Here are the answers to the questions asked:

What are the costs involved to participate in club volleyball?

There are four main cost in playing club volleyball. The first is the club dues. This cost is usually a lump sum that many clubs will break into a monthly payment plan. This fee usually goes to pay the coaches, for gym practice time, and other things and can vary greatly between clubs. The second fee is the cost for tournaments. Club tournaments can range from $150-$900 per team. This cost is divided between the total number of girls on the team. The third main cost is for the volleyball attire including uniforms, warm-ups, shoes,etc. The last cost that also can be the highest is travel expenses. The hotel, food, gas, and flight cost can hit hard. Make sure you look at the tournaments that your club is attending before you choose to play for that club and count the travel cost. Some clubs try to keep cost down by staying locally to the Southeast area and other clubs fly around the US to play in larger tournaments. These trips will end up costing over $800 in travel cost alone for one tournament.

The main thing before you sign with a club is to find out all of the costs in these four areas. You may find that some clubs like to hide fees and bring them up later after you have signed with them. Other clubs lump all of their fees together so that you know exactly how much the total cost for the season will be. There will be no other fees to the club once this lump sum is paid. The clubs that do not give you one total cost for the season can constantly keep hitting you with hidden or non-hidden fees and although they look less expensive at the beginning at the end of the season they can end up costing you much more than you ever expected. Try to avoid these types of clubs or at least know that the fees will be coming.

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How many times per week do the teams practice?

Most clubs practice at least twice a week. Some of the elite clubs practice three or four times a week. You need to decide how much time you can give to practicing because club directors don't like for you to commit to their club and then only come to half of the practices.

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What if my child cannot attend each practice session?

The answer to this question depends on the commitment level of the club. Although no club wants you to miss practice ever, some allow it if you play another sport, have church functions, sickness, etc. Check each club's web site and talk to the director about what is expected of you during the season about coming to practice.

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Where are club practices held?

Club practices are held in gyms throughout the city. Some clubs have their own gym and everything is run out of there. Others do not have their own facility and they find whatever gyms they can. Many clubs use churches, schools, rec centers- where ever they can find gym space.

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What equipment does my child need to participate?

Some clubs supply the uniform for the players (included in their lump sum) but most require it to be purchased outsite of the lumpsum fee for club dues. Some clubs also require you to purchase a team package so that everyone looks the same. This may include warmup suit, shoes, socks, etc. Although it is not needed most clubs recommend knee pads for all of the players.
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Where do I go to sign up?

Most clubs have a web site where you can find info about signing up for try outs. Sometimes a club representative will come to the school either to practice or a game and hand out brochures with all of the necessary information. Web sites usually have the most up to date info.

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How many players are on each team?

The minimum is 6 but most teams have at least 9 players on them. The elite level teams may have more players-10 to 12.

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What are the age divisions available?

In South Carolina the youngest age division for teams is 10 and under. However, most of the larger tournaments do not cater to the U10 age levels. There are specific tournaments for the younger teams. Only a few clubs have teams for every age division from U12 to U18. This is one of our requirements to recommend a club. Most clubs (especially the smaller ones) will have teams based on who comes to try outs.

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Where are tournaments held?

Tournaments are hosted by clubs in different cities. A club will get gyms in their city to hold all of the divisions and teams in our region. Some times two clubs will combine and do a split tournament. In these cases the clubs will take what divisions they have the gyms for- power teams might be in one city while club teams are in another. Or 18s- 16s might be in one city while the 15-13 are in another. It is really up to the clubs that are hosting.

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What additional costs are involved in traveling to tournaments?

Many times the players are on there own to get to the tournament that are within driving distance. Either the players drive or the parents must drive them. Therefore gas is an obvious cost. Food at the tournaments is the next cost. Most of the time the parents bring healthy food for the players to eat throughout the day if it is a full day tournament. If the tournament is a multi-day event then the players are responsible for paying for their hotel arrangements- however usually the club director or team parent will make arrangements so that everyone can stay at the same hotel. Occasionally a club may decide to play in a tournament that is very far away and air travel is necessary. In these cases the player may be required to book a flight with the team to all arrive together and stay together at the same hotel. Many times parents will not attend these tournaments and the club is responsible for the players. If this happens be ready to pay for the coaches'/chaperone's flight and hotel also.

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What if my child is a beginner and doesn't know if he/she wants to participate?

Some clubs have a "try before you buy" feature, others do not. It is important to understand what level of club you are trying out for. Some clubs are meant for beginners and some are not. Don't expect something of a club that they are not telling you that they are going to give you. That is where most problems occur to make people unhappy with their club experience.

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Does everyone get a minimum amount of playing time?

This depends on the club. For example, at the club/regional level (lower level teams) the coaches try to get a fair amount of playing time for each player. Fair does not mean equal. At the higher levels and with elite clubs the players compete for their position and playing time and there may be no quarentee of playing time. Make sure you know what level you want before you join the club.

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Are the players required to do any fund raising?

Some clubs do have fund raisers but children are not required to participate if they do not want to.

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Who will be coaching my daughters?

The quantity and quality of coaches vary greatly from club to club. Most coaches are either coaches of high schools or middle schools. Some coaches are former college players or club players. It is a USAV requirement for the clubs to have a background check on all people that work with the players but it is up to you to make sure that your coaches has the necessary experience to coach your child. Some clubs do not make cuts and will keep any girl that comes to tyouts. This means that they might be making teams that they do not have quality coaches for. This is another one of our criteria for recommending a club. We do not recommend clubs that do not make cuts.