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Sportrock Youth Teams Covid-19 Safety Procedures

The 2020-21 Sportrock Youth Teams will start on September 14th. We have successfully safely run our Summer Session and Summer Camps, requiring masks and encouraging physical distancing, along with other safety measures. We have learned a lot and are looking forward to applying those lessons to the fall season.

The Sportrock Performance Institute is ready for youth team practices. This season the practice logistics have been adjusted as we try and spread the groups out to mitigate crowding. The teams will be divided into smaller groups and assigned A and B days for practices.

The practice schedule for the S2 | Advanced Team are as follows:

A Days
Monday and Wednesday • 4pm – 6pm

B Days
Tuesday and Wednesday • 4pm – 6pm

The practice schedule for the S3 | Competitive Team are as follows:

A Days
Monday and Wednesday, 4 – 7pm
Saturday, Practice Hours TBD

B Days
Tuesday and Wednesday, 4  – 7pm
Saturday, Practice Hours TBD

 

***Please Note: Currently, we are not running Rec Team please check back for updates.

WHAT IS YOUTH TEAM ALL ABOUT?

TEAM LEVELS
MEMBERSHIP DETAILS
OUR COACHES
FAQ

Sportrock wants to introduce children to the world of climbing in all its forms.  Whether that’s simply as a fun and engaging activity, through competition, or in outdoor rock climbing.  The purpose of Sportrock’s growing Youth Team is to give youth an opportunity to develop as climbers based on their individual interests and needs – eventually growing them into lifelong climbers and athletes.  

Sportrock’s Youth Team will:

  • Provide a safe, positive environment for youth to explore the multi-faceted world of climbing;
  • Engage in evidence-based teaching at every level of youth development;
  • Transition youth at their pace through multiple layers of development, up to and including the elite-level of competition and outdoor rock climbing.

 

As a result, Sportrock is committed to taking concrete actions including: 

  • Exercising a phased alignment with the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee’s (USOPC) American Development Model (ADM) in order to create a program and structure based around the unique needs of different age and development levels.
  • Training youth coaches at every level of development through a partnership with Coach Taylor Reed at The Beta Angel Project.
  • Investing in resources for development up to and including an elite level of climbing.  [More information to be announced shortly!]

TEAM LEVELS

The Sportrock Youth Team Pipeline consists of four steps; step one consists of our Recreational Team and Breakfast Club, step two is our Advanced Team, step three is our Competitive Team, and step four is our Professional Development Team. The Pipeline is structured to develop skills at each step that prepare climbers to move from one to the next.

S1: RECREATIONAL TEAM
The Recreational Team is designed to familiarize new climbers with foundational skills in a fun supportive environment.
*Suggested Age Range:
8-12 years old
Practice Times:
Alexandria: Saturdays 9am-11am
Sterling: Saturdays 10am-12pm
SIGN UP
S2: ADVANCED TEAM
The Advanced Team is an introduction to training in a structured team environment focused on skill building and developing technical climbing ability.
*Suggested Age Range:
10-16 years old
Practice Times:
Mondays, Wednesdays, & Fridays
6:30pm – 8:30pm
SIGN UP
S3: COMPETITIVE TEAM
On the Competitive Team athletes work to increase their focus on training while deepening their skill development. They focus on more challenging situations and are introduced to competition climbing.
*Suggested Age Range:
13-19 years old
Practice Times:
Mondays, Wednesdays, & Fridays
5:30pm – 8:30pm
SIGN UP
S4: Professional Development Team
Sportrock’s S4 Team is the newest edition to Sportrock’s youth programming.  It’s based on the 4th stage of the American Development Model, which the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) recommends as the stage when an athlete strives for high performance.
*Suggested Age:
14+ years old
Practice Times:
Alexandria Only:
Mondays, Wednesdays, & Thursdays
5:30pm – 9pm, Saturdays 9am-1pm
LEARN MORE

YOUTH TEAM MEMBERSHIP DETAILS

The Youth Team season is 10 months long and runs from September to June. S1: Recreational Team has an additional summer session. Previous members of S2: Advanced, S3: Competitive, and S4: Professional Development Teams are also invited to participate in Ramp Up, an 8  week summer training camp. 

Team dues are billed monthly in conjunction with a Sportrock membership. Billing for team dues will cease for the season on July 1st, however membership charges will continue unless the membership is frozen or cancelled. Membership change requests must be made via email ([email protected]) or online before the 1st of the month. Youth Team members receive a special single rate of $60 a month or can be added to a family plan. Team participation comes with standard Sportrock membership benefits, in addition to the great perks listed below.t

Youth Team Costs & Benefits

S1: Recreational Team
$40/month team dues
$60/month membership
Free equipment rentals all the time
Free Basic Skills class for parents
Discounts on Private Instruction
Discounts on Summer Camp
Discounts on Private Outdoor Guiding

S2: Advanced Team
$100/month team dues
$60/month membership (+$25 startup cost for first time team members)
Free equipment rentals all the time
Free Basic Skills class for parents
Discounts for Summer Camp
Discounts on gear
Discounts on Private Instruction
Discounts on Private Outdoor Guiding
Team yoga
One reduced cost team outing
One team lock-in

S3: Competitive Team
$150/month team dues
$60/month membership (+ $25 startup cost for first time team members)
Free equipment rentals all the time
Free Basic Skills class for parents
Discounts for Summer Camp
Discounts on gear
Discounts on Private Instruction
Discounts on Private Outdoor Guiding
Team Yoga
One reduced cost team outing per season
One team lock-in
Access to one reduced price outdoor trip

OUR COACHES

taylor-1

TAYLOR REED

DIRECTOR OF THE SPORTROCK PERFORMANCE INSTITUTE
jeff-1

JEFFREY SHOR

DIRECTOR OF YOUTH PROGRAMS
alex
ALEX BROWN

ALEXANDRIA HEAD COACH OF COMPETITIVE TEAM

Alec
ALEC MOORE

ALEXANDRIA HEAD COACH OF ADVANCED TEAM

chris-1
CHRIS OSHINSKI

STERLING HEAD COACH OF COMPETITIVE TEAM

lisa-1
LISA CONNELL

STERLING HEAD COACH OF ADVANCED TEAM

FAQ

Why are There “Suggested Age Ranges” for Recreational, Advanced and Competitive Teams?

The age ranges for Recreational, Advanced and Competitive teams are “suggested age ranges” based on the American Development Model (ADM). Sportrock has established criteria to determine team placement, with age being heavily weighted, but not solely determining. Age exceptions will be made on a case by case basis.

When are Tryouts?

There are no official tryout dates for the Sportrock Youth Teams. If your child would like to join one of our teams, please fill out this form. This will help us place them appropriately. We allow rolling admission based on availability.

The teams are structured to encourage movement between teams so that athletes are practicing with the group that matches their own personal level of development. 

After the season gets started, If an athlete wants to try out for another team, please reach out to [email protected]. If an athlete meets the criteria to move to another team, they will be paired with a team member already participating with that team and invited to attend practices for a two week trial period. After the two weeks, if it is decided that the placement is a good fit you will be sent a link to sign up and start paying the dues of the new team.

If you have further questions please feel free to reach out to [email protected].

What is the American Development Model?

“The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee, in partnership with the National Governing Bodies, created the American Development Model in 2014 to help Americans realize their full athletic potential and utilize sport as a path toward an active and healthy lifestyle. The model utilizes long-term athlete development and quality coaching concepts to promote sustained physical activity, athlete safety and age-appropriate development with the aim of creating a positive experience for American athletes across all levels of sport… 

Key Principles:

The (ADM) suggests that quality sport experiences should incorporate five key principles to help keep more Americans engaged in sport:

  1. Universal access to create opportunity for all athletes
  2. Developmentally appropriate activities that emphasize motor and foundational skills
  3. Multi-sport participation
  4. Fun, engaging and progressively challenging atmosphere
  5. Quality coaching at all age levels

Key Outcomes:

By creating early positive experiences for all athletes, the ADM will help keep more children engaged in sport longer with four clear outcomes:

  1. Grow both the general athlete population and the pool of elite athletes from which future U.S. Olympians and Paralympians are selected
  2. Develop fundamental skills that transfer between sports
  3. Provide an appropriate avenue to fulfill an individual’s athletic potential
  4. Create a generation that loves sport and physical activity, and transfers that passion to the next generation” (https://www.teamusa.org/ADM)

How does my child register for competitions?

Youth climbing competitions are organized by USA Climbing. In order to qualify for Regionals, Divisionals and Nationals your child must be a registered member with USA Climbing at a cost of $95 for the full year. There are two seasons of competitions – Bouldering Season, which runs from September to March and Sport & Speed Season, which runs from April to June. A list of upcoming competitions in our region can be found at USA Climbing. 

Note that the American Development Model (ADM) encourages athletes under the age of 13 to focus on skill development, and to wait until after an athlete reaches the age of 13 to start competing. 

Can I freeze my membership?

You can request to freeze a membership by submitting a change request. Change requests must be made via email ([email protected]) or online before the 1st of the month.

 

Team dues for the Recreational, Advanced, and Competitive Teams will be tied to Sportrock membership contracts. If you freeze your membership during the season, your team due will also be frozen. 

 

Freezing a membership will reduce your monthly payments to $5 a month. While your membership is frozen you will not have membership access to the gym. 

To unfreeze you can submit another change request, or just unfreeze at the front desk. When you unfreeze you will be prorated the remainder of the month and your automated billing will reactive the following month. 

Further information regarding memberships and membership freezes can be found here

New to Sportrock?

Take a few moments to complete our Participant Agreement. All minors must have an agreement signed by a parent or guardian on file with Sportrock in order to participate. Parents, if you plan to stick around for practices, spectators are required to sign an agreement too.

For more information on our Youth Team programs, please email [email protected]

SARS-COV-2/COVID-19 Update: Sportrock is OPEN with limited offeringsClick to read all updates and new facility policies