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KMball
54 Posts |
 Posted - 05/19/2010 : 15:19:28
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| I've read a lot of great previous posts about what to expect when travelling to Cooperstown as a player and a coach. However, I haven't read a lot about what to expect as a family member. From a "family vacation" perspective, what is the amount of interaction between players and families when they're not playing ball. Also, are there playgrounds or activity areas at CDP for younger siblings that may not be able to sit through all of the games? Thanks in advance for the wealth of great information this group provides! |
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zwndad
170 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2010 : 16:37:28
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| For us, other than a couple of planned events, we only saw our son before and after each game, and that was very brief. We also saw him when we toured the Hall of Fame and when we had a team party one night. However, you can check your son out more often if you want to. |
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Goin Deep
140 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2010 : 21:59:38
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You wont see your child much. After each game, Hall of fame, and the one night the coaches send them home with you mid week if they choose. Not much to do in Cooperstown itself, but you can walk around Cooperstown and see some cool shops. I also recommend Ebbets Field (I think that's right), an old MLB field that is really cool. We just walked right in and took it in. Later that week, the Pirates and Reds played an exhibition there in the middle of the week.
Games are so spread out during the week it is hard to "plan" anything.
There is a burger joint directly across from the entrance of CDP. and we watched the home run derpy Championship from there acrooss the road. Pretty cool.
It is what you make it. |
Edited by - Goin Deep on 05/19/2010 22:24:38 |
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Shut Out
512 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 08:27:24
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| Find a cool house to rent with another familiy or two makes for a nice week. Grill outs at weird times after games was fun for us. |
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gabulldogs
29 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 08:54:59
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| You will not get a chance to see them much is correct. Parents are only allowed in the barracks area to check in and that is it. So after the first game is over which could be real early the team has to eat together and parents are not allowed and then they rest up to get ready for the next game later in the day, then they eat dinner together shower and get ready for lights out which by the way they do take seriously. And yes, there is a day in the middle of the week where they schedule games close to each other to allow for a family day and some go stay the night with the family, but most seem to want to stay with the team. The week flies by and they will have the best time of their lives. As a coach who stayed in the barracks. If there are any questions on must brings and what you can leave out. just let me know. |
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mrbama31
252 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 11:10:43
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| There is a nice lake near by..with beach front. A nice golf course is also down the street. But it really is tough to do much other than BASEBALL due to 2 games everyday. You will get the one day during pool play where you will be done by say 3pm and if youR team plays very well and you get a high seed then you will only have one game Wed at 8pm which is very nice. But be careful not to wear them out that day because its win or go home. Only the top 16 teams play Thursday and then again its win or go home. Thursdays games are very exciting and the crowds can get pretty big for the elite 8 and the semis. We were lucky enough to play in the "ship" and it was a thrill none of us will every forget. |
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SouthSide24
44 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 15:31:49
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Good information...Couple of questions...How many trading pins did you give each player? How many players did you take, i see some teams brought like 15 while
some brought the minimum of 11..Seems tough with 15 players on roster to get playing time?..Games 6 or 7 innings? |
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PCV
27 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 18:42:38
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| Have the families make signs with your teams name on them so that during the opening and closing ceremonies you can show your spirit. The flashier the better. If your child is interested in the pin trading, have one for each team. Also, make sure the team mom has a pin, the pin guy will seek her out. Be prepared, the souvenier bat is pretty cool. You can get one at the park or at the bat company in downtown Cooperstown. They also offer a case for it, which I think is worth every penny. They will ship it to you at home. Our boys took a wiffle ball and bat and I hear that the Viper/Bulldog rivalry continued on the lawn every night. Don't go up there thinking that you will do a lot of stuff, there, simply isn't a lot to do. It is all about BASEBALL!!!!!! And there is a certain song that you won't get out of your head for a month after leaving... Good luck to all the teams going. |
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mrbama31
252 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 21:05:54
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We took the same 11 we played with all year. But we had 6 strong pitchers and 2-3 avg pitchers. Pitching is the key. I also recommend your team spending time practicing the "around the horn". I know..I know it can be a pain in the butt to take up practice time doing it but we invested some time practicing it ...and it paid off as we won it! The boys got to do the victory lap and it was very cool and exciting to start their tournament off that way.
quote:
Originally posted by SouthSide24
Good information...Couple of questions...How many trading pins did you give each player? How many players did you take, i see some teams brought like 15 while
some brought the minimum of 11..Seems tough with 15 players on roster to get playing time?..Games 6 or 7 innings?
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Seam Splitter
48 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2010 : 21:32:14
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I would have 100 pins and encourage the boys to trade them the first two days. They simply dont have very much time after that & alot of teams run out.
We checked our son out good bit as our coach encouraged our boys to go to Doubleday Field, Hall of Fame, and visit the many baseball shops downtown.
To be honest, I went up there last year not expecting to have a Great time as baseball everyday for a week didnt have alot of appeal to me. But once we got there it ended being one of the best vacations our family has ever had. So much so that one of the requirements for our 10 year old was being on a team that was going to C Town. Youll LOVE IT!
quote:
Originally posted by SouthSide24
Good information...Couple of questions...How many trading pins did you give each player? How many players did you take, i see some teams brought like 15 while
some brought the minimum of 11..Seems tough with 15 players on roster to get playing time?..Games 6 or 7 innings?
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DecaturDad
619 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 08:34:31
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We are going in 4 weeks for the 10u week. Each kid will get 100 pins plus 25 or so for the coaches. Although they encourage you to check in Friday evening, we have told the parents to keep the kids until Saturday. That way they get one more night's sleep.
_Seam Splitter, Are you going this year at 10U?
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gabulldogs
29 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 09:31:05
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| Trust me. When they get there they will want to stay in the barracks.They do a lot that night so if you can check them in Friday, its a good night to trade pins and get to know the other teams at the game room and walk the park. Trust me they get their sleep. Lights out at 9 or 10 and they come around and check. Thats when the coaches get together outside the barracks and strategies about the next days games. I don't think one team waited until Saturday to check in. And by the way get there early early or wait till later to do it. The lines are long and the kids start trading there pins in the parking lot waiting to get in. I swear it seems they wanted to do that more than baseball sometimes. We gave each 100 pins a piece and invest in a pin book at the gift shop at the park. They will hold the pins better and they are only $20-25.00 and well worth it. We also took 12 kids and that left 3 beds available so 15 would pretty much pack it full. We also assigned chores for the kids each day(picking up close and wet towels and sweeping the floor every day). The painted floors in the barracks will start to come up and gets on your feet and flip flops |
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in_the_know
985 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 09:38:44
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Amount of time you'll see your kid - varies depending on your team. You can check your son out however much your coach allows. When we went, we actually had two nights where we had our son overnight (the coach basically told the families that there would be no coaches in the barracks on those nights and the kids had to be checked out) and another day where we had him out from about 2pm until 9pm.
As far as entertainment/play areas for the siblings, don't count on little Johnny being able to hit the slide during the games. First, there are no playground areas there, second, when you're inside your field to view the game, you cannot really see outside of your field to keep an eye on siblings. There is a single door opening into each fan section (one up each baseline) and they have solid wood sides all around them. The best you could do would be to stand in/at the doorway and hop back and forth between the game and siblings. But honestly, there really isn't much outside for the siblings to do between games beyond kicking a ball between them.
As far as a family vacation, it will be what you make of it. In our case, we rented a house on a lake and had a couple of boats, fishing, etc. This was great for us and the sibling as we were able to really enjoy the downtime between games, and our player enjoyed the time he got to spend at the lakehouse as well. From the other things to do around Cooperstown, pretty much the small town environment in the downtown area. Quaint shops and restuarants all revolving around (drum roll) Baseball. Of course, the HoF is a must.
Probably the best part of the experience was not having to deal with the pre-game hoopla you do when you're at home. No worries about getting the kid dressed and carted through ATL rush hour to have him there 1+ hrs before game time. You can literally roll up 5 minutes before first pitch and there's your kid, decked out in the red or blue jersey ready to play.
Cooperstown was the second best family vacation we've ever taken, second only to the first Disney trip we took as a family.
One final word of advice, keep a check on when they get the tournament shirts in. Historically, they come in early during the week, and when they do, it's a feedying frenzy. When they're gone, they're gone. Best to put your list of sizes together and share with another family to cover your bets. |
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DecaturDad
619 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 10:13:49
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| One more question: Is it worth bringing folding chairs for the grandparents? Not sure if there is even room at the fields. |
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gabulldogs
29 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 11:01:28
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| Decatur. You can bring them, but they have the plastic chairs already in the seating area. You cannot watch the game outside the fence like you normally do. You are seated down the base line inside the walls. The only place you can sit in bleachers or chairs and see a game is on top of the hill behind the gift shop looking down on a couple lower fields. So the answer is yes you can, but you don't need them. Oh yea you sit in bleachers around field #1, but they only play the final game on that field and opening and closing ceremonies. |
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oldmanmj
191 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 12:55:20
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| KMBALL, to answer your question. There really is not much for the younger siblings to do while your son is playing ball. The last time I was there, no playgrounds. This is geared to the teams playing ball. It is still a great time and lots of baseball. Go down town and enjoy the museum and shops. But don't expect much more than cheering your team on to victory. Your own chairs would be more comfortable. Catch a couple extra games with teams that are leading pool play...they are usually loaded and fun to watch. |
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bbmom2
119 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 14:01:16
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Gabulldogs - picky question for an old mom! ;-) Do the plastic chairs have the backs on them - similar to ATPP? Didn't know if it is worth bringing my stadium chair with the back.
For all those that have been before - what did you take that you didn't need? Chronic overpacker that hopes to cut it down some!
Thank you for all the tidbits - these are great - keep them coming! |
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gasbag
281 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 15:20:04
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| There is a nice train ride for siblings and adults to enjoy. Shopping in town and the museum ( very touristy and expensive ). Not a huge variety of restaurants. There is a nice big lake just beyond town if you wanted to rent a boat and take the kids fishing or boating etc. Other than that, it's pretty boring for siblings as it's all set up around baseball, baseball and more baseball. The players have a riot and lots of fun being away from mom and dad etc. I saw my son for one on one time 1X for the afternoon of touring the museum and the original ballfield in downtown Cooperstown. They have some nice bed and breakfasts and rental houses so plan on making your own entertainment and fun. We did a B&B with just 4 dads and had an absolute RIOT....not sure who enjoyed the experience more....me or my ball player !!!!! |
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DecaturDad
619 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 17:56:05
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| Anyone know if they have handicap parking, or any way for someone with limited modility to get to the feilds? Grandma would like to come, but cn't walk more then a few hundred feet. |
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DoubleD
33 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 18:15:48
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quote:
Originally posted by bbmom2
Do the plastic chairs have the backs on them - similar to ATPP? Didn't know if it is worth bringing my stadium chair with the back.
For all those that have been before - what did you take that you didn't need? Chronic overpacker that hopes to cut it down some!
No need for the stadium chair. The chairs are the white plastic variety. They're stackable and have four legs with backs. You can move them anywhere within the designated parents/fan area.
We went in 2008 and 2009. I'll post a nice piece written by a kid who went a few years ago the covers everything. |
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DoubleD
33 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 18:37:27
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As written by a kid...
CHECK-IN: They give you about five minutes to park your car by your cabin and unload all of your stuff. It’s pretty chaotic and there are tournament people walking around threatening all the parents if they don’t move their cars out of the way. Decide what you need help with and let your mom or dad do that and you do the rest. My suggestion is to get help making up your bunk. I used a fitted sheet and sleeping bag and brought my own pillow and pillow case. My mom did this for me while I unpacked my clothes and stuff into the footlocker. You can put a lock on the footlocker, but the lock I brought ended up being too fat to fit through the hook on the footlocker’s lock. If you’re going to get a lock, get one with a combination so you don’t have to worry about carrying a key around with you. Memorize the combination and practice using it. Also, get a skinny lock so you can be sure it fits through the hook on the footlocker lock. Parents have to be out at 11:00am on Saturday. Meetings, pictures and more meetings take up the whole day leading up to opening ceremonies.
FOOD: The food is not that good. Think school cafeteria, hospital quality. Be prepared to eat it, however. Doubleday Café in Historic Cooperstown is awesome! Get your parents to check you out as much as possible and eat there for breakfast, lunch and dinner! While you’re in the park you can get food at the concession stands. The concession stand food is pretty good & reasonably priced. Bring snacks like Powerbars or other energy bars for between games or in the barracks at night (although technically I don’t think you’re supposed to). Someone got us a disposable Styrofoam cooler for the dorm and we kept it full of bottled waters. We went through 2 cases of bottled water per day!
SHOWERING: Bring a swimsuit to wear while you are showering, unless you don’t mind being naked in front of fifty or so complete strangers. Make sure to cut out the mesh inside as it makes getting the soap off alot easier and remember, it is a group shower. Also bring flip-flops that can get wet. You’re not going to want your bare feet touching the shower floor, trust me. Here’s what else you’ll need for the shower: a mesh bag with a draw string for carrying your toiletries. This is so you can hang it on the shower head while you’re in there. Also, if it’s mesh it won’t collect water and get the cabin all gross. Bring liquid soap (this is to avoid your bar of soap dropping onto the same gross floor you don’t want your bare feet to touch), shampoo, toothbrush in a case and toothpaste (most kids brush their teeth in the shower), and deodorant (if you haven’t started using it yet, now is a good time…the cabins are not air-conditioned). It is a good idea to have a can of jock-itch spray, Gold Bond, baby powder or corn starch with you. What’s jock-itch you ask? If you get it, you’ll know [see cut the mesh from inside your swimsuit above] Fast Actin’ Tinactin will be your best friend. Bring at least two bath towels, one to use while one is in the laundry.
PACKING FOR THE TRIP: Bring lots of shorts and tee-shirts, especially stuff with your team name on it, athletic shoes, socks, underwear, swimsuit, sweatpants, sweatshirt, jacket, flip-flops. Bring all the things I mentioned earlier, toiletries, bed linens, towels, a lock, pins and a towel with your name on it to pin your trades on (I carried all my pins and the towel around in a big zip lock bag so I wouldn’t drop any), hand-held electronic stuff that you like, a book, playing cards, and DON’T FORGET YOUR BASEBALL EQUIPMENT, CLEATS, SLIDING PANTS, CUP, AND BELT. ALSO, REMEMBER TO PUT YOUR NAME IN OR ON EVERYTHING YOU BRING! My mom marked my clothes, towels, equipment, and anything else I took with me. She also left me with a black permanent marker so I could put my name in the stuff that was issued to me: jerseys and cap. Don’t count on getting your regular jersey number. I ended up getting mine but you get what you get. We didn’t mark the socks, but our coaches tied the pairs together as we stuck them in the laundry bags so we wouldn’t lose any to the sock-eating laundry monster that lurks in washing machines.
OPENING CEREMONIES AND SKILLS COMPETITIONS: Opening ceremonies take place on the field in the big stadium where the championship game is played. When I played in the tournament that was the only game played in the stadium, but the Around-the-Horn Competition is held there too. Opening ceremonies are long. Every team is introduced and marches into the stadium with their banner. I can’t remember everything they did, but you will sing the National Anthem and hear about the history of Cooperstown Dreams Park and the tournament. After the opening ceremonies they have the skills competitions. All the competitions, Around-the-Horn, Golden Arm, Homerun Derby, and the Home to Home Base Running Race are held at the same time on different fields. Like I said earlier, Around-the-Horn is held in the big stadium. That’s the one I was in. I was the catcher. Here’s my advice. No matter how much you practice, you’re going to be a little nervous because there are thousands of people in the stands and all the other players watching you when you do it, but it’s really fun and exciting! Just keep focused and concentrate on catching the ball, come back to the base (target in the outfield) if you have to, stay relaxed and make a good accurate throw. Don’t rush and don’t worry so much about your time. The team that ends up winning is the one that does the drill the cleanest. Stay calm and think about this. I can’t remember which team ended up winning the Around-the-Horn when I was there. I can’t remember my team’s time, I can’t even remember if anyone dropped the ball or made a great throw. I remember what it felt like to be there and how fun it was to compete.
ENTERTAINMENT OFF THE FIELD: Remember you’re there to play baseball. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t have a lot of free time to run around. There is an arcade and a snack bar (I think), but I really don’t remember spending much time there. Our coaches didn’t want us to play video games until we were done with games for the day. If you’re not playing a game, chances are you’ll be at the batting cages, throwing with a teammate, finding a place to take grounders, or pin trading. When we had free time we went to Historic Cooperstown. There’s Double Day Field, where they say Abner Doubleday, the father of baseball, first played. There’s the Major League Hall of Fame Museum, a wax museum, and tons of shops, and places to eat. If you love baseball as much as I do, you will be in heaven. If you wear your Dreams Park Jersey to the MLB Hall of Fame Museum and you go with your whole team, you get in free. I went to the museum twice. Once with my whole team and once with my family. If you’ve saved up any money of your own, Cooperstown is a great place to spend it. I wanted to buy a Yogi Bera autographed Jersey, but it was $85.00 and my parents wouldn’t let me. Instead I bought a Brooklyn Dodgers cap and a bunch of pins.
CLOSING CEREMONIES: I’m not going to tell you anything about Closing Ceremonies except for this. Shake hands and say thank you when you get your ring. Even if your ring is just a little bit too big for you, give it to your mom or dad to put in a safe place until you get back home. Mine was too big and even though my mom offered to hold it for me I wore it. I don’t’ know when it slipped off my finger, but I looked down at my hand while riding up the escalator at Hartsfield Airport and realized I had lost my ring. I was in shock. I couldn’t even speak and I started to cry. My dad and I ran back to the gate and they let us on the plane to look for it. We searched the bathroom and even looked through the trash can and couldn’t find it. We reported it to lost and found at the airport, but it never turned up. When we got to our house, my mom called the Dreams Park and it turns out I wasn’t the first kid to have this happen and I’m sure I won’t be the last. The Dreams Park people sent me a new one for $85.00 (coincidentally the same cost as the Yogi Bera Jersey), but I still felt terrible for days. Cooperstown is such a fun week. I’d hate for any one of you to feel as bad as I did when I lost my ring so be smart about it.
I hope my tips are helpful. Have fun and GOOD LUCK!
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biged
198 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2010 : 21:18:06
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went twice 10u and 12u. 10u as a coach and 12u as a parent. Much more fun as a parent. Got some sleep. Had an adult beverage or 2....... My son enjoyed the 12u experience more then the 10u (this is another topic). Sit back and enjoy. Ga. teams seem to usually do well, so most parents will have something to cheer about. A lot of little league teams from the north who haven't play near the ball we have (another subject).
We stopped in with another family from our team on the way up and visited Niagra Falls. Now that was cool. Not too far out of the way. Go to the Canadian side, much better view. Get to visit another country and play with their currency (another topic that Europe is trying to figure)
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SouthSide24
44 Posts |
Posted - 05/22/2010 : 00:27:02
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Keep the posts coming, this is great!! What about uniforms..Our team mom made us fill out how much my son weighs and height, but that can be misleading for some, i think for sizes..
Wher in the heck do kids put their clothes in, locker i assume? Due they update seeding as games progress, so u get an idea where you stand for elimination round?
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in_the_know
985 Posts |
Posted - 05/23/2010 : 00:02:14
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Southside,
The boys get a red and blue jersey. Numbers range between 1 & 15. Up to the coach on how to hand them out. We lined the boys up smallest to tallest and the smallest got #1 on up. They tend to oversize, so there were no problems. you bring your own pants (plain white), belt, jock/cup. They provide socks too. Each kid gets a rubbermaid type of chest with a lid that can lock (you have to bring your own lock).
They do update games and standings as each game completes, so you can always see where you stack up. |
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rjrousseau1
81 Posts |
Posted - 05/23/2010 : 09:27:03
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quote:
Originally posted by SouthSide24
Keep the posts coming, this is great!! What about uniforms..Our team mom made us fill out how much my son weighs and height, but that can be misleading for some, i think for sizes..
Wher in the heck do kids put their clothes in, locker i assume? Due they update seeding as games progress, so u get an idea where you stand for elimination round?
The pool standings are updated very quickly, but can change dramatically depending on if teams opened with 3 cupcakes and finish with 2-3 stronger teams. You will see some of each, weak allstar type teams and some of the best teams in the country. There are always a few of the top teams each week, some weeks get loaded up with more depth though (I think the weeks around July 4 seem to have more depth). But this is not your typical bracket, take a look at it from previous years, being in the top 32 helps, top 12 even better as it decreases the # of bracket games, but it also means you open up with stronger teams. |
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gabulldogs
29 Posts |
Posted - 05/23/2010 : 10:04:44
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| Another, but very important item to bring is extension cords and a small clip on electric fan for the bunks. They sell for about $10 at Walmart. At night depending on when you go stay cool, but in the day they heat up. With no air conditioning in them the kids can stay cool. I also brought a box fan to keep by the door to keep the room circulating. It gets musty and smelly with the wet towels and dirty cloths. Portable walkie talkies are good as well. Most cell phones will not work in the area so these help coaches no where each are when they split up with kids. Parents remember to use a head piece if you do get some cell service. Its the law in N.Y and they do look for it. Also have each family buy a case of water to keep with the team. You go through a lot and this helps out. We kept ours under our bunks and brought them out daily to stock the coolers. They sell ice at the park and we would pick it up when getting the laundry each morning. Just a few small things that people forget but are very important. |
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Cooperstown Family Experience
