As our 2011 Mega Football Camps draw near, it’s time for parents to start preparing their sons for the best camp experience they can possibly have. We know you are looking forward to having 4 quiet days at home without your son(s), and we are happy to take them off your hands for you! But before we do that, put just a little preparation in at home to make sure he’s ready to go the day camp registration rolls around. For the next few days we will be releasing various tips to help all you parents out there get ready for camp. We’ll start you off w/ a very important one today:
Eat and drink properly before and during camp -
Now, we hope you already do this at home, but we realize it can be hard to curb the sodas and junk food all the time, especially when they’re out of your sight. We’ll do our best to keep them away from the soda machines and ice cream during camp, but if you can start this ahead of time that will make it even easier. Kansas in June is hot, add the full pads into the mix and the boys will be losing a lot of fluids during the day so they must stay hydrated. Nothing is better than water for them obviously, but sports drinks do work well to replenish nutrients lost during exercise … the less sugar the better. Make a concerted effort to talk to them about this before camp, and even implement this plan ahead of time so they come into camp hydrated. We don’t want them spending all day on the sidelines w/ the trainer cause their stomache hurts from too much sugar. This was just a very simple tip, but one that can go a long way towards a successful camp.
20 discounts must be purchased for each camp to become activated- TELL YOUR FRIENDS!
Registration for camps will open on March 5th
Once purchased, the discount can be used anytime (discount code will be emailed once the 20 purchase minimum is reached)
Can be combined w/ “Early Bird” discount (before April 21st), but no other discount
Can only purchase 1 discount per child attending camp
Valid only for 2011 camps
The $20 is NON-REFUNDABLE unless the 20 purchase minimum is not met for the specific camp, or the camp is canceled for any reason. In the event either of those scenarios take place, the $20 will be refunded.
Again, this discount is something we have never done before, and the $50 discount will only be available to purchase until March 11th. Be sure to get out there and tell all your friends and teammates about this amazing deal so the 20 purchase minimum gets met for the camp you plan to attend! Also, be sure to signup for camp before April 21st to take advantage of the “Early Bird” discount, and then use your extra $75 or $50 discount for up to an amazing $125 off the regular overnight camp fee! Be sure to visit our website at www.jjdsports.com for more information, and become a fan on Facebook!
Parents continuously come to me w/ the question, “my son wants to play tackle football this year, what should I do?” Before I can muster an answer, more questions get rattled off, like “is he ready to play tackle yet, or should he continue playing flag?” Then the big one comes, the driving force that is naturally behind every parent’s hesitation – “is he going to get hurt?” The million dollar question. What I tell them from my 8 years of running full-contact youth football camps is a very unoriginal answer, but it’s the truth. We can never tell who is or isn’t going to get hurt, and football is a naturally violent sport where injuries do happen at all levels. No one knows their son better than the parents, but what it ultimately boils down to is how comfortable you are with the football situation in your community, school or club; all the way from the quality of coaches to the quality of equipment used. To me, the benefits of football far outweigh the risks, but I encourage all parents to do their homework in their town. Football is hard work and coaches have a terribly difficult job, but don’t ever expect it to be easy on your child to play the game … one of the worst things you can do as a parent is lead your son to believe football will be easy because nothing will be further from the truth. I once had a parent contact me after a camp and say “you promised in your orientation speech that there would be no pressure on the kids, and I don’t feel that was the case.” I won’t get into what I actually said during orientation, but just remember parents, you’re child cannot escape pressure when playing football at any level. Simply executing a drill during practice in front of your coach and teammates to prove you understood what was being taught carries pressures w/ it … no different than a teacher calling on a student in the classroom to answer a question. The great thing about this type of pressure is that will prepare your son for many different situations in life.
At our full-contact Mega Football Camps for 3rd-8th graders we have been lucky enough to this point that we have not had any serious injuries (knock on wood). Most are common complaints from elementary and middle school aged children related to their helmets being uncomfortable, or simply wanting to take a break to sit w/ the trainer. A coach once told me, “don’t put up a tent at camp, otherwise your trainer will have a lot of company all day long.” He was right. Of course, we do have some legit injuries like ankle sprains, bruises, etc. that go along w/ playing football, but there are 2 or 3 instances every summer where a kid gets tackled, or his knees bent awkwardly back where I think surely it’s time for our first call to the ambulance. They always seem to pop back up and I’m left thinking about the days when I was once that flexible.
As for what age is the right age, and is 2nd grade too early. Like I said above, it depends on the child, and the football situation he’s being thrust into. To me, take injuries out of the equation unless he has medical issues. There is just not the violence in this age group, and w/ the resiliency of kids bodies I just don’t feel it should play a major factor in the decision at this point. What should play a major decision, the COACH and program. Football is great for a lot of things, it builds toughness, introduces discipline, instills a sense of teamwork and pride; but all of that can be torn down by a single bad experience w/ a coach or program. Now don’t misinterpret what I’m saying here, I think coaches should be tough, and I will never be a proponent of teaching your son to blame a coach, but rational parents can tell the difference between a coach who is coaching for the right reasons and the right way, and one who isn’t. Just do me one favor if you never listen to anything else I write or say again, if you run into a bad situation w/ a coach please handle it behind closed doors. No one benefits from it being done publicly in front of the child, teammates, other coaches and even other parents.
As always, if anyone has questions or comments about this information feel free to post them below … or even if you have more specific private questions you can always email us directly. Happy holidays to all, and be looking for a new monthly blog feature coming out next year that we are very excited about!
Starting today JJD Sports is running a special promotion that will allow one of ourFacebookfans a chance to win a free spot at a 2011 Mega Football Camp! The promotion works like this:
The most important thing to know is that to be eligible in this drawing you must be a fan on Facebook. If we get to 500 fans by October 15th we’ll do a drawing for a free camp! Once you are a fan, for each person you refer who also becomes a fan you will get an extra entry into the drawing. Just tell your referrals to become a fan and then go back to our Facebook page and post who referred them in the designated post… if they don’t do this we will have no way to know you referred them. We’ll tally the results and do the drawing once the results are in.
Remember, once you are a fan no matter if you were one of the original 229 fans we’re starting with, or someone who was referred, you are eligible; and then if you refer people to become fans you will get more entries as well. If we get to 1,000 fans by the 15th then we’ll give away two spots!!
We start today, and remember, to be eligible in the drawing just visit our page on Facebook and become a fan. Let’s make it happen!!
At the conclusion of every JJD Sports Mega Football Camp an awards ceremony takes place in which we hand out awards to the campers for their achievements during the week of camp. The coaches get together and determine who wins each award, and we base the decisions off the entire week of camp, not just the Mega Bowl on the last day. It’s not necessarily the best player at each position, but we take into account the athlete’s attitude, his coachability during the week and of course his performance during camp. With that being said, here are the award winners in the Senior division of the Pratt Mega Camp. This is the conclusion of our All-Camp Teams, but keep checking back for some exciting announcements coming for 2011!
Pratt All-Camp Team – Senior Division
MVP - Mark H. (Andale, KS) / Levi K. (Andover, KS) QB - Adam T. (Wichita, KS) RB - Jace B. (Andover, KS) OL - Nick S. (Andover, KS) DL - Mark H. (Andale, KS) / Levi K. (Andover, KS) WR - Alex B. (Wichita, KS) DB - Bryce K. (Andover, KS) LB - Hunter K. (Kingman, KS) Returning Camper Leadership Award - Hayden B. (Eudora, KS) Most Improved - Wyatt L. (Andover, KS)
At the conclusion of every JJD Sports Mega Football Camp an awards ceremony takes place in which we hand out awards to the campers for their achievements during the week of camp. The coaches get together and determine who wins each award, and we base the decisions off the entire week of camp, not just the Mega Bowl on the last day. It’s not necessarily the best player at each position, but we take into account the athlete’s attitude, his coachability during the week and of course his performance during camp. With that being said, here are the award winners in the Junior division of the Pratt Mega Camp. Tomorrow we will begin announcing the winners from the Senior division at the Pratt Mega Camp so be sure to check back for that!
Pratt All-Camp Team – Junior Division
MVP - Cordell W. (Tulsa, OK) QB - Lawson L. (Meade, KS) RB - Max M. (Andover, KS) / Cordell W. (Tulsa, OK) OL - Greyson C. (St. John, KS) DL - Trenton P. (Hays, KS) WR - Jadon K. (Pratt, KS) DB - Garrett R. (Pratt, KS) LB - Dawson R. (Burrton, KS)
At the conclusion of every JJD Sports Mega Football Camp an awards ceremony takes place in which we hand out awards to the campers for their achievements during the week of camp. The coaches get together and determine who wins each award, and we base the decisions off the entire week of camp, not just the Mega Bowl on the last day. It’s not necessarily the best player at each position, but we take into account the athlete’s attitude, his coachability during the week and of course his performance during camp. With that being said, here are the award winners in the Senior division of the Olathe Mega Camp. Tomorrow we will begin announcing the winners from the Pratt Mega Camp starting w/ the Junior division so stay tuned for that!
Olathe All-Camp Team – Senior Division
MVP - Tresten S. (Blue Springs, MO) QB - Sutton C. (Wichita, KS) RB - Tresten S. (Blue Springs, MO) OL - Cameron B. (Baldwin City, KS) DL - Nicholas R. (White Cloud, KS) / Robert B. (Wichita, KS) WR - Tim P. (Leavenworth, KS) DB - Jad H. (Wichita, KS) / Colton F. (Russell, KS) LB - Grant M. (Gorham, KS) Returning Camper Award - Zach B. (Andover, KS) Most Improved Camper - Ethan P. (Hiawatha, KS)
At the conclusion of every JJD Sports Mega Football Camp an awards ceremony takes place in which we hand out awards to the campers for their achievements during the week of camp. The coaches get together and determine who wins each award, and we base the decisions off the entire week of camp, not just the Mega Bowl on the last day. It’s not necessarily the best player at each position, but we take into account the athlete’s attitude, his coachability during the week and of course his performance during camp. With that being said, here are the award winners in the Junior division of the Olathe Mega Camp. Tomorrow we will announce the winners from the Senior division at the Olathe Camp so stay tuned for that!
Olathe All-Camp Team – Junior Division
MVP - Cody M. (Wichita, KS) QB - Cody M. (Wichita, KS) RB - Jake N. (Olathe, KS) OL - Mac C. (Wichita, KS) DL - Kyler B. (Olathe, KS) WR - Kendal K. (Platte City, MO) DB - Steve B. (Raymore, MO) LB - Peyton B. (Olathe, KS)
For all of you out there who did not take advantage of our “Early Bird” discount for the 2010 Mega Football Camps, you’ll be happy to know there is still a chance to get it. Just bring a group of 5 players from your team and you will still be eligible for the “early bird” rate. This saves $40 off the already incredibly low rate for the longest running full-contact youth football camps in the state of KS! Just CLICK HEREto signup today and take advantage of all the full-contact action.
The first major date for our 2010 Mega Camps has come and gone. April 23rd was the deadline to signup and pay online for a chance to be one of the “First 40″ to receive a free 5X7 picture at camp w/ our special guest courtesy of www.pec-sports.com for the Olathe camp.
The next major date is May 1st, and this is the big one … this is where you all have the chance to save money w/ the “Early Bird” discount. Despite our camp fees already being about 50% less than most camps of this nature, we still give this option to get an even lower price. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to save money, and become a part of JJD Sports’ 8th year of running the Mega Camps! The longest running full-contact youth football camp in the state of Kansas. See you in June!
