I CAN BE ANYTHING. The theme song to Reading Rainbow embodied it best; the infinite paths that spread ahead of childhood, when every new experience opens doors to a thousand imagined opportunities.
And then you grow older. And that once fine web of paths turns to highways. And every minute passes to the clicks of a thousand doors swinging shut.
“And I find it sad that sports – which I’ve always known to be the greatest source of inspiration to children – are becoming increasingly inaccessible to them,” said Coach John Richardson, founder of RevSports.
“Kids who show a lot of potential are commonly locked into a single sport, which they must then structure their lives around to play at a serious level. Kids who show less are usually locked out of sports altogether – as if they don’t deserve to throw a ball around if they can’t keep up with their most athletic peers.
“But that’s not how sports ought to be! When you’re a kid, playing basketball should be as easy as walking to your friend’s driveway. Joining a baseball team should cost no more than the price of a glove. Your first thought when you pick up a football shouldn’t be about your player efficiency rating. It should be only this: I’m about to have fun.
“RevSports is making sports right again. We now teach more than two dozen of them for schools, community centers, parks and recreation boards, early childhood learning centers, and sports facilities in over 50 communities throughout the metro area. Wherever we go, we provide instant access to sports. Total immersion! The pure joy of play, and nothing else.
“That mission requires us to hire coaches who can teach (or quickly learn how to teach) multiple different sports, and really connect with the kids they’re out there to encourage. Unfortunately, coaches like those are rare. If 20 apply, only one of them might wind up showing the qualities of a long-term hire.
“But the payoff for such careful recruiting? It’s incalculable. Greater confidence. More versatile motor skills. Introductions to new friends. Less risk of burnout and overuse injuries. Exposure to a pastime they might just enjoy for the rest of their lives. Those are only a few of the rewards awaiting kids who play several sports instead of just one.”
RevSports is hosting three separate four-day Sports Extravaganza Camps at Eden Prairie’s Homeward Hills Park this August! Visit RevSports.org to enroll children between the ages of 6 and 12, or learn how you can incorporate Coach John’s multitalented team into your own community program. You can also visit EdenPrairie.RevSports.org to see all the upcoming programs RevSports is offering in our fair city.