Overnight travel tournaments and driver's licenses

Seems simple enough for Coach to collect all keys or drivers licenses at a team meeting scheduled as soon as all the players arrive. That may be to severe, but it would sure put a damper on "opportunity"...

Legally, the key is whether you assume a duty of supervision in the absence of the parents. The mere fact that the parents do not attend does not impose obligations on you. If you start collecting keys, though, you are assuming the obligation and after you cross that bridge, you'd better keep up with it.

Personally, I would have a player contract under which the parents acknowledge that they remain responsible, not you, and if they choose to send junior out of town without their also coming, that's their business.

First, I hope you had all of the parents and players sign a "hold harmless agreement" wherein the parents understand that you can't monitor every minute of 2 dozen players when they aren't on the field. Yes, I'd take the keys if I'm uncertain about the kids I have playing for me. The parents would have to agree on that as well as them giving up their license.

BTW, someone is going to mention that a "Hold harmless agreement" might not stand up. Only in a case of willful neglect will you have trouble. Been there done that!

Contract or no contract, lawyer talk or no lawyer talk the bottom line is that if something happens since they are on your team will get hit with whatever they feel fit to hit you with----it takes money to defend yourself even if you are proven to be not at fault.

our legion team lets kids drive to games. a few are acouple of hours away. a was always afraid of the kids getting in accidents on the way. they do kalaka so more kids to pay attention.or more mischieve.

i don't like a few driving,especially far enough your staying over. i'd rather rent a van and keep them all together.

We have had a few nightmare situations where the entire team was there with only a few adults - kids with cars staying in rooms by themselves... an invitation for trouble, no question about it. We have NEVER allowed any of our kids to go out of town without either one of us going along or asking another family to personally take responsibility for them. I would never expect a coach to be responsible for multiple players in various rooms - impossible!

But we've even had players with parents there who were given permission to take cars and "explore" the town. Bad news. It's one of the things I liked LEAST about traveling baseball when the boys reached driving age. Most of the teams we were involved with had great parent participation at out of town tournaments, but it seemed there were always one or two who thought nothing of letting their sons drive to and from and stay alone in the hotel. One parent ended up driving 4 hours in the middle of the night when he could not get his son to answer his phone and his roommates had no idea where he was. Found him - but I think Dad learned a hard lesson.

I have to agree with Midlo - if I were coaching I would make it very clear that I was NOT taking responsibility for players who were allowed to travel to tournaments on their own. Parents should make their own arrangements amongst themselves, if need be.

I appreciate the responses so far. I'm an assistant coach. No one saw this one coming except me. I'm the only one with an older kid.

My daughter's last year of travel I didn't coach. There were tournaments I didn't make I let her drive. She had to travel with another player and only one player. I didn't want a party in the car. The car was not to move once arriving at the hotel, which was team policy.

Son was never on a team that played an away tournie where the coaches would allow them to drive. There were enough parents to take players and coaches took players as well.
Even on son's senior summer travel team, overnights were by bus or van.
Now,many years later I still wouldn't have it any other way, you get a ride with an adult, team rents a bus or you don't go.

There is also a matter of trust involved here as well as teaching the kids to become young adults. we like to treat the players like men but there is no screwing up--mess up once and you are done--those are the rules

Granted our kids are a bit older but they know the rules---we had one player try the party route the first weekend he was with us--no problems of any major consequence other than one of our coaches who left after work driving in right behind him --- too bad he was late arriving and getting up in the morning---Guess what?--he didnt play the next morning-- he became known as "Moonlight" and was never late again

On my sons 18U team this summer, most kids would drive one their own to tournaments. They stayed 3 to a room, and had no problems at all.

Maybe we got lucky, but the program he played for has done this for a long time. I know others that do the same.

I don't think at this age you can expect kids NOT to drive themselves if they are able to. Likewise, parents are not able to attend all the out of town tourneys, so many times kids will share rides together taking turns for each tournament or game.