PROUD MOM: The example you gave with your son, was it at the Johnson County Tournament?

As with anything there are always at least 2 sides to every story....I will try to present the perspective from the other side.

We had a coach stop a match this weekend in the exact same position that PROUD MOM was in only our kid was the Novice wrestler. Given that I would like to offer our perception and our point of view....

1. If your intent is to give both kids "more mat time" I applaud you for your noble effort. However, I recommend that in the future you talk to the other coach so that both coaches understand what it taking place.

2. In our situation, the idea of more mat time doesn't hold water. We teach our kids to go out and compete as hard as they can. We understand that in some cases that may not be for too long given their level of experience. There is a difference between getting "mat time" that means something and being a "clinic" partner for someone who wants to demonstrate moves.

In our case that is how we perceived it. Our kid was getting nothing but embarrasment and very negative mat time. Our biggest concern is that the kids try and take away something positive from every match, that cannot happen if they are humiliated. For the most part, kids in this situation are first year wrestlers and a little older (9-14 years). They understand they are behind the power curve and so we try and define success for them in other terms other than wins and losses.

My hope is that our kid continues to wrestle and is not so humiliated that he quits (hence the comment about talking to us before hand). If that would have occurred then we could have worked together to help each other achieve the goals we have set for our kids.

My intent here is not to throw stones....it is to clarify perceptions and identify I method to work together if we ever end up in the same situation.

Proud Mom: If it was our boy that your son was up against please wish him luck the rest of the season. My goal is to be able to get our kids to a better level so we can be good competition for the opponents that are at the level of your son.