We had a camper here this summer who’s an elite U13 quarterback.
Has a cannon. High schools recruiting him. Getting all the accolades, all the attention that comes with being really good at one thing.
In the world, he’s a football player. Plain and simple.
But at camp, he did a lot of different things.
Played ping pong. Shot hoops. Spent time at A&C, laughing constantly.
Still got to compete for sure, played U15 flag football with older kids, and hit a buzzer-beater shot against our rival camp to win an inter-camp basketball game.
Just awesome.
By end of summer, he wasn’t “The Quarterback”. He was just a kid who did cool stuff at camp.
I’m positive this still really matters.
Having range
David Epstein’s book Range is a great way to think about this, and how camp fits into a world that’s becoming hyper-specialized.
He compares two paths to excellence: Tiger Woods versus Roger Federer.
Tiger started golf with Earl at two. Early specialization, intense focus, obviously became one of the greatest golfers ever.
Federer?
Played tennis, basketball, swimming, handball, volleyball, soccer, and badminton well into his teens.
His parents actually forced him to keep playing other sports when he wanted to focus only on running around with a racket.
Range hits on something that’s still somewhat counterintuitive: there are way more Federers than Tigers among elite performers.
Most successful people had a “sampling period,” trying tons of things before finding their path.
And Epstein sums it up perfectly with, “Learning stuff was less important than learning about oneself.”
Most of our campers aren’t going to play Division I sports or become professional artists. This isn’t a hot take.
But more and more, kids are being siloed into specific paths without a chance to range out much beyond their one skillset or core interest.
Why this matters
I love sports. Love competition.
Every year I overdraft Bills on my fantasy team just because I want to root for them. It’s a stupid strategy, but it did get me second place in my family league. Sorry brothers. And week 1 vs the Ravens… Game of the season?
I also think traditional camps like K&E might be one of the last places where kids get to resist the pressure to specialize early.
During the school year, it’s super easy for kids to get locked into tracks.
One sport all year round.
One instrument, start to finish.
Everything scheduled, everything focused.
And honestly, that’s totally fine. I get it.
Camp is different. We’re intentionally designed for a wide range of, well, for lack of better word, stuff.
Summers used to be about running around, getting up to a bunch of different things. Playing different sports. Having different hobbies. But that’s become increasingly rare.
Camp is one of the few places left where kids might do arts and crafts right after playing soccer, right before swimming, which was right after theater.
Follow that? Nice.
We’re not anti-excellence. We’re pro range.
That QB? Still an incredible athlete.
But at camp, there’s creativity, collaboration, and curiosity about things that had nothing to do with football.
Your child experienced the same thing. Range.
Protecting summer
Camp parents make a choice that’s becoming increasingly rare.
Camp used to be one of the only places for kids to play sports.
We were the sports place because there weren’t enough leagues everywhere. Now that’s not the market. Every town has travel teams.
Same thing’s happening with ropes courses. We used to be one of the only places where kids could try that. Now every mall has one.
Where are there places kids can still get up to open-ended arts & crafts without a big lesson plan?
What about trying out some skits without joining the whole theater production?
Camp is like buying the album when kids can get every song in their pocket.
But if the world is moving one way, and we’re still doing things another way intentionally, then that’s worth something.
And trying different things remains a great long-term play for kids.
You are giving this range to your kids.
The research backs you up. Your instincts were right.
Range isn’t the enemy of excellence. It’s the foundation for it.
You got this,
Jack
PS: Have you ever thrown a party or invited people to an event? The unknown is stressful.
Registration for camp is open and it really helps me sleep at night knowing who is coming.
Register here
Or reply "Hey Jack can we talk about camp?" if you have questions, want to know more, or want me to just register for you.