Hononegah Kids Wrestling Blog

As we rapidly approach the first weekend of tournaments, there are some dates and deadlines everybody should be aware of.  Please make sure you take a look at the dates that are provided on the tournament signup sheets that you were given at registration. 

Also, additional tournament signup sheets are always available in the black magazine rack that is located in the corner of the wrestling room near the stereo as soon as you walk in to the right.  Upcoming tournament signup/payment due dates are as follows:

• Stillman Valley Wrestling Club Holiday Tournament:
• Payment due by 12/1/2008
• Date of Tournament: 12/21/2008
• Location: Stillman Valey HS
• Level: Open to all levels; This tournament is very beginner friendly
• Genoa-Kingston Wrestling Club:
• Payment due by 12/1/2008
• Date  of Tournament: 12/20/2008
• Location: Genoa-Kingston High School
• Level: All 8 and under; any wrestler 9 and up who is not attending Wolves Dual Meet tournament; This tournament is very beginner friendly
• Rockford Bad Boys:
• Payment due by 12/1/2008
• Date of Tournament: 12/28/2008
• Location: Rockford East High School
• Level: Recommended for wrestlers with at least 2 years of experience to Elite level wrestlers
• Crystal Lake Wizards Vermillion Open:
• Payment due by 12/2/2008
• Date of Tournament: 2/8/2009
• Location: Crystal Lake Central High School
• Level: Recommended for wrestlers with at least 1 year of experience
• Belvidere Bandits Invitational:
• Payment due by 12/2/2008
• Date of Tournament: 12/27/2008
• Location: Belvidere High School
• Level: Open to all levels; This tournament is relatively beginner friendly
• Hononegah Kids Classic:
• Payment due by 12/5/2008
• Date of Tournament: 12/14/2008
• Location: Hononegah Dome
• Level: All club members are expected to sign up and wrestle

These are the signups that are due within the next week.  If you are not sure if the level of competition at a particular tournament is appropriate for your son, please ask a coach prior to signing up.  We will continue to try to provide as much guidance as possible on tournament selection.

Please make sure everybody has Sunday, 12/14 marked on their calendar as the day of our annual Hononegah Kids Classic tournament.  We have handed out letters to wrestlers explaining what help we need from parents, as well as what your son is being asked to donate.  Every wrestler is asked to donate something to the concession stand.  Please refer to your letter to find out specifically what you are being asked to donate.  If you have not received a letter, please let a coach know at practice. 

Also, all parents are required to work a shift at the concession stand on the day of the tournament.  This will not prevent you from seeing your son wrestle.  We always make sure we have enough coverage to allow parents to step out for a few minutes to watch their sons compete.  Please look for signups at practice. 

As always, please do not let any question go unasked or unanswered.  We have provided you with multiple ways to get in touch with people who are able to answer any question you may have whether it be about tournaments, volunteer opportunities, practice schedules or any other question that pops into your head.  You can find e-mail addresses and phone numbers of some of our coaches on the website.  Also, feel free to post a comment here on the blog and someone will be sure to answer your questions.

Thank you for the support you provide the program.  Please make every effort to have your son at practice no later than 5:50 pm to allow him time to get his shoes on and get ready to start promptly at 6:00 pm. 

-Coach Vince (vmzalapi@yahoo.com)

Posted by hononegahkidswrestling at 07:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Now that we are entering our 3rd week of practice, hopefully everybody is getting used to or re-acquainted with our routines.  I think we have all observed that the wrestling room is very crowded.  For those of you are returning,  I"m sure you've noticed that we are much more crowded than in years past.  Even though our numbers are up, we have still been able to maintain a reasonable amount of intensity, instruction and structure to the first few weeks that will certainly prepare our 100+ wrestlers for our first tournaments coming up in less than 2 weeks.

 This week our 10 and up age group will be practicing only one day, due to Thanksgiving.  Please make every attempt to be at practice on time and ready to make the most out of this practice.  When we come back next week, we will have only 2 more practices to get ready for our first weekend of tournaments.  On Sunday 12/7, some of you will be attending the Xtreme Challenge in Byron, while some of our elite wrestlers will be at the Neuqua Valley Invitational.  In addition, some will be attending the the Junior Golden Eagles tournament on Saturday 12/6.  We need to get the most out of our limited practice time to be prepared for these tournments.

 I'd also like to encourage all parents to taken in some High School Varsity meets this year whenever you can.  The High School Schedule can be found at http://www.hononegahwrestling.com/HSschedule.html.  The Varsity dual meet schedule will kickoff this weekend with a Triangular meet at East High School in Rockford against East and Auburn. 

Blog entries will become more frequent as we get into the heart of the season and there are more results, deadlines and information to announce.  Please do not hesitate to leave a comment with any thoughts, questions or discussion points you might have.

 -Coach Vince

Posted by hononegahkidswrestling at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This is the first blog entry for the new Hononegah Wrestling Blog. We are looking forward to a great season this year. We had record turnouts at our Kids Club registration days last week as word has spread about the success and rewards of the Hononegah wrestling program at all levels.

 

Things get underway Wednesday night (11/5) with our annual Potluck dinner in the HHS lunch room. The event starts at 6:00 pm. All levels kids through HS are invited to attend. Please bring a dish to pass.

 

Kids Club practices begin the week of 11/10. Ages 9 and under will continue to practice on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:00 - 7:30 pm. Ages 10 and up will practice Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm. Once Middle School Season begins, Middle School wrestlers will also practice on Wednesdays. More to come on start dates and times for Middle School wrestling.

 

There will also be a mandatory parents meeting at 6:00 pm on Monday, 11/10 in the Metal Gym for all Kids Club parents. Please be there promptly at 6:00 pm and plan on being there until about 6:30.

 

There are many things that we are excited about for the upcoming season. For the first time ever, we will be competing in some Dual Team tournaments. We have a Dual Team tournament on Saturday, 12/20 at Prairie Ridge HS for wrestlers 8 years and up. We have numerous weight classes we will need to fill and we will try to go at least 2 deep at each weight where ever possible. Also, we will be participating in the IKWF Dual Team State series for the first time this year. This team will be made up of Novice (10 - 12) and Senior (12 - 14) wrestlers.

 

In addition, we will hold two tournaments this year. The Hononegah Kids Classic will be held on Sunday, 12/14, and we will be holding a Beginners tournament on Satuday, 1/24 for 1st and 2nd year wrestlers.

 

Please take note of deadlines to turn money in for upcoming tournaments. We will do our best to notify you and remind you of upcoming due dates. There are tournaments every weekend that we attend. It is not mandatory to attend all tournaments. However, the coaching staff strongly suggests that all wrestlers try to compete in a minimum of 4 tournaments througout the season. If you are uncertain on what tournaments to attend, please talk to your son’s coaches for guidance. They will definitley have a point of view on which tournaments are best for your son’s level of experience.

 

We will also be scheduling scrimmages for some of our younger wrestlers with other clubs in the area. These scrimmages are great opportunities to get some mat time outside of practices and additional matches without having to spend an entire day at a tournament. We will let you know about these scrimmages a couple of weeks in advance of when they will happen. Look for them to happen on Saturdays and possibly a weeknight here or there at various locations througout the area.

 

Once again, welcome to another great season of wrestling! As always, please let us know any ideas you have on how we can better help your son and the wrestling program as a whole succeed.

 

-Coach Vince

 

 

Posted by hononegahkidswrestling at 10:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)