Youth Sports Parent Resources

When do rosters goes out?/ How do I know what team I am on?
Rosters will go out no later than 10 days before the start of practices. You will receive an email from Mountain Recreation with a team assignment and practice time. (Note: youth hockey is not broken up into teams, but parents will still get a welcome email with all information.)

When will I hear from my coach?
You should hear from your coach the week before practices start, after rosters go out. If you do not, still please come to your assigned practice time and location.

Can I make practice time requests?
Practice time preferences (earlier/later) can be made on registration, but are not guaranteed and are based on coach availability.

Can I make teammate requests?/Can we have the same team as last session/year?
We do not guarantee any parent requests for specific coaches or teams. This enables more balanced teams, your child to make new friends and learn from different coaching styles, and you to build community with other parents.

Can I switch teams after team assignments go out?
We do our best to not move players after team assignments go out in order to keep teams balanced and even in roster size and minimize potential roster confusion with coaches.

When will game schedules come out?
Game schedules will come out no later than 5 days before games start (during the second week of practice). Game schedules will be posted online.

Where are game played?
Games rotate between Gypsum, Eagle, and Edwards.

How do I know where my field is?
Check out these helpful field guides for Edwards, Eagle, and Gypsum.

When does my child get a jersey?
Players will receive a jersey prior to the start of the first game. Jerseys for late registrations may a week later or not the exact requested size.

What equipment does my child need?

• Baseball/Softball/T-Ball: Glove and athletic shoes
• Basketball: Athletic shoes
• Hockey: All equipment on this diagram
• Flag Football: Athletic shoes
• Lacrosse: All equipment on this diagram (5-6yo do not need pads)
• Soccer: Athletic shoes, shin guards for 9-11yo
• Volleyball: Athletic shoes

Do you have equipment for rent?
We have lacrosse and hockey padding available for rent in Eagle and Edwards. Hockey players still need to have their own skates and stick.

How are teams put together?
Rosters are put together with care, but randomly by evenly distributing player ages, sizes, and skill levels. We do our best to keep all teams balanced.

How will we know if practices or games are cancelled?
We will utilize an SMS alert system (coming from the number [877] 224-9813) to inform the primary parent on registration of any cancellations. Games will be cancelled at the discretion of Mountain Recreation, and will be done no later than an hour before the scheduled start of the game. Practice cancellation are at the discretion of coaches. If there are unsafe practice conditions (lightning, low air quality), coaches will be advised to cancel practice. Refunds will not be given for game cancellations.

Can my child play up or down a division?
Registration is based on age at the start of the program. There is a small window where parents may register a child up a division at their discretion, but not down a division. Please contact us about registering up, as it requires a staff override.

Why are your leagues based on age instead of school grade?
We utilize leagues based on age do be able to have the best developmentally appropriate rules and skill range for each age group. A two-year age range for each league allows closer skill sets, which allows for more competitive play, and consequently, better learning. Age-based registration is also used in club sports. Because of the variation in each national club organization’s cut off (some use January 1, some follow the start of the season, some follow school start cut-off), we wanted to have a consistent cutoff for every sport that was easy for parents to remember, so we go off the participant’s age at the start of the program.

We want to encourage all parents to consider investing in youth through sports. We know with family, job, and extra-curricular commitments it can be hard to dedicate time to coaching, but without volunteer coaches, our programs would not be successful. Here are just a few reasons to consider coaching:

• It’s fun
• It’s rewarding
• You are investing in the next generation
• You get to pass on love for the game
• You get to be a role model
• You get to facilitate team camaraderie
• You ensure everyone gets to participate
• You help keep our league fees affordable

Sports are more than just playing a game. The skills kids develop while learning a new sport and are valuable if they do not continue in sports. The lessons learned through sports are things that will allow them to be strong, successful people their entire lives.

In all likelihood, the kids in our programs will not become professional athletes, and probably not even collegiate athletes. However, they can become engaged community members with an understanding of what it means to be a good teammate, how to be resilient, and how to work well with others due to the tools and confidence they are getting from youth sports programs at a young age.

Please consider giving kids the tools they need to live more fulfilled lives by helping coach sports!

Still on the fence?
Check out our coaching resource page to build your confidence!

In our youth sports programs, everyone involved falls into one of four roles: Players, Coaches, Officials, & Spectators.

We encourage parents and guardians to “know their role,” to ensure everyone gets the most out of our programs. No game is important enough to warrant the abuse of officials, coaches, or participants. Please remember that these games are not professional sporting events. The officials and coaches are doing the best they can, just like the players. Do note that there may also be some amended rules for our youth leagues that differ than middle school and high school sports. Familiarizing yourself with our rules and these differences will help you know what to expect.

This “Circle of Criticism” from Upward Sports illustrates how quickly not knowing your role can negatively influence children participating in youth sports. This circle can also start with a parent’s negative response, not just a coach!

In summary, we want to let

• the players play
• the coaches coach
• the officials officiate
• and the spectators spectate.

As a parent/guardian, we know your role in youth development is crucial. We want our programs to develop your child beyond just sports skills, so we want to provide talking points/questions for the ride home.

What are your core values?

Courage
We believe that every human has the ability to trust themselves to test their limits. Courage is an essential ingredient in personal growth. It’s what propels us to reach new milestones.

Joy
We believe the quest for true happiness has far more value than money, success, and achievement. Joy is healthy and is contagious!

Community
We believe there is strength in bringing people together that cannot be matched individually.

Learning
We believe freedom comes from lifelong learning and personal development. We are thankful to create experiences that make our community better than yesterday, where lifelong goals are achieved, and dreams are born.

Excellence
We believe that we have been entrusted with our community’s most prized possessions – their health, their families, and their tax dollars. We will always meet our community’s needs in an efficient, engaging, effective, and transparent manner.

How can I incorporate these core values?

Courage

Sample Before Practice Reminder:
Our core value this week is Courage. Courage means that every human has the ability to trust themselves to test their limits. Courage is an essential ingredient in personal growth. It’s what propels us to reach goals and try new things. For this first week of practice, you might need a lot of courage. It can be intimidating to try a new sport or meet new friends!

Sample After Practice Questions:

• • What did you do today that was courageous? How did it make you feel?
  • When was the last time you tried something new? What made you want to try it?
  • Fear makes it hard to be courageous. When you are afraid of something, what can you do to help you be courageous?

Community

Sample Before Practice Reminder:
Our core value this week is Community. There is strength in bringing people together that cannot be matched individually. A sports team is one example of a community! Although each person is unique and uniquely contributes, community happens when people are unified for a common goal.

Sample After Practice Questions:

• • What are some goals we want to accomplish as a team? Is there anything you may have to give up personally to accomplish these goals?
  • Were there any times in practice it was hard to work together? How did we work through those?
  • Where are places outside of sports that you feel community the most? Is there anyone you can invite into your communities?

Learning

Sample Before Practice Reminder:
Our core value this week is Learning. We want to make ourselves and those around us better than we found them. Learning is something we do our whole lives and how we can achieve our dreams.

Sample After Practice Questions:

• • What is something you have learned so far this season?
  • What is something you want to be better at by the end of the season?
  • What are things you like to learn about?

Excellence

Sample Before Practice Reminder:
Our core value this week is Excellence. Excellence is doing things to the best of our ability and holding ourselves and others to high standards. Excellence should not be mistaken for perfection, as we will always make mistakes. Most importantly, achieving excellence takes effort.

Sample After Practice Questions:

• • What are you proud of that you did today?
  • What is something we are doing better now as a team than we were at the start of the season?
  • When were you tempted to cut a corner and not do something as best you could? How can we encourage each other to always do our best?

Joy

Sample Before Practice Reminder:
Our core value this week is Joy. Joy is different than happiness because joy is a choice we make regardless of circumstances. Choosing joy is more valuable than money, success, and achievement, because pursuing happiness will never satisfy you. Joy is healthy and is contagious!

Sample After Practice Questions:

• • What is something difficult that has happened this season? How can we still choose joy in difficult circumstances like this?
  • Who is someone you think is joyful? What do they do that inspires you?

Parent Code of Conduct

Refund Request Form

Youth Sports Coaching Resources

Youth Sports Game Schedules

Youth Sports League Rules