vs. Individual Sports
I have always been more interested in individual sports than team sports, so now you know the slant of this post. Even when I have been part of a team, there was a strong one-on-one component.
I grew up in a neighborhood with a ton of kids. There was the family with 12 kids right across the street, 2 kids next door to them, 3 kids in my household, 2 more next door and one more around the corner. We had the best neighborhood teams in history. Do neighborhoods have teams these days?
We could play baseball in the vacant lot all day long, going home only when our mothers called out for us to come to dinner. Football, the Maple Street Reds. We played any other team that wanted a game. 2 of the guys across the street and I even invented a football game for 3 players. One guy, me, would switch sides. It was entirely passing. The offense needed 2 people, one to pass, the other to catch. The defender played defensive back. No pass rush allowed. 3 completions equaled and first down. It was just fun playing and making a good play. As the switch player, I obviously didn’t care who won, but I didn’t want an error to be the reason for a loss. We played on an icy, frozen, snow-packed street and came home soaked. It was great.
In contrast, my parents had me in Little League. I’m sure many people have great memories of their Little League experience, but I never took to it. I remember showing up for my first game. The coach asked if I could pitch. I didn’t know and I told him so. He had me try and I threw a couple strikes. He asked for a bit more velocity. I threw the ball fast, but no where near the catcher. I became an outfielder. I didn’t know enough to ask him if I could warm up a bit first and he didn’t suggest it.
I don’t think we had Pop Warner Football where I grew up, but we had a flag football league for us little guys. It was okay, but I never warmed up to it. I think the problem was the idea of a coach. We had this guy telling us who could play and which position to play and yelling at us if we goofed up or goofed around or had some fun. I understand that organized sports, just like organized businesses, organized religions and organized governments, need to have leaders, but it was much more fun when we, the players got to decide stuff. Coaching style might make a difference.
The first individual sport I discovered was swimming. Now, where I grew up, we didn’t have swim teams. We had the municipal pool that was open in the summer and that was it. I spent many summers just having fun at the pool, playing our special brand of tag that didn’t violate the pool rules.
The town I came from was big into high school wrestling, winning the State title all 3 years of my high school career and 5 consecutive conference titles. It was a team sport, but actually an individual sport, too. One-on-one doesn’t get more individual. Yes, there was a coach. The coach was also our PE coach, so I got a good dose of wrestling in PE.
My senior year, I was on the golf team. Even made varsity. I really wasn’t very good, but it was a great way to kill an afternoon with friends in a park-like setting. It was pretty laid back.
I have some problems with football as it is played today. We played offense and defense and never came out unless Mom called out. Now, you have to play offense or defense or special teams. Very few get to play both ways. Play, not watch. At least baseball players play both ways, but they still have the benchwarmers. What’s the point of being on the team if you never get play?
I had always wanted to learn a martial art. There was nothing available were I lived, and I really didn’t look at it as a sport, but it fit the model of individual sport. If I didn’t actually do the techniques, I wasn’t part of the “team”.
That’s what’s so great about individual sports. If you play, you play. You aren’t the waterboy or the bench warmer. No one can play for you. No one can pinch hit for you. You are doing it or your are not.
Music is kind of the same. I was in school band since 5th grade, playing a baritone. I enjoyed the rehearsals and performances, but was not much of a practicer. It was just fun. I did not care much for marching band. In the small schools I went to, if you were in concert band, you were in marching band. Not my cup of tea. I guess the problem begins with the name “marching” band. On the other hand, I had great memories of trips we took for the marching band. One was Band Day in Canyon City, CO, home of the Colorado State Penitentiary. Our route took us right past the warden’s house. We were setting up just around the corner when we heard loud booms. With all the bands and spectators and excitement, it seemed to be a great opportunity to escape prison. At least a few of the inmates thought so. Judging by the red stain on the prison wall above the warden’s roof visible as we marched past, they were wrong.
If karate required more than one participant, I would not have done much of anything the past 37 years. It’s true that there are parts of karate that require more than one person, sparring for example. Basics, kata, special techniques, double and triple counters, combination sets, etc. can all be done alone. It helps to have a Sensei to correct you and help you improve, but you can still workout, perhaps a friend or mate has a good eye and enough understanding that they can point out areas for improvement. And these days, video is so easy to come by. All you need is a phone and tripod to record and evaluate your workouts. You can be your own critic.
Perhaps team sports are more about the social interaction than winning. Just don’t tell the coach 😉
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