City recreation numbers are slipping because Cheyenne officials aren't getting the job done

(EDITOR’S NOTE: The following column was prompted by reports that pricing and other issues have caused the number of Cheyenne residents using city recreation programs to decline. Former City Council member Richard Johnson requested attendance numbers from Cheyenne officials. You can see them for yourself by clicking here: rec attendance)

Take me out to the ball game,

Take me out with the crowd;

Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack 

I don't care if I never get back.

Let me root, root, root for the home team,

If they don't win, it's a shame.

For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,

At the old ball game.

-- “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” Jack Norworth, 1908

BY RICHARD JOHNSON

Cheyenne adult sports recreation has always been a hot mess. 

I don’t know if it’s the competitive nature or the alcohol that seems to break down the good sportsmanship, but for years I have gotten the same complaints. Now, how do you fix them?

The number one complaint always seems to be about the past and how things were better then. I don’t know where this entitlement comes from, but Cheyenne seems to think it deserves the best with little or no effort to improve it. 

I’m sure

Youth basketball is among the sports offered by the city of Cheyenne.

most at the top of City Hall would just as soon close all the programs down and put the money into road construction.

It would seem there is lack of motivation to get people excited about recreational sports. The quality of the playing areas is becoming dilapidated; the costs keep going up; the divisions skills assessment is out of whack; and there seems to be no leader who can put Humpty Dumpty together again. Here’s what the community has to say:

“It sucks when you sign up every year and hope to get a division for your team’s skill level. Then when you ask for a low-level placement, you get told that there is nothing you can do about it. Another 12 weeks getting your ass beat is demoralizing and not very fun. The city basically keeps your money and holds all the cards. The guy who runs it acts like he is the king and you are all the peasants for him to punish.”

“Most of the complaints I hear is about (recreational specialist Scott) Redman’s lack of passion and care. I think we need a younger, more enthusiastic director. Just need new blood!”

“Softball has had a slow decline for years. Teams are leaving all sports as prices continue to go up and we receive less and less games. Peoples lifestyles have changed, and many aren’t playing because the commitment is too long and too expensive.  Not all teams can find a sponsor willing to cut checks to play for $400 to $900.”

“Tournament are taking a huge hit since I've been in high school. It seems like there's barely any teams in any tournaments now. I think a way to fix that is to have better prizes. Granted, a lot of the tournaments are for charity, but when you have you have 10-12 teams paying 300 bucks a piece and all they get is $50 worth of hoodies back, that's a huge turnoff for softball teams in this in this area. … Teams have no problem driving an extra hour and a half to go down to Fort Collins or Denver or somewhere else in Colorado just because the competition is better and there are better prizes.” 

“The program used to be fun and fair, and people would come from all over to play tournaments. The cost got so high, the turnout went to the crapper. The tournaments suck. The marketing for them is awful or non-existent. One more thing. I ended up paying fees for a few of our girls every year. Some families can’t afford the $70 to join. I’m sure a lot of kids/adults would join if the fees were cheaper. The fees don’t even include what the sponsor pays.”

“A few reasons. They got rid of the end-of-season tournaments, where the best team ended up with trophies. The last couple years everyone got a stupid medal, and there were no “winners.” The 2018 year was just ridiculous trying to find fields to practice on. This year they only had enough girls in the 14u league to fill two teams. They wanted us to play the same damn team 16 times. They don’t do anything to try to get more girls involved.”

“The adult league needs better adjustment in leagues based on talent. Many of the teams sandbag, which doesn’t make competing much fun.”

“Be more flexible. Being on the base team the past couple years we always go down to a tournament in Colorado Springs and everyone has to leave on Thursday. We asked him to reschedule us for that Thursday game and they say no so that counts as a forfeit. Two forfeits you're out of the league. At least allow each team to have one day before the schedule is made to request off.”

“Softball here is a joke, and that's why we all go play in Colorado every weekend. The Brimmer fields are absolutely terrible; the infield is a shame. The snack shack doesn't even have ice so if someone were to get hurt ...”

“They put a lot of young people or those with no knowledge of the sport as head umps or refs and consistently raised the cost for teams to play, but they couldn’t come up with additional courts for the sports.”

“Junior league baseball: less and less games because enrollment is down. The grass from the infield has been removed so the fields flood, then games get canceled and are not rescheduled. Season end tournaments went from double elimination to single elimination. Bathrooms only open half the time.”

            “The grounds were always clean. And bathrooms too. But there was quite a few umpires who were rude, disrespectful, one-sided, and played favorites with certain teams. And concessions could be a bit better. They said we couldn't order nachos the last two games because the city refused to buy more chips so late in the season. So that was a bit cheap on their part.”

“So maybe making divisions more realistic. We were Division 2. We won our division, but we are so far from Division 1 none of our team wants to play next year in Division 1. That sucks. Potentially losing a team, which means losing money.”

“Absolutely poorly! Adult rec sports in Cheyenne is an embarrassment compared to cities around the region. Our fees increase every year while the conditions of fields decrease. We never see a return of our money spent for registration fees. …We get fewer games each year despite our fees staying the same or increasing.  There is only one major tournament for softball in Cheyenne, and the city director Scott Redman profits off that tournament, not the city. The city does not run one single tournament. This year they attempted to run three but got zero entries. … Cheyenne is completely lacking when it comes to adult rec sports. Check the number of teams from 15 years ago. There has been a drastic decline the last 5-8 years. Most of us have given up and play in Fort Collins or Windsor now.  At least there we get our money’s worth.”

“The problem lies with the city officials running rec sports. There is so much want from people here to have a solid rec league for all sports, but people including myself do not trust the city because of years of bullshit. Teams refuse to enter city run tournaments because we do not trust where our money goes. It sure doesn’t go back to improving the softball fields or paying for more volleyball games or spreading advertisement for our sponsors. Our fees increase while other projects for the city get funded. At least that’s what it looks like from us as players.”

“Sponsors pay our fees or the fee is split amongst the players and poof nobody knows where that money goes, but what we do know is it never comes back to the softball fields or the volleyball courts or as advertising for our sponsors. Compared to cities/towns around Cheyenne, Cheyenne appears corrupt and lacking. Cheyenne’s own residents drive an hour south to play for cities in Colorado or east to play in Nebraska.  Cheyenne city-run rec sports suck!”

As you can see, no much positive there. So what can be done about it? 

Maybe the city needs some motivation. What kind of encouragement does it give team captains when the city throws its own management team under the bus and says, “She’s making me do this.” 

The continuing pin-the-tail on the appointment is happening at all levels. Everyone has so many hats on that they don’t know where to even start. People getting hired to clean up the cemeteries are now in charge of accounting. 

Didn’t the city just gerrymander all their departments for more fluid actions. It looks like it’s doing wonders. 

Play ball!

            Richard Johnson is a former City Council member from Ward 3 on Cheyenne’s east side.