Of all the talk about having a 6-under state tournament, it's simply making me wish that my 6-58lb boy would have the desire to keep going. We have been to 12 tournaments this year and he typically does well. The last couple of tournaments every time he comes up against a solid kid, he starts crying and you all know what that leads to. An angry dad, mom, and young wrestler. Not a good mix for a 2-3 hour trip home! I have come to realize (with help from my wife of coarse) that maybe my son is wrestling for me now, instead of for himself, like he did earlier in the season. So now, we are done, and its killing me!!!
My point... Enjoy the time you have watching your kid wrestle, it could be over before you know it. I have asked several kind coach's, dads about what I can do about our situation, and the answear I always get is, HE IS 6 YRS OLD! I have thought long and hard about it, and they are right-thanks!

maybe there right maybe not, how many of these coaches and parents had 4,5,and 6 year old wrestlers at one time probaly alot of them now there saying there to young or it's because there 5 or 6.

some kids just do not want to wrestle yet, i know a 10 year old that started wrestling he was pretty good and quit he just did not want to wrestle and thats it, but you will have some one out there, say he was to young, the season was to long. Why when a kid quits somthing had to be wrong.

Only 12?

How many tournaments have some of you been going to? We started going to tournaments in December and if you go every Saturday that still is only 10 or 12. Do you go to two a week ( Sat. & Sunday) or are there others that you go to. I just don't know when you find time to go to more. We have only taken one week off and I don't think we have gone to more than 12.

Thanks.

We have been to 17 tournaments and have taken Dec 15th and March 1st off. If we go to both 6U States and qualify for 8U State, that will be another 6 tourneys (counting the Classic). If you start hitting the OK tournaments early, it's not hard to get to 12.

Before anyone starts telling me "that's too much," my boys plan out the tournaments for themselves and pick their weekends off.

who really knows what goes through a 6 year olds mind my kid has wrestled tough kids an won,lost and cried an gave up. i think it is all apart of growing up they all mature in so many ways

KMac, your 6 yr olds plan their own schedule and pick their own weekends off?????

24/7

My 6 year old can't pick his own socks! Don't get me started on where his darn shoe is.

Somebody needs to call SRS for that kid.

I hope you are KIDDING!!!

Both of my boys (11 and 7) get the tournament options presented to them about 2 weeks prior to the tournament. They decide for themselves if they want to wrestle the tournament or take the weekend off. There answer usually includes "will so-and-so be there?" because there are certain kids that they like to wrestle. They have chosen to take 2 weekends off and I had to push hard for them to NOT wrestle at Winfield last week.

CJA - Are you serious? Maybe the SRS will frown upon me spending time with my family and doing activities that WE enjoy!

24/7 - Was that really your post? Taking my statement and converting it into a question?

If they want to wrestle, we find somewhere to wrestle. And my 6 year old found out about a tournament called Panhandle Nationals from some other 6 year olds while we were at the Kickoff Classic in Tulsa. He asked me if we could go to it. I found the information on the website at 1:30 Sunday morning after we drove home from Tulsa and emailed the Tournament Director to inquire about a late entry, which was granted. So we spent our Thanksgiving Weekend in Amarillo, TX because he wanted to wrestle.

KMac-The title of this thread is 6U. So I was responding to your comment about a 6u kid making their own schedule and choosing their own weeks off questioning that a 5-6 year old could do that. No, more specifically implying there is no way a 5-6 year old could do that and the parent was scheduling not the kid.

24/7

24/7 So when you go to your 6 year old (if you do) and ask if he wants to wrestle at Derby in 2 weeks or skip that weekend, he can't answer you??? That is how it works in my house and if they want to take the weekend off, then we do. I encourage them to decide for themselves if they want to wrestle. Maybe that is part of the problem with all the posts about burn out.....the kids are told "We're wrestling at Derby tomorrow" and they didn't have any say.
Bottom line......go judge someone else because the way we choose tournaments has worked for us to this point and my kids feel like they have a say in when and where they wrestle.

No what I am saying first you make sure your 6 year old wants to go, then if he does you only let him go to a limited number of tournaments. 5-7 max!!!! Two points here 1-many, many people have who have been through it have tried to warn you and others, that even if they want to go to 12-17 tournaments don't let them they will burn out. Heck my 13 year old wants to stay up until 3am but I don't let him, because I am looking out for his longterm interest, he is only looking at what is fun now. I am not saying you are not trying to do what you think is fun and best for your kid, I am just saying you will very, very likely burn him out. 2-Whatever risk you are taking at burnout is worthless because the kids that are held back just a little and turned loose more at 8 or so will be equal to your 6 year old in wrestling ability by the time they are 9-10 and probably have more hunger to keep going.

I am sure you are a good person, I just think kids should not be making their own schedules, we should be with the input that they want to go. Kids should always have veto power if they do not want to go. Heck my kid would eat candy for every meal if I let them plan their own meals. And in anwer to others who have asked on other posts, no I did not take my son at 5-6 wrestle in national tournaments or go a bunch. He only played one night a week a practice and went to 3 tournaments as a 5 year old and 5 as a 6 year old.

I will always maintain it's your right to raise you child as you wish. Please take into consideration that people who have been through it are just trying to provide some insight that is hard to see when you are in the middle of the forest with a talented 6 year old that wants to go. But I am not judging you. You can do as you wish.

24/7

i agree with kmac, my boy is 5 and is 40 pounds and i told him our last weelend was this saturday in sterling unless he wanted to go to ottawa, i explained to him what ottawa is and he said dad lets go... so i think they can make up there minds maybe not all but some can.

I have said my piece I wish both MKac and nix well. I hope your kids do great!

24/7

I appreciate your feedback, but I guess I'm too stubborn to think that 4-5 tournaments is really WRESTLING. If my boys burn out and don't want to continue wrestling, it will be hard to take because I love it. There will always be other things that they can develop interest in. I don't encourage them to do anything with half effort. We travel for baseball, they play football, and when you mix in wrestling, the seasons just overlap each other. My older boy decided to sit out of baseball last year so that he could attend some wrestling camps and focus on it more. I didn't put up any fight.....he decided it for himself.

Like you said, we all have the best intentions at heart, but we can't all be right all the time either. To each his own!

My oldest did that last year CW. Remember? It was so bad he would pass out right before his matches. We couldn't figure out what his deal was until we sat him down and asked. He told us he didn't want to disappoint us so we pulled him out for the rest of the year and he came back this year strong and ready to go! Mom and Dad though had to remember to comfort him win or lose let him know we are proud of him and stop telling him all the time what he was doing wrong. Sometimes I wish there was a book to tell us how to handle this but there isn't. Tell your little one to hang in there.

nice job nix. I think all the 6 and unders should wrestle at the ottawa tournament. thats an experience they will not forget. win or lose. it might not even be the wrestling that they remember. might be just the time they spend with the other kids and family. but I bet you this they will remember the wrestling to even if its not on the college resume.

Bockman believe me by the time they are 16 they could care less about their 6u state experience, you will still be the one remembering it not them.