I did not have a row of trophies on my shelf or a stack of participation T-shirts in my drawers. Youth sports has become too much about status. For the kid. For the parent. There are people who would rather see their kid play little on the A team than a lot on the B team.
Some kids feel that way too.
But we also have a school system that most are ultimately proud of. Overwhelming, of course, has two edges. We don t starve for coaches or resources other than gyms and playing fields. On the other hand there is so much emphasis intentional and accidental that we find ourselves doing ridiculous things. By creating multiple travel teams at each age level, we siphon off kids from our less intense town program.