Parents Are Off Limits

When Jake got accepted to play for Bay to Bay Volleyball Club, we received the mandatory rules and regulations. Being our first time with this club, all the information was new news to us. Certain clubs have certain way of doing things. And so did Bay to Bay.

For the first 2 weeks of practice, they allowed parents and other kibitzers to watch team practices inside the gym. Over the course of 4 practice sessions, there were a few who stayed on to watch. For the old-timers, I guess they were used to how things operated and didn't bother to see how practices ran. For us new to this club, the wife and I wanted to check out how they conducted their practices.

Practices were at Harker's facility at their Bedftord campus. The gym was quite old, and the smell was dry and musty. The scent of years of sweat lingered in the air, and it seemed like air never circulated within. For us who watched on the sidelines, we had to bear with it. Sometimes, you can only go so far.

After the 2-day League Qualifiers last weekend, all practices would now be off-limits to anyone. Well, no one would be allowed to sit inside the gym to watch. If you do want to, you can still do so by standing behind the door leading to the gym, and watching from there. Definitely, not the most convenience. You're better off not watching at all. I didn't have a problem with that. My only concern was what in the world would I be doing for 2 hours while Jake was at practice.

From Fremont, the Harker facility was a good 21 miles or so. Driving back and forth wasn't necessarily efficient and cost-effective, especially on vehicle that consumes 20 miles to a gallon. Instead of watching a movie, doing any window-shopping, or even hanging out at a nearby coffee shop or something, I chose to sleep in the car.

Yes, I slept in the car !!! I parked under a shade, rolled down the windows enough to get a cross-breeze, locked the car, turn on the radio, and slept. Of course, I was half asleep, and tried to be wary of my surroundings. I didn't want to be caught by surprise, if you know what I mean. I also made sure I set the alarm on my phone to go off at least 15 minutes before the end of practice. And yes, I survived this first experience.

At 7:25pm or so, I got off the car, and headed to the gym to pick up Jake as soon as he was done. I guess this would be my new routine goingforward. I can get used to this.

Would it be too much if I didn't get off the car to get him, and, instead, have him go directly to the car after practice? I don't think it's a bad idea....