I finished my first full year coaching youth sports, and while I enjoyed it, I’ve made a decision: I am assistant coach material. That is my niche: responsible enough to show up, but not responsible enough for significant decision-making power. I prefer to hide in the background, make sure everyone’s shoes get tied, and let the head coach take the blame if things go south.
Other things I learned:
1. The vast, vast majority of youth sports parents are not bonkers. Don’t believe what you read about parents fighting each other with battle axes in the parking lot after games. I only saw that twice. OK three times. Alright I am kidding, I saw no battle ax fights. Most parents want the same things, which is A) for their kids to get some exercise and B) to be able to drop their child off for an hour and have someone else yell at them while they can run an errand and look at their phone. If the child can also learn to catch, that’s a bonus.
2. I was the assistant coach of my daughter’s soccer team and assistant coach of my son’s Little League team. These were recreational league teams, which are low-key organizations for parents who like to sleep in and do other stuff on the weekends, and not travel teams, which are for parents who enjoy rest stop coffee and stockpiling Hampton Inn points.