Talk
about a win-win: Guides let parents get a clue
while kid's teams get money
By Pat Morgan
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Many parents don't really understand
the sports our own children play, especially if
we grew up playing slow-pitch softball and our
child is obsessed with, say, field hockey. This
learning curve, which apparently can include applauding
at exactly the wrong time during a game/match/meet,
does little to assuage our kids' fears that we
are hopelessly out of touch about their lives
and clearly were put on the earth only to humiliate
and torture them with our stupidity.
Enter Bryan Jones, a former player
and coach of high school water polo (don't ask;
I have no idea what they actually do), who realized
that most parents of water polo players (starting
with his own) did not understand even the basics
of the game.
So, because he loved his parents
and saw an opportunity to exploit their ignorance
for marketing purposes, he developed a guide map
to his favorite sport, because, as Jones says,
"I believe parents who understand and enjoy
sports are more likely to attend games and support
their children's activities. Sports education
can also open communication between parents and
their children."
The newly educated water polo parents
were so grateful, Jones created guides to 14 additional
sports: baseball, basketball, field hockey, football,
golf, men's and women's lacrosse, soccer, softball,
swimming/diving, tennis, track/field, volleyball
and wrestling. The foldable, laminated guides
fit into a pocket or purse and explain basic rules
and strategies, a brief history of the sport,
field diagrams, player roles and a glossary of
useful terms.
Jones promises his SportSpectator
Guides are easy enough to read and comprehend
during halftime/intermission/whatever they call
the break when nobody is playing the game.
The guides sell for about $5, but
don't buy them at amazon.com. Buy them from your
kids' teams. Jones sells to teams at a wholesale
rate, so resourceful coaches and players can theoretically
nab a corporate sponsor to foot the wholesale
bill, then raise funds by selling the individual
guides to befuddled spectators. (Visit www.sportspectator.com
or call 800-355-5129.)
So, while you may look like a clueless
tourist clutching a map at your own kid's game,
at least you will be a clueless tourist who is
supporting the school!
And that's gotta count for something.
Right?
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