athena1277 Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 I've looked into sports for dd(6) and it can be quite expensive when you are on a tight budget. What are some of the less expensive sports to try? What do you usually pay for them? (If you don't mind my asking about $$) Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheryl in NM Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 I think soccer is around $45, but you still have to buy gear. We've participated in baseball for $75, but still had to buy shoes, bat, glove, balls. Football is $250 for YAFL and you are forced to participate in the fundraiser, you can buy out or sell. In NM homeschooled children can participate in 1 extra curricular activity with the school district. That would be teh cheapest alternative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mabeline Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 I have found swimming to be fairly inexpensive and fun. Our city offers lessons all year but I only take my son every other month or so. It costs us $37 for a 4 week period of clases twice a week. On the alternate months we go in and swim on free time it costs about the same except all three of us get to swim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracey in TX Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 track/cross country Soccer is inexpensive if you play rec and can get used cleats. Our rec program is $75/season. Avoid goal keeper if you're concerned about cost. Swimming is also relatively inexpensive, provided you don't go competitive route. Tennis was also reasonably inexpensive ($40/mo). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 Y programs tend to be less expensive. DS did YMCA tee-ball for two years. I forget the cost he is just finishing with Upward basketball. I think it was 65.00, but that gets uniform, and practice t-shirt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 My dd does ballet which is ultra expensive. However, some ideas: YMCA. They have soccer, T-ball, and basketball. We did basketball 5 years ago with my oldest. I remember it being very cheap. My local community center has an indoor pool. In the summer, they offer swim lessons to children 6 and over for free. I didn't even know about this. A friend of mine told that's how she took care of lessons for all her kids. The Y, county rec centers and our community center, as well as all the local sports leagues offer scholarships based on need. So, if your income is low enough your child may be able to do a lot. I know the swim league gives a swim suit, goggles, and team shirt to all scholarship swimmers (I'm a manager in the league) so you don't need to buy anything. I don't know the fees for Upward Basketball and Upward soccer, but I've heard excellent things about these programs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snickelfritz Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 Our city rec department is the cheapest alternative for every sport. They offer dance, gymnastics, soccer, football, tennis, swimming, etc... The YMCA is also inexpensive and they offer many non-competitive leagues. They go 1 time a week and practice the first half and scrimmage the last half. Upward sports are inexpensive. Our area has football, cheerleading, basketball, and soccer. Most private sports are fairly inexpensive at the young level, where they only need to go 1 time a week. We do dance and gymnastics at private places and basically pay $50 per month per student for 1 hr a week, give or take. Gymnastics is actually the cheaper of the two. No shoes and no recital fees or costumes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruthie Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 I second Upward. But it is all relative. Cheap means different things to people. I consider Upward cheap, but it is still $80 for bball, then I buys shoes, my one son needs sports glasses and then there is the gas to go back and forth each weekend. The cheapest would be to start your own sports group among some kids. Ruthie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracey in TX Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 We do dance and gymnastics at private places and basically pay $50 per month per student for 1 hr a week, give or take. Gymnastics is actually the cheaper of the two. No shoes and no recital fees or costumes. Dance and gymnastics are typically comparable in the beginning. If they progress to team/troupe, gymnastics is drastically more expensive. $50 for one day/wk is pretty reasonable. Next year we expect to pay $7,000 for each girl, plus travel expenses. That is double this year's costs. Soccer isn't cheap, but it's substantially less expensive--even at the competitive levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Sword fighting :D You can buy foam weapons from the Reject Shop or other such places. You might want an adult refereeing though! Over here, the kiddies over age 4 can participate in the boffer tournaments in the local SCA group. It's all preparation so they can beat people up with rattan sticks when they are big like Mum and Dad ;) Rosie- who has fond memories of 9 yo Peregrine patiently defending himself from a duel weapon attack from 3 year old Rose :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 We did a round of Upward soccer, which was about $55 plus maybe $12 for a jersey, magnet, water bottle. We also have softball/baseball/tee ball offered by the county, which is about $60. You have to buy gear but that can be re-used for several years. Cleats are even optional for the youngest girls. Gymnastics is not cheap, IME. :001_huh: We pay $45/month for one hour a week, whereas Upward and community sports cost that much for several months of activity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Community sports in our town don't cost much...in the beginning. In a couple of years they all cost more and demand more time. Look at the costs down the road when you start. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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