Man, football gear ain’t cheap, especially when you’ve got kids growing like weeds at our Community Christian School. My nephew was signed up this year, and looking at the equipment list? Whew. My wallet felt lighter just scanning it. Helmet, shoulder pads, cleats… the whole nine yards, adding up fast. Forget eating out for a month! So, I rolled up my sleeves. Saving cash became my mission.
The Eye-Watering Sticker Shock Phase
First stop? The brand new sporting goods store downtown. I walked in all positive, thinking maybe it wouldn’t be that bad. Wrong! Grabbed a decent-looking helmet off the rack. Turned it over. My eyes nearly popped. $150? Seriously? Shoulder pads weren’t much kinder, hovering around $100 for entry-level ones. Cleats? Another easy $50-$75. Add in girdle, practice jersey, mouthguard… it was looking at over $300 minimum for brand new stuff.
Switching Gears to Secondhand Savvy
No way I was dropping that much upfront. Time for Plan B. I started digging into other options. Remembered some folks talking about a local youth sports consignment sale happening that weekend. Packed up the nephew and drove over early Saturday morning.
Boom! Hit the jackpot. The place was buzzing. Racks and tables piled high with gear from last season. Here’s what worked for us:
- The Helmet Hunt: Found one in almost perfect condition. Sniffed it (weird, I know, but gotta check!), checked the pads, inspected every strap. Solid. Got it for $60. Score!
- Shoulder Pad Scouting: Took longer. Kid needed youth large. Found one set looked barely used, padding firm, no cracks in plastic. Another one felt like mush, skipped that. $40 landed us the good ones.
- Cleat Compromise: He really wanted the super flashy new $80 cleats. Nope. We found a used pair of good brands (Adidas/Nike) in his size. Soles were still firm. $25 made it happen.
Mouthguard? Brand new ones at the pharmacy were cheap, got one for $8. Practice jerseys? Found two lightly used for $10 total. The girdle? Took the nephew to a discount store like Ross, grabbed a basic compression girdle for $15.
Big Win & Bonus Tips
Tallying it up? Helmet ($60), Pads ($40), Cleats ($25), Girdle ($15), Jerseys ($10), Mouthguard ($8). Grand total: $158. HALF of what just the helmet and pads would’ve cost new! Kid was psyched with his gear, I wasn’t broke.
The key takeaways that saved my bacon?
- Consignment Sales Are GOLD: Seriously. Check local ones, Facebook groups for “Youth Sports Gear Swap,” or stores specializing in secondhand gear.
- Inspect Everything: Don’t just grab. Look hard, smell it (weird, but telltale!), bend the plastic, check pads, try it ON the kid right there.
- Patience Pays Off: Took a couple of hours digging at the sale. Worth it.
- New Isn’t Always Necessary: Cleats? Girdle? Practice jerseys? Absolutely fine used. Save the big bucks for key safety gear like the helmet where you inspected it thoroughly.
- Mix and Match: Didn’t find everything used at the sale? Supplement with discount stores or online deals for the smaller, less critical items.
So yeah, outfitting a kid for community christian school football doesn’t have to bankrupt you. It took some legwork, some digging, and putting aside the “brand new” pressure, but we got him safe, functional gear and kept the cash flowing. Ready for the season now!