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For any lacrosse parent, or really any sports parent who has spent a weekend at a tournament, the folding wagon for sports is a hot topic. My wife and I have been fighting about it for the last four years, and yes, as usual, I have yet to win the argument.
To properly portray both sides of this very serious discussion, we are doing something different. Instead of writing this post in one voice, we are both going to give our perspectives. You decide who is right.
The Dad’s Perspective
I HATE THEM. Hope that was clear enough.
For anyone new to club lacrosse or travel sports, let me back up for a second. A wagon is exactly what it sounds like — one of those folding wagons for sports that seemingly every tournament family drags across the fields. The idea is you load it up with all the weekend’s gear and cart it from the parking lot to the team tent. Sounds reasonable in theory. In practice, it is one more thing I have to jam into an already overstuffed car.
Yes, there is a lot of stuff to transport back and forth. I am not arguing that. But the wagon becomes just one more item on the list of stuff — and a bulky one. There are enough hands. Six to ten, depending on how many of us are at the tournament. The kids can and should carry their own equipment (a whole separate blog post coming on that one, and every parent needs to read it).
That leaves chairs, snacks, coolers, and whatever else we are hauling that weekend. I would rather make two trips than try to cram that wagon into the car.
In full disclosure, I have purposely tried to “forget” to pack the wagon on more than one occasion. As you will see from my wife’s response, that has not worked yet, and it never will.
If there are any moms out there who think like me, or dads who have actually won this argument, please comment below. Most likely you are like me and have quietly succumbed to the pressure.
While I did not win the bigger war, I did get a say in which wagon we ended up with. I held out for the one that met my wife’s minimum requirements AND folded up easily enough to actually fit in the car. This is the exact one we have had for the last three years. If you are going to get one, this is my suggestion.
The Mom’s Perspective
So, he’s crazy.
The wagon is the most important piece of gear you bring to a tournament weekend. Moms, listen to me. You need one.
Let’s start with the obvious — getting all the stuff from the car to the team setup area. Anyone who has been to a tournament knows parking is rarely close. We have literally had 10 to 15 minute walks from the lot to the fields. You think my husband is really going to make two trips? No. It would be me, him, and the kids trying to carry five things each in 95-degree heat. Not happening.
The cooler alone makes the wagon worth it. Cold drinks, ice for the kids’ water bottles throughout a long tournament day, snacks that have to stay fresh. Nobody wants to carry that cooler on a 15-minute walk in the summer.
But here is what most new club parents do not think about. The wagon is not just transportation. It becomes your family’s home base at the tournament.
The team setup area is usually a tent with 20 to 25 kids’ worth of families cycling in and out. It gets cluttered fast. The wagon gives our family a central spot in that chaos — our own little station. That is huge over a two-day weekend.
There are other uses I did not appreciate until we had one. Your kid wants a tournament t-shirt? You better buy it early before it sells out. Who wants to carry that bag around for the next eight hours? Not this mom. The wagon — perfect spot.
Now, while I was never going to let us skip buying one, I did compromise on our first wagon. It works fine. But there are real Cadillacs out there on those sidelines when it comes to folding wagons for sports. When we replace this one, I am going all in — this is the wagon I have my eye on.
Double-decker, water bottle holders, and still collapsible enough to fold into the car and keep my husband’s complaints to a minimum. This is my next piece of tournament travel gear.
“The wagon is not just transportation. It becomes your family’s home base at the tournament.”
So — Wagon or No Wagon?
Seven years into club lacrosse life and this argument is still going strong. She is going to keep buying them. I am going to keep trying to leave them in the garage. Neither of us is backing down.
So we are throwing it to you. Wagon or no wagon? Drop a comment below and let us know which side you are on.
What Goes IN the Wagon?
Wagon or no wagon, the bigger question is what you are hauling to the fields in the first place. If you have ever shown up to a tournament missing something critical, you already know — there is a right way to pack for a tournament weekend, and most of us had to learn it the hard way.
In the coming weeks we will be publishing our complete Tournament Weekend Packing List — everything seven years of tournaments have taught us to bring, and just as importantly, what to leave home. It is coming with a free downloadable checklist you can use every weekend.
Scroll down to join the ClubLaxLife community and we will send it straight to your inbox when it drops.