Is it too late for 9 y. old boy to learn hockey? (Duluth: calculated, association)

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by Clifford63

Hockey is to Minnesota like surfing is to Hawaii. This omnipresent and almost inexplicable thing that says you must try it if only to gain some perspective of what the vibe is all about.

The only form of ice sport that I was any good at was broomball.

[Ghengis]

Originally Posted by rcsteiner

The only form of ice sport that I was any good at was broomball.

If I do say so myself, I'm still pretty good at Margaritas.

[nowitsshowtime]

Originally Posted by golfgal

You do realize that the age span between 6-16 is about the same as 9-19 right. Again, the skill set in hockey is NO harder to learn than it is in any other sport.

I definitely disagree with this.

Whether its learning to skate (step one), while most other sports you already know how to walk, run, go backwards, etc. Now do all that at a fast pace while trying to move a small puck fast and accurately to another small destination, and then try to quickly and accurately shoot that puck 3.5 feet off the ground and just inside the post.

These just aren't natural skills that you pick up over the years. Through life you naturally learn how to run around, move around, throw things connected to your hand.

Go take a stick and take a snap shot, I could probably watch you for an hour try to get the puck an inch off the ground

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by nowitsshowtime

I definitely disagree with this.

Whether its learning to skate (step one), while most other sports you already know how to walk, run, go backwards, etc. Now do all that at a fast pace while trying to move a small puck fast and accurately to another small destination, and then try to quickly and accurately shoot that puck 3.5 feet off the ground and just inside the post.

These just aren't natural skills that you pick up over the years. Through life you naturally learn how to run around, move around, throw things connected to your hand.

Go take a stick and take a snap shot, I could probably watch you for an hour try to get the puck an inch off the ground

Played plenty of "pond hockey" as a kid, it just isn't that difficult. Try going to the golf course. I bet I can watch you for an hour and not get your ball more than a foot off the ground or more than 100 feet in front of you....

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Played plenty of "pond hockey" as a kid, it just isn't that difficult. Try going to the golf course. I bet I can watch you for an hour and not get your ball more than a foot off the ground or more than 100 feet in front of you....

I thought you said cross country running was difficult (the stride) and equally difficult as any other sport. Is golf the same level of difficulty as cross country? Cause I just jogged to the mail box and it didn't seem to hard.

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by golfgal

And the 100 kids that get cut from the Apple Valley wrestling program and the 1000 kids that get cut from the Apple Valley soccer program and the 400 kids that get cut from the Stillwater football program and the 800 kids that get cut from every sport except football at Eden Prairie. The only sports you don't usually find cuts are cross country and track--which is why we love those sports. Not getting cut and playing, however, are two very different things (except in Cross Country).

When our oldest was 4 we had him in a little soccer program in our town. There were 1500 kids in that program from ages 4-14, the roster at that high school for boys soccer carried 20 kids on the varsity team. What do you think happened to the rest of those kids??

It depends on what you mean by 'cut'. Is it not being able to participate? Or participate at the least competitive level? Don't get me wrong, I love Cross Country Running. I competed in High School and did rather well. I know some programs that had/have kis who were #12, 13, 14th runner on the team and would be #2,3 on some teams. This year Stillwater's 14th runner in a race ran a 18:12. An 18:12 runner would put them #3, 4 maybe 5 on the Varsity Teams I ran on. To me, I could never be that kid. Running a 18:12 and you're the last kid on the JV team!?!? If you know Cross Country Running, the Main Event is the Boys Varsity Race and that's where I wanted to be.

I came from a school where JV wrestlers would go to Varsity Tournaments and win. There were guys who were #3 at a certain weight but would qualify for state if they could.

Sports are great, but they can be so darn competitive. Bigger suburbs now offer Junior Gold programs and intramurals, but that's only bigger communities. But what's the glory in that, especially when you know you could be a regular at a different school.

I found a lot of politics in every sport I competed in - Baseball, Football, Hockey, wrestling and track... but never Cross Country... I love that sport.

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by golfgal

...
Similar analogy--if you and your 4 year old started piano lessons at the same time, practiced the same amount of time, you would be 3 books ahead of your child in 6 months because your brain capacity is such that you will learn that skill faster. Same with ice skating. If you started to ice skate the same time as your 4 year old, buy the end of your lesson you will be doing just fine where your 4 year old will still be falling down quite often AND at the start of the next lesson you will pretty much pick up where you left off, your 4 year old will have regressed some because their muscle memory isn't there yet.

I figured I'd dive into some of these inaccuracies. It's well documented that starting piano at an early age has some mental development advantages. Starting early is related to E.B.D. or Earlier Brain Development. There is a ton of research on the topic but part of EBD is related to establishing the brains electrochemical signals or the synapse wiring highway.

I was taught in college that you need to establish the synapse gaps early because "if you don't use it, you lose it"! For instance, Asian born teen who learns English cannot pronounce or hear the letter "V" (the word very sounds like "rary"). A German adult cannot hear or say "TH" (she will say "dat" versus that. It has been proven that everyone was born with the ability to pronounce every dialect in every language. So if someone learns English early enough, they won't have an Asian or German accent.

Back to the piano. While you are never too old to learn piano, it's well documented that the brains of early musicians have life long advantages INCLUDING being better piano players (see Music and the Brain: The Importance of Early Musical Training | Music Instinct | PBS ).

In sports, they value this early electrochemical synapse development in a different way. It's called "muscle memory". In reality, it has nothing to do with the memory of the muscle but everything to do with establishing the synapse gaps with a specific function. We all have muscle memory. We can jump back on a bike after not riding a bike for 30 years. Walking is muscle memory as well as driving. My son can type blazing fast but he learned at age 4. Again typing is "muscle memory". Of course there is a balance in worrying about starting too early. Generally speaking, Kid's that start very early burnout along the way and practice for the wrong reasons (false dreams of being a pro).

Re: Muscle memory: Same goes for hockey. You do not want to think about where the puck is on your stick so you don't have to look down and grasp what is going on around you. This allows you to "see the ice"). Not many Varsity high school skaters master this as they skate because their head is down too much. So earlier skating helps the muscle memory so you don't need to think about your legs and early stick handling development also allows a player to think about playing position usually allowing them to generate more shots on net. See The Breakfast Club | School Year Clinics | Minnesota Made Hockey
. Want proof that it works?? This "breakfast club" is a recent program but 22 of the breakfast club members were drafted in the NHL!


But at the end of the day, size and speed is the great equalizer. So a Kid with inferior edge work and terrible hands can trump a skilled player. But on average, there is an advantage of starting early in any sport or any instrument. Putting it another way, assuming you don't burnout a player or musician, that player or musician will be better because they started earlier. That should be an undisputed fact. There are mountains of data to support this very specific point. So it should go without saying that Kid's who start early have an advantage. And as I have been saying all along, that advantage will be too much for a 9 year old just starting out in a mega hockey associations where they cut over 1/2 the Kid's. But that doesn't mean that Kid's that start later in a typical MN association won't pass by others. I've witnessed it.

There is synergy with different sports. For instance "muscle memory" can be applied to a related sport. For instance a great hockey player who developed his "electrochemical signals" (a.k.a. developed muscle memory) can also take those eye hand coordination skills and more easily be a scratch golfer. Want proof? see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45cVT...eature=related

[Ghengis]

I have a theory that the ability to babble on incoherently and off topic, starts at an early age.

[nowitsshowtime]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Played plenty of "pond hockey" as a kid, it just isn't that difficult. Try going to the golf course. I bet I can watch you for an hour and not get your ball more than a foot off the ground or more than 100 feet in front of you....

I bet you I can, and i swing a club opposite way I shoot a stick. You do remember that golf is very popular among the elders, and for a reason.

I'll recognize and give golfers credit for being able to do what they do, but in the grand scheme of things, I can't say golf is just as difficult as hockey or any other sport.

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by Ghengis

I have a theory that the ability to babble on incoherently and off topic, starts at an early age.

My theory is smart alec's also start at an early age.