Marc Rademacher: Fort Collins Youth Athletics Interview
Marc Rademacher has worked as the City of Fort Collins Recreation Supervisor for almost 23 years. Marc studied at University of Northern Colorado and graduated with his bachelors in Recreation Administration. His impressive experience up close and personal interactions with Fort Collins youth sports made me curious as to what his personal opinions are surrounding certain topics. A Q&A follows below:
Q:There are hundreds of articles out there that talk about the benefits of youth sports, what do you think is the most important benefit to children who are involved?
A:It is hard to say what the most important benefit is to youth in youth sports. Youth sports teaches so many life lessons such as team work, rules, commitment, hard work to get results etc… It also has so many health benefits. But I think the most important benefit would be to provide a time that the child can have fun and to learn to love the sport.
Q:What makes Fort Collins youth sports unique ?
A:We are truly a recreational program. That means our philosophy states that all kids play equal playing time as long as they show up to practice. We also do everything we can to take the emphasis off of the scoreboard and put the emphasis on player development and enjoyment.
Q:What would you say to convince parents to enroll their children in this local program?
A:There is a time and place to make the sports more competitive and that happens through club play or when they begin playing through their schools.
Q:Have the numbers for Fort Collins youth sports involvement declined recently? This is a conversation happening nationally.. why do you think Fort Collins is or is not follow the trend of losing youth participation?
A:It depends on the sport. Tackle football we have been seeing declining numbers over the past few years. Basketball and the other sports stay pretty consistent. This year we saw a large increase in boys basketball participation.
Q:What is your personal view on tackle football after the recent studies of CTE have been released? Do you think tackle football has a future?
A:I do believe tackle football has a future. According to the National Federation of High School Sports it is still the #1 participation sport in America. Not to mention it is the #1 spectator sport.
USA football has done a lot of work and research to make the game safer. Today it is safer than it has ever been. Coaches are trained how to identify concussions and the steps to take before the player is allowed back to play. This was not the case for many years, that is why we had 2nd hit syndrome etc…
They have also begun training coaches on taking the head out of the game. A new technique called shoulder tackling is being taught all over the country, if kids learn how to properly use this technique to tackle we should see many less concussions.
Q:Does the City of Fort Collins always get enough volunteers for every sport and every season? What kind of volunteers are you looking for and how does the city reach out?
A:We always do find a way to get all the coaches. Sometimes it is calling parents and asking them to help out etc.. We really like to have college age students come and coach because it is not a huge time commitment and it really teaches the students about taking the lead on a team, working with parents, how to handle minor discipline in practice etc..
We do several things to find coaches, we have flyers in our facilities, we ask every parent when they sign their kid up if they are interested, and we do some advertising in the collegian and other places on the Colorado State University campus.
Q:Can you tell me what kind of an impact you think volunteers and coaches make on youth sports and the players?
A:Any coaches that coach kids have the ability to make a huge impact on the kids they coach. Coaches that teach character and good sportsmanship are the coaches that are remembered by their players. There is no question that the return rate in participation is based on if the kids are having fun, the kids have fun when the coach is a person that teaches the sport, is fair to everyone and can make it enjoyable.
