VolleyParents

VolleyParents are the backbone of the sport. They don’t get nearly the recognition they deserve, at least for the good reasons. They’re the ones who hustle the bleary-eyed athlete into the car at 5am and drive safely to the gym. They’re the ones who do the numerous water-bottle-filling runs, who shag stray balls that always go three courts over, who run to the car to search for the stray kneepad or sock. They come armed with their coffee mugs, sport chairs and iPads/books/newspapers to fill the warm-up time.

“I love this!” one mom tells me. “The first tournament of the year is so exciting!”

“You don’t mind getting up early in the cold, spending your day in a gym?” I ask.

“Well, those aren’t that fun,” she responded with a laugh. “But just watching the girls get out there and play and have a good time doing it, I love it.”

The VolleyDads have a soft spot in my heart because I have one, with my mom being the coach. The VolleyDads on the first day of the Badger Power League in the Dells are much like my dad. Dressed in team gear, shouting encouragement like “nice and easy girls!” and “you can do it!” I also love watching the VolleyDads, especially during tight matches. By watching two from the Madison area, you would swear they controlled the ball by their body movements, sucking their breath in at a tight serve, jumping at a joust ball, leaning left and right to help will the ball over the net.

“I can’t take this,” said one of them, after a close second set.

“It’s January 14,” I told him.

“Yeah, I know. It’s going to be a long year,” he said, shaking his head and laughing.

I talked with some parents and asked them why they liked being volleyball parents.

“It’s truly a team sport,” said a VolleyMom named Janet from the Appleton area. “In basketball or softball or track, one person can take over game if they’re good enough. You can’t do it all by yourself in volleyball. And I love that. Teamwork and figuring out how to work together is so important for these girls.”

“I wasn’t a big fan of my daughter playing basketball,” a VolleyDad named Jim from the Milwaukee area told me. “It’s my little girl and watching her get pushed around and elbowed under the hoop, I didn’t like that too much. I didn’t tell her that, but when she decided to play volleyball, I like that much better. Yeah, she’s still getting a ball hit at her, I don’t know, it just seems like a better fit for her. More civilized or something. More girly, which is perfect for her.”

So, armed with their video cameras, their digital cameras, their phones to text results, their knitting and Sudoku books, their walking shoes to do laps between matches, let’s take some time to send a little love to the VolleyParents. Players, make sure to thank them for all they do for you. Even if you don’t appreciate it now, in 10-15 years you’ll look back and go “wow, why did you do that for me?”

Janet’s answer sums it up nicely.

“I do it because she loves it,” indicating her daughter who is stretching on the court, laughing with her teammates. “As a parent, you want to see your kids happy, and playing volleyball makes her happy.”

- Jen