyone seems to be all worked up about is vetting the misinformation. There has been a ton of it here.

No one has made any attempts to deceive as far as I can tell. There is not attempt at disinformation. The 20K I estimated generously is no small amount. But I don't regret it. Your disinformation is suggesting that a large percentage of the club population is spending 12K to 30K per year. Most are not. And there are not all these people telling parents that their kids are D1 material that you seem to be implying. That is not happening. So, are you saying that a college scholarship warrants the 30K you are paying? Or not?

[Unregistered]

BTDT, I'm sick of you. You barged in here with your views, imposing them on others, and you have the gall to say we all can do what we want with our money and that you don't care. Then why are you here, in a boys 2013 thread!? I did give an affirmative response. MOST people are NOT spending 12K per year and certainly not the 30K you made a whole lengthy post about. I have given very rational responses. And just because I said we were mostly satisfied with our experience doesn't mean that I offered all of my opinions about the club scene right here. You have no idea what I think. I do know that you cannot for live of you answer a simple question: WHAT OUTCOME IS GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU TO JUSTIFY YOUR EXPENSE???? And if there is none, then WHY ARE YOU PLAYING????

Seriously, is a forum just a place you go just to read your own writings? It seems that you can't stand to mince words with anyone who doesn't agree with you. Pretty simple minded when all you have to do is either ignore a post or go to another thread. It is a public forum after all and people are supposed to be free to express their opinions on any subject that interests them. You choose to get all worked up and like to spew a whole lot of hate but you seldom make rational arguments to respond to what you disagree with. Instead you tend to make irrational statements like the one highlighted above and completely ignore the supporting information that was offered with that number. All that you did was superficially counter with what seems to be an incomplete comparison using dated data. The net effect of your rather shallow argument is it does nothing more than spread misinformation. By doing that you become part of the problem rather than part of the solution.

[Unregistered]

Seriously, is a forum just a place you go just to read your own writings? It seems that you can't stand to mince words with anyone who doesn't agree with you. Pretty simple minded when all you have to do is either ignore a post or go to another thread. It is a public forum after all and people are supposed to be free to express their opinions on any subject that interests them. You choose to get all worked up and like to spew a whole lot of hate but you seldom make rational arguments to respond to what you disagree with. Instead you tend to make irrational statements like the one highlighted above and completely ignore the supporting information that was offered with that number. All that you did was superficially counter with what seems to be an incomplete comparison using dated data. The net effect of your rather shallow argument is it does nothing more than spread misinformation. By doing that you become part of the problem rather than part of the solution.

BTDT, thanks for the lecture. Means a lot coming from you, the king of misinformation and agenda-driven posting. You haven't constructed a logical argument in 5 years, and you certainly didn't end your streak tonight.

[Unregistered]

Here is how that 12k appears to break down

Club fees @ $2,600
Equipment @ $350
Gas & Tolls @ $4,000
Tournament Travel (4) @ $4,800

Roughly a third of the expense is gas and tolls. That and tournament travel actually represent 2/3 of the budget.

[Unregistered]

Here is how that 12k appears to break down

Club fees @ $2,600
Equipment @ $350
Gas & Tolls @ $4,000
Tournament Travel (4) @ $4,800

Roughly a third of the expense is gas and tolls. That and tournament travel actually represent 2/3 of the budget.

BTDT, different poster. And what does the above have to do with the Boys 2013 Commitments thread? Can you take this to U15 girls where there is still precious time for you to save some dopes some money?

[Unregistered]

BTDT, thanks for the lecture. Means a lot coming from you, the king of misinformation and agenda-driven posting. You haven't constructed a logical argument in 5 years, and you certainly didn't end your streak tonight.

Here is what he is saying. NAY NAY NAY. I don't like what you wrote so I am just going to ignore it and rail on about mindless drivel. How simple minded can one be?

[Unregistered]

BTDT, different poster. And what does the above have to do with the Boys 2013 Commitments thread? Can you take this to U15 girls where there is still precious time for you to save some dopes some money?

Clearly the whole notion of publizing commitments is offensive to more than just a few people and not it is does not appear to be gender specific. The last several pages have all been about the cost side of the cost benefit analysis that parents probably should do before they embark on pursuing a soccer scholarship. This issue has been discussed at quite some length in the girl's commitment thread by parents of both genders. Why it is inappropriate to discuss it here?

[Unregistered]

Here is how that 12k appears to break down

Club fees @ $2,600
Equipment @ $350
Gas & Tolls @ $4,000
Tournament Travel (4) @ $4,800

Roughly a third of the expense is gas and tolls. That and tournament travel actually represent 2/3 of the budget.

Tonight I am a bummed Patriots fan trying to forget the game but I am also a parent on the girls side. We have a couple of girls involved with our team that travel from out of state to come to practice. Their parents are often complaining about the cost of gas. That $4,000 number is scarey. I couldn't imagine it being larger than that.

[Unregistered]

Clearly the whole notion of publizing commitments is offensive to more than just a few people and not it is does not appear to be gender specific. The last several pages have all been about the cost side of the cost benefit analysis that parents probably should do before they embark on pursuing a soccer scholarship. This issue has been discussed at quite some length in the girl's commitment thread by parents of both genders. Why it is inappropriate to discuss it here?

Discuss away. Every person who visits the site should read these dire warnings -- from someone who elects to pay 30K apparently but won't respond to that -- at least 10 times a day and on as many threads as possible. And we should make up some stories about other kids on our team paying even more than 4K year for gas. The truly fascinating thing is what you of all people are doing here all the time. You are like a guy passing out religious pamphlets on the street. Shouldn't you be mapping out strategies for your next bball game or trying to get reduced-rate tickets for your next national event?

[Unregistered]

Balance

I would like to congratulate those who are going to college and have the chance to continue playing soccer. With all the threads on this site (which is evolving) there is great effort on the part of parents to support their kids. This comes in the form of money, time, and emotion, the latter two cannot be quantitated in regard to money. The former, however, can be quantified.

Although to say that a parent will pay 4000 dollars in gas (not included in the 4000+ dollars of tournament travel fees is nuts. Assuming that you have a car with 20 mpg and a 20 gallon tank that cost 70 dollars to fill up, you would have to drive 400 miles each week to and from practice 3640 dollars per year. This means 3 practices per week and a game on the weekend and an assumption that you are driving 50 miles each direction. All I can say to this is: Answer Find a club closer to home!!!!

Equipment fees: 350 dollars?? Two years ago I would have laughed and suggested you to buy the previous years now 'out of vogue' top shoes at discounted prices, and inexpensive shin guards all for < 150 dollars. This past year, it has become more common for clubs to charge their fee, and then, in the last line (that many don't see) instruct you to go on-line to purchase your own uniform etc. which starts at about 200 dollars. Answer: Find a club that bundles the uniform, sweats, and bag!!

Club fees: 2600. Unfortunately, the top clubs are charging this. The clubs that should be charging less are those with their own fields that they control, which are few and far between. Valeo is about to have its own home and probably charges the least for their package. The Bolts have Mt ida, but, from what I am told, their prices have gone up!! No smart answers here: 2000-3000 dollars per year is what you are going to pay.

Tournament fees: This is the tough one. Assuming that solid clubs will include tournament fees for three tournaments (only about 100-200 dollars savings for players), the cost of travel is what kills the budget. Disney will cost a child/parent close to 2000 dollars alone when hotel, travel, and the 80-100 dollar entrance fee to see your own child play, are added up. For me, this is a simple answer. There is great competition within 3-4 hours drive...even 6-7 hours drive...between New England (including CT), NY, NJ, PA, and Md. I don't see much need to travel out of this general area before U14. After that stay between here and the mid-atlantic states, share the ride, share the trips and stay at courtyards, Spinghill and Fairfield suites. There is little reason why each tournament should cost more than 700 dollars per family. Going to Disney or Arizona, or California is simply not worth it.

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[Unregistered]

How can clubs that use Fields in Boston for which
they pay zero money, they don't have to even buy
equipment get away with the high club fees that
they charge!!!

[Unregistered]

How can clubs that use Fields in Boston for which
they pay zero money, they don't have to even buy
equipment get away with the high club fees that
they charge!!!

Because the clubs to NOT pay zero money for those fields!